School may be out for the summer in our world, but in the world of monsters, the semester has just begun.
Monsters University expands on the universe created by Pixar in their 2001 hit Monsters Inc. by going back in time and showing us how Mike and Sully (Billy Crystal and John Goodman) first met. Mike Wazowski, who is little more than a green eyeball with wiry arms and legs, grew up wanting to become the scariest monster of all time. Through hard work and dedication, he was accepted into the Scare School at Monsters University. Unfortunately, his diminutive stature and general “cuteness” make him about as scary as a hamster. Sully’s got the look and he’s got the name: the bear-like monster comes from a long line of Sullivan’s that attended MU. The cocky Sully doesn’t see the point in studying scaring; it just comes naturally to him. The polar opposites quickly become rivals, trying to prove that their method of scaring is better than the others.
After crossing the crittery Dean Hardscrabble (Helen Mirren), Mike and Sully find themselves kicked out of the scare program, their dreams seemingly dashed. Their hopes are restored by a campus-wide competition known as The Scare Games, which pits MU’s fraternities and sororities against each other in an ultimate battle of frights. Mike and Sully join the only fraternity that will take them: the nerdy, unintimidating Oozma Kappa. If they can put their differences aside and best contest favorites Roar Omega Roar – led by cliché jock Johnny (Nathan Fillion) – they can re-enroll in the Scare School and achieve their goals.
Pixar is coming off two weak productions – Cars 2 and Brave – and still can’t quite find the mark with Monsters University. While far from being a bad film, Monsters University just doesn’t have anything special about it. The banter between Mike and Sully, who spend much of the film butting heads, is uninspired. There’s no shining wit or affable camaraderie to enjoy. The jokes are mostly on par with a child’s sense of humor, but adults won’t have too much laugh at. The plot as a whole is far from fresh and doesn’t offer any real surprises along the way. On the plus side, the theme of embracing your uniqueness to succeed is pleasant and well executed without being obnoxious. The whole film seems to be tailor made for the kiddies in the audience, with zero risks taken and an easy-to-digest message.
