In 1994, there was a lunch between four of the bigwigs of Pixar, ahead of the completion of their first feature film Toy Story. During that lunch, its director John Lasseter, Finding Nemo/WALL-E director Andrew Stanton, Monsters, Inc./Up/Inside Out director Pete Docter and Cars co-director Joe Ranft discussed future films to be produced. Amongst the numerous films discussed was Monsters, Inc. - borrowing elements from the original Toy Story of childhood beliefs being real and giving it a slight twist about it being part of a monster's employment. While the logistics of their training and the world itself was explored more in the 2013 prequel Monsters University, the scream-powered world of Monstropolis introduced audiences to a dynamic duo memorable to this day with or without a prequel while presenting the first of Pete Docter's ideas. And with Inside Out coming out fairly soon and already winning over critics worldwide, see whether his first was a scare-tacular Oscar snub or a fearfully overrated starting point.
When the lights are out and everyone is asleep, children all over the world occasionally have the fright of their life when a monster comes out of their closet and scares them. But on the other side of that door is an entire world of monsters who rely on those screams to power everything from lights to cars - a world where the population sees human kids as being toxic, and the decline in child susceptibility is leading to an energy crisis. Two such workers at Monsters, Incorporated are Mike and Sulley (Billy Crystal & John Goodman respectively), an unstoppable team aiming to break the all-time scare record and the company's hardest-working employees. But when Sulley inadvertently crosses paths with rival Randall (Steve Buscemi) and releases a human girl (Mary Gibbs) into their world, Sulley and Mike must ensure that the girl is returned to her world without suspicions from the CDA (Child Detection Agency), any of their co-workers and especially the ever-suspicious Randall and crony Fungus (Frank Oz).
The concept of monsters being employed to scare kids isn't an entirely new idea, but the way it's executed is certainly a smarter move thanks to early sequences of training, how the job is prepared and the daily lives of those monsters. Add the idea that they use children as a resource rather than 'just because', and you have a premise which is noticeably solid. Also strong is the main storyline revolving around the relationship between Mike, Sulley and Boo - leading to an emotional finale that never fails to pack a punch no matter how many times you watch it - as its growing path does lead to plenty of great moments and vocal performances by Crystal and Goodman. Alas, the plot regarding a conspiracy with Randall and Waternoose (James Coburn) does fail by comparison, as it lacks a whole lot of substance and both characters aren't all that engaging nor purposeful in their reasons as to why they're undergoing the elaborate plot. Certainly, Waternoose explains that it's due to the energy crisis at hand, but with that and the pre-explained facts about monster biology and child toxicity it still makes little sense. Meanwhile, Randall's part in it all seems more for some form of nemesis for Sulley who already has history with him. The later prequel shares light on why the two have bad blood to begin with, but within the confines of this picture there isn't much to play on outside of his more monstrous appearance.
With the animation format on a consistent path of growth since its mainstream introduction with 1995's Toy Story, Monsters, Inc. has opted to impress with its fur animation through Sulley's appearance - and a decade and multiple animation firsts since, it's still very impressive. But it's not all just through the simple character designs and executions (although the basis for various background monsters does begin to waver over time as they become more and more repetitive), but in the work done for the scenery, with a huge amount of praise of course deserving to the door sequence in the third act. A simply beautiful-looking segment which also offers up a lot of fun and an interesting final battle between henchman-like character Randall, its logically impractical capabilities mean nothing when considering the overall aesthetic of it all. That aside, it's still all solid stuff. With the medium still being relatively new (and restricted solely by Pixar and Dreamworks at this point) what it offers is strong stuff.
As the main duo on vocals, Billy Crystal and John Goodman are a dynamic duo worthy of being milked from for prequel purposes. They bounce off one another superbly, and for the characters they play no other could have done better. Goodman fits the big blue beast and Crystal is practically perfect as the smaller green eyeball. Mary Gibbs is a great voice for Boo, with her random ramblings (recorded by following her around the studio, seeing as she was only 2) cementing the pivotal child as being lovable enough for audiences. Steve Buscemi is menacing enough as Randall, but as aforementioned is a little lacking in the villainy department. However, he's also one of the more darker Pixar villains, going as far as strangling Sulley and releasing a door so he and Mike to fall to their deaths. Coburn's Waternoose is a likable enough employer but a rather iffy villain, while Frank Oz as Fungus adds very little outside of an initial crony for Randall. Jennifer Tilly is good stuff as Mike's girlfriend Celia although she does disappear for good chunks of the film, and Bob Peterson as Roz is just as hilarious as you remember it to be. And of course, there's the inevitable cameo from John Ratzenberger, this time playing a lovable Abominable Snowman.
Monsters, Inc. is a hilarious feature filled with heart and soul, and with various memorable characters and moments. At times heartbreaking and at other times gut-busting, its placement as one of Pixar's best originals needs no further explanation. But with an antagonistic plotline with a less than stellar pacing, it does pack quite a punch on the film as a whole. 8/10.
Revisitations will return after a two-week hiatus.
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