Monsters University Review

I feel I should start out by pointing out how much I love animated films.  They are often so detailed and work on a lot of different levels. There are often jokes that go over children's heads, and of course they are written with the intention of making people smile.  Other comedies can be preachy or saccharine whereas an animated film gets away with more.

Monsters University is a prequel for Monsters Inc. I had my reservations because sometimes prequels and back stories are just a quick and easy way to avoid coming up with anything original. Monsters University, however, stuck closely to Mike and Sully as characters explaining how they met and following their time at University, showing where the friendships and rivalries in Monsters Inc. come from.  I think it works well as a stand alone film, and you do not need to have seen Monsters Inc. first although you will obviously get more jokes and references if you watch both.  

It has been a long time coming and I think it showed. The graphics were amazing and you could see the difference from the first film. The use of light was fantastic and showed in the outdoor scenes. The fur, slime, spikes and teeth all seemed very real and you could easily forget that you were watching an animated film. I thought the action in the library was amazing and something to look out for. 

Monsters Inc. relied on a human as a relatable character whereas by making the characters younger I feel that it would allow children to relate to the monsters and help with the “it is okay to be different” message. There was a lot of slapstick aimed at a younger audience. It is the sort of film I would be happy to let my daughter watch when she is older as it is a genuine feel-good animated movie with lots of silly parts. 

Both my husband and I laughed out loud. I found the observational humour very funny and clever. Using a University or School as a setting is a nice touch as the stereotypes of different groups is something most people can relate to. Although it is clearly set around the American system as a base I think a lot of it is still applicable. I know I saw both myself and some of my contemporaries in the characters.