Despicable Me

I don't know how I would have reacted to Despicable Me if I'd seen it when I was a child, but as an adult, I found it hilarious. Hopefully the kids in the audience just adore the gibberish spoken by the little yellow minions and don't pay attention to the "mean humor" that is so popular in modern culture. Yes, it is a caricature of "root for the villain" - the lead character is literally a villain who enjoys committing world-scale crimes - but let's hope not too many people take to heart the jokes that involve popping someone's balloon and ruining an ice cream cone.

For grown-ups, it's a perfect comedy. We're old enough not to make Gru a role model, so we can laugh harmlessly at his bad behavior. The three kids he adopts are sweet even when they're snotty, and the rival villain is too idiotic for words. The silly, simple humor is guaranteed to put a smile on your face no matter how bad a day you've had - which is why it's perfect for exhausted parents to watch with their children. Endlessly quotable, this sweet movie is practically a modern classic.