Monsters University (2013)

[baumer]

Discuss

Edited July 3, 2013 by Telemachos

[Blankments]

I wrote off this movie as crap before I saw it. The trailers were unappealing, and I thought Pixar had lost their touch after two crappy movies in a row. The movie though was surprisingly good. Not as great as the original, but it's one of Pixar's funniest movies. I didn't know how it'd work as a prequel since the original's heart is all Boo, and a prequel removes that. However, the film still manages to tug the heartstrings along with being hilarious. It has also possibly the bravest message so far in a Pixar movie, one that is very effective and a great asset. Surprise of the year for me. A

[Noctis]

My friend is an enormous Pixar diehard, so I went to see this with her and I'm not someone who's a big fan of MU (I really like it, though). This surprised me on every level. It's a surprisingly sweet and sad tale on coming to terms with your qualities and abilities, as well as realizing that some dreams have to end, and it could be for the best. Beautiful animation (man, the headmistress was mesmerizing). 

 

A

[baumer]

This is one kids film I might see on my own.

[Gopher]

It still feels like a cohesive film, but narratively breaks off into three acts: Act I: We get reintroduced to Mike and Sully and fully introduced to the college. Goals and themes are introduced, some less obvious than others. It's the slowest section of the film, but it's still fun, and the character designs and attention to detail was more than enough to keep me interested. Act II: The Scare Games. This is the section of the film that's the most remnicient of animal house. Tons of clever setpieces, great laughs, and heartwarming moments. It ends how you might expect it to, but I felt disappointed because I thought they were wrapping things up too quickly. Until..Act III: The rug gets pulled out from under and the movie adds a whole new layer to itself. The climatic scene of the movie involves two characters just talking and it's a remarkable scene. The third act of this film ranks with Pixar's best work. It totally moved me. In short, I really liked it and it will probably be my favorite animated film of all of 2013.

[Cmasterclay]

Saw it two months ago, and I've reviewed it plenty, but it's my favorite animated movie in a long, long time. It certainly needs a few moments to breathe, making pacing an issue. But otherwise, I found it just as funny, rich, emotional, and beautiful as some of Pixar's best work. 

 

8.75/10 

[Goffe]

I hate myself for saying this, but MU is barely a good movie.

6.5/B-

It's occasionally funny and always beautiful , but lack the heart of all Pixar movies and the moral lesson is too much explicit

Edited June 22, 2013 by Goffe

[Sam]

It's a very good movie. I love it.

 

The animation is beautiful, character designs are amazing. One of the funniest Pixar movies, it had me and my friends laughing a lot. We're all college students, so all the jokes and some plot points hit home, we can relate to them, and I'm glad of that cause it made for us to enjoy the movie even more.

 

Monsters University is also a movie with lots of hearts. As some have pointed out here, Boo was definitely a catalyst for hearts and touching moments in Monsters Inc; but despite not having her, Monsters University felt just as touching and emotional. There are messages about friendships, about coming to terms with your abilities, your potentials, but never forget to try your best, work your hardest anyway. Those are definitely very powerful messages that I can relate to personally.

 

I also enjoy the scores and songs. Mike Wazowski is seriously so adorable (Billy Crystal nailed him perfectly again with his voice performance)

 

I'd give the movie an A, just slightly below Monsters Inc, but that because Monsters Inc hold a special place in my heart as one of the Pixar animations I watched and loved growing up. This movie absolutely deserves a rewatch, and I plan on doing that very soon.

Edited June 22, 2013 by Sam

[Ezen Baklattan]

I sort of loved it.

 

Monsters University is one of the best things we could have gotten with a Monsters Inc. sequel (well, prequel.) There's a really fascinating story that combines the charm and brilliance of past Pixar fare, but the message really was great: You might not be able to live your dream, but you can still find something you love doing.

 

The supporting cast is also great. Helen Mirren is so badass as the headmistress, and Aubrey Plaza is also really fun to watch as the greek council president. I would have liked to see a bit more of Randall becoming sinister, as his development felt a bit rushed, but since this is Mike and Sulley's story, I'm okay with that.

 

My god, the animation in the was gorgeous. So many gorgeous details that I probably couldn't catch them all on the first viewing. (Many Pixar films are like that, and this one is set at a university, which is virtually a playground for in-jokes.) You could tell the people making this had a blast with it.

 

This is right up there with the rest of Pixar's pre-Cars 2 filmography, IMHO.

 

A-

 

 

 

[AniNate]

A very pleasant film that does nothing to sully* the Monsters or Pixar franchise. Scanlon and the writers come up with just enough clever twists to make the film rise above its "Revenge of the Nerds" formula, although not all of the jokes hit the target and the film doesn't stand very well on its own considering it's a prequel (you pretty much have to have seen the first for the way they portray Randall to make sense).

 

Solid effort from Pixar, but not one I imagine I'm going to be holding up as one of their more ambitious productions despite the bold subversion they put on the "you can do anything if you put your mind to it" message.

 

B+

 

*Pun incidental

Edited June 22, 2013 by tribefan695

[cozmeesah]

*Pun incidental

LOL!!

[Blankments]

Oh, but I will say the short sucked. One of Pixar’s worst, but it’s okay since I thought Brave sucked but its short was great.

[AniNate]

I wasn't a huge fan of the short either. Looked nice but the story was really lame.

[Noctis]

I adored the short. 

[Blankments]

I don't know, the short came off to me as a student trying to impress his professor by being obnoxiously artsy. Hey, I guess that kinda fits with the movie!

[Ezen Baklattan]

Cool visual design in the short, and some nice music from Jon Brion, but the story lacked a real sense of freshness and originality.

[Goffe]

I totally forgot about the short, It was so beautiful and funny. Loved it.

[luna]

I don't know, the short came off to me as a student trying to impress his professor by being obnoxiously artsy. Hey, I guess that kinda fits with the movie!

 

i suspect that whatever this movie is it is not artsy, lol

[lab276]

It was better than I was expecting to be honest. Heaps better than Brave.A-

[Silverice92]

I love the movie but I just have one question, where did Mike and Sully met?  College or 5th grade (mentioned in Monster Inc.)?

 

 

http://youtube.com/watch?v=cvOQeozL4S0