Review of Monsters, Inc. (2001) by Matthew O — 22 Jun 2016

Like the TOY STORY films, I knew about MONSTERS, INC. for as long as I can remember. Granted, I didn't really watch it that much as a little kid, mainly because I remember being absolutely horrified by some of the imagery. But I do remember a lot from it. Also, if you didn't know, this was the first Pixar film not to be directed by long-time Disney animator John Lasseter, but by storyboard artist Pete Docter. So it was a pretty risky move to hire a screenwriter for their fourth film. Could Pete Docter direct a good Pixar movie?

Yes he could, I loved MONSTERS, INC. and I still do. Like any great animated film, it has a fun and original story with a really creative setup, entertaining and memorable characters with their own unique designs, a lot of great jokes, and has a lot of heart to it. It's not an entirely original concept, we've seen the idea of monsters scaring children and have them return to their own world of monsters as if it's some sort of job. But they have this creative way on why they do this, the screams that the children give off harness the energy that powers the monsters' city. It's also pretty funny that they make the monsters think children are extremely toxic, ironically making the monsters terrified of innocent children.

Our two main characters, Mike and Sulley, are very enjoyable and perfectly voiced by Billy Crystal and John Goodman. The chemistry between them work off really well, I genuinely feel they have a strong friendship. People seem to have real mixed feelings for the little girl, Boo. Some find her absolutely adorable and some find her really annoying, and I can see both sides of that. Personally, I find her absolutely adorable. The relationship with Boo and Sulley is the heart of the film. I love how the bond between them grows as the film progresses. And when they eventually had to separate at the end, it's a very sad but touching departure because you really feel something for them. Pretty much anything with these three characters are great.

The villains, on the other hand, aren't all that interesting or even enjoyable, at least when comparing them with the protagonists. I like the designs on them, but their characters are pretty under-developed. Randall is the typical jealous villain who just wants to be the best of the best. Mr. Waternoose doesn't want the company to go out of business, but he should know that he's obviously not doing the right thing to stop it from happening. There really isn't a whole lot to these characters, you could've made them diabolical and a lot more enjoyable.

This film also throws in a lot of humor using many forms of comedy, and for the most part it delivers, which by definition makes this the funniest out of all the Pixar films. It's humor that both kids and adults can enjoy, even though a lot of the humor is kind of childish. The animation is also really well done. The unique designs on the monsters really stand out and makes each character much more memorable. The textures on some of them look amazing. Take a look at Sulley's fur, the details are unbelievable, you could practically see every individual hair on him. And the way they animate the scene where they go through all these doors makes the climax a ton of fun to watch. It's like being in an amusement park ride.

Even though I don't think MONSTERS, INC. is among the greatest Pixar films, I still love it. The concept is very creative, the comedy in it really works, most of the characters are very entertaining, and the animation still looks really good. That's more than enough to recommend.

Grade: A-.