We’re ranking the films of Pixar Studios, leading up to the release of Inside Out.
Monsters, Inc.
Directed: Pete Docter, David Silveran, Lee Unkrich
Writers: Pete Docter, Jill Culton, et al.
Monsters, Inc. is the directorial debut of Pete Docter. Docter is a Minnesota native, so we have a soft spot for the man at The Stake. Docter had worked on the previous three Pixar films, and was the Head Animator on Toy Story, but win Inc., he showed he’s also a gifted animation director, with a great eye for a joke.
Monsters, Inc. is the first truly mutli-tiered Pixar studios film. Family entertainment has always been full of jokes for the adults in the audience, but Pixar goes far beyond the occasional laugh for mom and dad. The kid story is built around a toddler and her two funny monsters, and the resulting kids-oriented comedy is adorable and hilarious. The adult story is built around a satire of corporate life, and the adult-oriented humor is poignant and, well, hilarious.
The whole set-up of this picture-Monsteropolis relies on the screams of children for their energy, and must perform their monster duty to keep the city’s lights on-provides the textured depth that Pixar would build on for the coming decade. Right from the opening credits and jazz music, audiences got the sense that this film was brining a new vibe. The opening scene, a dress-rehearsal for monsters learning to scare children at night, becomes a moment of workshop criticism straight from Noah Baumbach, only funny.
That Mike and Sully manage to star in both of these layers simultaneously is a testament to the writing and directing of Pete Docter and his team. Docter’s concept of bringing creative energy into the film, as a literal source of energy, also previews his latest film, Inside Out,w which takes the concept of emotional intensity and childhood and build a literal world around those anthropomorphized emotions.
Even the toddler that makes her way into the monster world, named Boo, brings something just a little off-kilter (in a good way) to Monsters, Inc. When’s the last time you saw a film about a toddler? Seriously. A few years after this, Pete Docter would make a film about an 80-year old widower. But making a movie about a 2-year old who is the monster that the monsters fear has come to kill them? This is perhaps just as unusual.
For all it’s humor and satire, Monster’s Inc. I don’t remember Monsters, Inc. with the fondness reserved for others in the Pixar canon. What starts out with promise and continues with great humor just seems to end a bit too abruptly. Even another 10 minutes could have brought together the Boo and Mike story with some extra punch. But that’s of little concern, frankly.
I don’t like Monsters, Inc. as much as some of the others (or even Brave) but this is the first Pixar film to indicate just how high the studio, and Pete Docter especially, could reach.
Best Line: “There’s nothing more toxic, more deadly, than a human child.”
Number to remember: 2,320,413. The number of individual strands of hair animators created on Sully’s body. The result of this 2 million pieces of detail was incredible on the big-screen.
Best Movie Trailer: Pixar created a special trailer for Monsters, Inc. to air before Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone.
Ratzenberger:
Best Ratzenberger Line: “Abominable! That’s what they called me! Don’t you think thats a little harsh? I mean, how about the Adorable Snowman?”
Best Animated Feature: Nominated, but lost to Shrek. Monsters, Inc was also nominated for sound editing, score, and original song, which Randy Newman won after losing his previous 10 nominations.
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