Pixar's latest release is a sequel/prequel to the much-loved Monsters Inc, which is considered to be one of the best animations ever created, as well as one of my favourite childhood movies. Being a sequel, I was expecting the movie to be nowhere near half as good as Monsters Inc, thus lowering my expectations. This is what I thought.
So, as mentioned previously, Monsters University is a prequel to Monsters Inc, where the characters we have come to know and love during Monsters Inc are learning their trade in the scaring business at University. A few new characters are thrown in and here we have our movie.
After watching Monsters University all I can really say is that Pixar is back! Yes we have had a few disappointing releases such as Cars 2 and Brave in recent years but Monsters University really shows that the magic is still there. I really liked this movie.
One of the main reasons has to be that it didn't feel like a total re-hash of Monsters Inc. Sequels are notorious for either not raising the stakes high enough or just repeating everything that happened in the first movie. Monsters University gives us a new location, a new story and new characters mixed in with some old throwbacks to Monsters Inc that make a funny and entertaining movie.
One of the highlights of Monsters Inc was the relationship between Sulley and Mike. They aren't exactly friends at the start of this film. Sulley is a legacy child and is naturally scary, where as Mike is a real nerd who plays everything by the book. They are both given different personalities than the first movie giving them potential to develop as characters as the film progresses. This makes the film more intriguing as we did not see this in Monsters Inc.
As for the new characters, yes I really liked them as well. They really help illustrate how much of an underdog story this movie really is. Also, some lines made me howl with laughter. The little purple monster saying "I can't go back to jail" was my personal favourite!
As for the plot, some my say it is slightly predictable. I have to agree with you on that one. Being an underdog story it naturally is.
However, what this film does so well is the ironic elements in it. I'm not sure if that's the right word to describe it though? As an example, Randall is in this movie. He is the villain and main scare-rival to Sulley in Monsters Inc, so when he delivers some of his lines in this movie it's quite funny because you know he will end up as a villain in the near future. There a few other cool throwbacks, such as the CPA and Rozz.
Pixar have always been experts at comedy. They just have a unique style which again is very hard to describe but it works so well in movies like this and just make it that much funnier. The humour will appeal to children and adults, making it a great family movie.
As for the visuals, they are just as colourful and effective as Monsters Inc, which came out just under 12 years ago. My favourite has to be the eyes. They're done so well and do a fantastic job at portraying the mood and emotions of the characters. Pixar have always done that incredibly well!
My only real gripes have to be the predictable plot or that it isn't as good as Monsters Inc.
I laughed a lot and thoroughly enjoyed watching Monsters University and this is how I would rate it.
Rating - B
1 sentence summary - The magic of Pixar is evident yet again, with well-timed comedy and throwbacks to past films.
It's nothing revolutionary, but it's downright funny and entertaining, great for the whole family! The best animation of the year so far!
Have you seen Monsters University? What's your favourite Pixar film? Whatever it may be, please let me know via the comments section.
Thanks for reading,
Matt
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