Blu-ray Review: Monsters, Inc.

Movie Info:
Writer: Pete Docter, Jill Culton
Director: Pete Docter, David Silverman
Cast: John Goodman, Billy Crystal, Mary Gibbs, Steve Buscemi, James Coburn, Jennifer Tilly, Bob Peterson, John Ratzenberger, Frank Oz
Rating: G
Studio: Pixar

Release Info:
Original Theatrical Release Date: November 2, 2001
DVD Release Date: November 10, 2009
Online Availability: Amazon for $21.49

It’s hard to ignore the power of a Pixar film. With eye-catching animation and stellar storylines, Pixar has been sweeping the field and gaining fans left and right ever since they hit the streets. I have been a fan since day one. Toy Story is still one of my favorites and the sequel was equally as endearing, even if it was a sequel. Monsters, Inc falls in line as the fourth Pixar movie. In the line of gross and distribution it was the highest grossing in comparison to the movies that came before it. However, in the complete Pixar library it ranks as the fifth top grossing behind blockbusters like UP, Finding Nemo, Ratatouille, Wall-E, and The Incredibles.

Like many other Pixar films, Monsters caters to both adults and kids. Kids will find the storyline funny and the monsters, adorable (for the most part). Adults will enjoy a storyline that is not dumbed down for kids and the voice acting of notable names like John Goodman, Billy Crystal, Bonnie Hunt, Jennifer Tilly, Steve Buscemi, and the Pixar staple as far as voice talent goes, John Ratzenberger.

Over the years, Monsters has served Pixar well. It has spawned a series of video games, mass merchandising, and more than one theme park ride in different countries. A movie couldn’t ask for a warmer embracement. Still, I have to admit that I had forgotten about this title. It was sent for review and I found myself having to watch it to be refreshed by the story, rather than the quality. I knew that it was cute and that both my son and I had liked it when it came out eight years ago, but I had honestly only seen it that one time.

This is likely due in part because my son was a Toy Story addict. In fact, it’s the only animated film he wanted to watch for a long time. Even when he didn’t watch it every day anymore, he still watched that and the sequel when it was time to watch an kids movie. Years later, he still loves the Toy Story franchise and is looking forward to the new movie. However, he was more than receptive when it came to the idea of watching Monsters, Inc with me. As he has gotten older he has grown to appreciate it more, which is nice. The rest of the family enjoyed it, too.

From a marketing standpoint it’s easy to see why Monsters is so popular. At least two lawsuits, one which almost stalled the release (to the day) and another later, have brought the film into the news and got people talking. It’s also filled with funny and well known stars. The cute monster story doesn’t hurt either. These aren’t monsters that you can be scared of. Even the truly scary monsters aren’t that awful. Kids are more apt to not like them than they are to be afraid of the scary monsters.

Monsters, Inc. Plot
Monstropolis is a city that is made up of monsters. Monsters, Inc is the power company that provides power to Monstropolis. However, this power company is not like your traditional business. You see, it is the job of the employees to sneak into the bedrooms of children and scare them. The monsters sneak through the closets and shock the children, making them scream. It’s important to make the kids scream, because it is the screaming and the fright that creates the power to light Monstropolis. Things are getting harder for the monsters though, as children are getting tougher skins and are not scaring as easy as they used to.

One day, Sulley realizes that there is going to be some trouble. The door to Monsters, Inc is left open and he eventually learns that a little girl has followed him back to work because she thought that he was a big kitty! Sulley takes the girl to Mike, looking for some help. They decide to dress the girl up as a new monster and they name her, “Boo.” They plan to take the girl back, but when they learn that Randall has created a contraption that forces the screams from children, the two realize they need to act on that first.

When the president of Monsters, Inc Henry Waternoose, asks Sulley to demonstrate his scare techniques he is shocked to see that Sulley and Mike are carrying around a child. He offers to take care of it for them, and get her back home, but it doesn’t take long to see whose side he is on. He exiles the two monsters and has plans of his own to ensure the safety of the company. What’s worse is that this causes a fall out between the two monster pals, Sulley and Mike.

Now, exiled to the Himalayas it’s up to the two monsters to decide what they are going to do. A good friendship is at risk, because it’s clear that Sulley cares for the child and wants to get her back. They can risk it all and save the small child being held by the fear-inducing monsters or they can do nothing and stay where they are. The job won’t be easy for either of these monsters, but help presents itself along the way for those brave enough to do what needs to be done.

Storyline/Plot:
Replayability:
Acting:
Directing:

Audio/Visual:
If you own the DVD of Monsters, Inc. the quality that you see on this Blu-ray will make you want to toss the older DVD out the window. It’s not as flawless as UP, but it does offer a beautiful picture and many positive aspects that other Blu-rays lack at times. The colors come alive and the blacks are strong. The detail is better than you have ever seen it and the picture is sharp without ever becoming overwhelming. I didn’t notice any visual problems while watching Monsters, Inc.. Normally I come across something distracting, but everything here was quite nice. It’s refreshing to see such a nice transfer on an animated movie that is not brand new. So many times studios will just barely refresh the film for Blu-ray, but in the case of Monsters it comes out looking like a newer film.

The Dolby Digital DTS HD-MA 5.1 is absolutely fabulous. Like the video, there wasn’t anything that comes to mind that could be considered negative. The audio does an excellent job of keeping you interested in the story. It is definitely dynamic and certainly a pleasure to listen to. The dialogue is crisp, the musical moments are engrossing, and the special effects are fun. Some background noise is used to layer the sound and give some realism to the world in which the story is set. The results are a wondrous transfer that kids and adults can appreciate. Other audio options include audio tracks in English, French, and Spanish Dolby Digital 5.1 tracks and subtitles in English for the Hearing Impaired, French, and Spanish.

