Monsters University (2013)

Monsters University (2013)


Plot Summary

A look at the relationship between Mike (Billy Crystal) and Sulley (John Goodman) during their days at Monsters University -- when they weren't necessarily the best of friends.

Monsters University is a return to form for Pixar as the studio had fallen a bit off the track with Cars 2 and Brave but more subtly the studio had given in to the image of being a "sweet" all ages animation studio. Their movies were progressively becoming sweeter and sweeter and reaching for the moral/life lesson rather than mixing it with a good dose of laughter. MU is by no means a perfect recreation of the early days of Pixar but it was a lot closer to what we fell in love with in the first place as they really upped the humor quotient but at the same time had a story and a lesson to tell.

There's not much you can do with a "college/underdogs" type of film as the genre has been mined to death from the raunchy to the innofensive. So what did Pixar do to make this work? They essentially boiled down the best parts of the genre and distilled into a cohesive whole. The main story has to do with Mike wanting to become a scarer and working his butt off to do so but Sulley intrudes on his mission as he's a big, jock type who coasts on the reputation of his father. So you have the classic underdog/nerd type wanting to achieve something vs the jock who can do whatever he wants. The animosity between Sulley and Mike spills over into the classroom as they accidentally destroy the one momento of Dean Hardscrabble's (Helen Mirren) life as a scarer and she basically flunks them out of the class. Later on though Mike remembers a flier he got on his first day of school for the Scare Games and so he goes to join it at the last second but he needs to be part of a team and so he joins the lowliest fraternity with the biggest nerds/outcasts. Unfortunately he needs one extra member and it turns out to be Sulley. A deal is reached that if they win the Scare Games Mike and Sulley get reinstated. The rest is what you'd expect but there are some definite twists.....

The animation is to the high level standards of Pixar, especially the facial expressions and such. It's amazing how much emotion they ring out of a character who's essentially just a ball with one big eye. Mike doesn't have to say a word to get his feelings across. The writing however, is pretty inspired considering they were going for the funny this time around. There are a TON of visual gags to the point that almost every scene has something that you'd either laugh or smile at. The fraternity brothers from Oozma Kappa which Mike and Sulley join are very unique from the old sales guy right on down to the guy who lives with his mother in what so happens to be the fraternity house. The elevation of these characters from outcasts to guys who have a place in society was done quite well. In the beginning Mike and Sulley are basically trying to win it for themselves but they HAVE to work with their brothers and in doing so they bond and become a team. That's what this movie is all about when you scrape below the superficial surface. It's about working together and realizing that no matter what you look like or how awkward you are, you can belong in the world.

I also liked the twist on the hard ass dean/teacher trope as Dean Hardscrabble for most of the movie is pretty much a villain and we're rooting for her to get her comeuppance but at the very end of the movie we see she actually has a heart and has been proven wrong by Mike and Sulley. The animosity between Mike and Sulley softens as they begin to have an admiration for each other. It all comes to a head at the climax when they have to work together or they're doomed. (Let's just say they're way out of their element at this point)

The elements of the college movie are all there in this flick from the jock fraternity leader who thinks everyone is beneath him to the snotty brat girls. The only thing that's missing (and understandably so) is the scene of the nerds/underdogs ogling the cheerleader types when they're naked. It's actually quite impressive how much of the genre's conventions are in here for a G rated film. MU gets my recommendation and a solid *** stars.