Visual:
Audio:

Bonus Features:
If you’re not a fan of special features then this section may just leave you bewildered. After reviewing other Disney/Pixar titles I have walked away questioning how many special features are truly necessary. Sure, I love having special features added. Of course, how many and what they are really depend on how much I end up appreciating them. The special features for Monsters, Inc are awesome. That being said, there is just so much here. You could watch the movie twice and still not have enough time to get through all of these. Adult fans should enjoy most of these, but a lot of the features here will be wasted on the kids that the movie was intended for.

You start out with your basic elements, of which there are many. If you purchased the previous special edition set you will receive all of those special features, plus a few additional new ones. The basic elements include things like trailers, a director’s introduction, an audio commentary, five deleted scenes, a storyboard to film comparison, TV Spots, clips and reels in English and Japanese spots, a one minute Goodbye, and an art gallery with a whopping amount of stills (there are at least 800 or more stills present). Most of these options are pretty obvious based on name alone. The commentary includes Docter, John Lasseter, Andrew Stanton, and Lee Unkrich. They talk about the evolution of the story process and the methods that they used in the film. It’s a good track overall and fans should like it.

Twp shorts are included, “For the Birds,” and “Mike’s New Car.” The first lasts for three minutes and is something that most Monsters fans are familiar with. It’s a pretty popular Pixar short and has always been included with the movie. “Mike’s New Car” is another short. If you’ve owned the DVD then you’ve already seen this as it was ported over from the previous versions.

A selection of featurettes include:

“Pixar Fun Factory Tour”: This is a four minute tour of Pixar Studios. It was on the previous DVD release, so if you have that you’ve probably already seen it. It’s older so it’s not relevant anymore. Seeing an update would have been fun, but if you’ve never seen this watching it once wouldn’t hurt.

“Set Dressing”: This three minute featurette gives you a chance to learn what the filmmakers wanted when it came to set design. They show how they made different areas look more lived in. It’s fun, especially if you’re interested in learning more about making animated films.

“Location Flyarounds”: Here you have a seven minute look at the different sets that were used in the film. This gives you a better locational look and feel because each area is shown without characters present.

“Monster File”: This area includes “Cast of Characters” and “What Makes a Great Monster?” The first feature is six minutes in length and it’s all about the voices of the characters. The second featurette lasts for just a minute and it looks into how the art department handled the design of the monsters. They should have extended the second featurette in order to make it really good, as it was just too short in its current incarnation.

“Animation” The animation section includes six featurettes, “Animation Process,” “Early Tests,” “Opening Title Animation,” “Hard Parts,” “Shots Department,” and “Production Demonstration.” Each featurette varies and length and talks about a different element of the animation process. “Animation Process” takes a few minutes to talk about the entire, overall animation process that starts with rough ideas and drawings and how it goes to the end product that is shown in the movie. “Early Tests” is one of the longer featurettes in this section. It shows the beginning tests and how the characters evolved over time. “Opening Title Animation” just takes a minute or two to discuss the 2-D animation process that happen in the credits. “Hard Parts” shows the process of animating things like clothing and various other non-traditional items. “Shots Department” talks about the difficulty that comes with various parts of the animation process. Finally, “Production Demonstration” wraps things up by talking about the progression that goes from storyboards to the actual finished movie.

“Music & Sound”: This section includes “Monster Song,” which has Goodman and Crystal talking about their song, “If I Didn’t Have You.” Next up is “Sound Design,” which lasts for four minutes and gives a pretty good idea about the process of sound effects and what it takes to get the job done in that area.

The final bit of special features are specific to the Blu-ray. In “Filmmakers Round Table” you get a chance to here from the people of Pixar. This is a roundtable discussion with the same people in the commentary. Much like the commentary, the group is fun and has a great time talking and laughing about the fabulous movie that has been adored by millions since it came out years ago.

“Monsters, Inc Ride and Go Seek: Building Monstropolis in Japan”: This lasts for eight minutes and discusses the Disneyland, Tokyo Monsters themed ride. It looks amazing and while I am sure that the one in California is cool, this looks like it blows it and many other rides out of the water.

Finally, there is “Roz’s 100 Door Challenge” which serves as the game for the set. It’s an employee placement game. If interested, this gives you a chance to learn where you would fit in the organization. As you might have guessed, kids will like this more than adults.

Bonus Features:

Bottom Line:
While the recently released, UP is the far superior of these two Pixar releases, Monsters, Inc is still a fan favorite for children and adults alike. If you haven’t seen this movie you really need to check it out. The monsters are cute and unusual and the voice acting is nothing short of hilarious. Kids will just enjoy the hilarity of the monsters, but adults will enjoy the vocal talents in the acting that comes from Billy Crystal and John Goodman (among others). Even if you own the DVD for Monsters, Inc it’s well worth the upgrade to buy the newly enhanced Blu-ray. This comes highly recommended.

Overall Rating:

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Written by Ashtyn Evans – Visit Website
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Ashtyn is in her early 30s. She is a mother, writer, college student, and music lover. Ashtyn has had a successful career as a writer since 2003. She turned to blogging in 2005. Ashtyn attends Wright State where she is getting a degree in Psychology. She has extensive knowledge in SEO and Social Media Development.