You can find me here:

SEARCH

Friday, June 28, 2013

MONSTERS University (2013) Movie Review *SPOILERS*

Alright so the story of Monsters University is basically the prequel to the movie called Monsters Inc. that was released back at the year of 2001. Which is of course 12 years back. Jeez, takes really long I have to admit.

Now before this review, I witness like two reviews made by JeremyJahns and TheFlickPick. Yes I watch these two people if any of you are familiar with them. Yes it's on YouTube.

And also yes! Um, PrettyMuchIt. That one too, I watched the review. 

And what I can disagree on is that I don't really think this is unnecessary. It's a really awesome movie. I wouldn't describe it unnecessary cause that's not what it is to me.

There also wasn't really any concerns of whether this film should be more for kids cause I really don't think kids can relate anything in here.

They just laugh and have no idea what they're watching. They don't look for the story, just what happens and that's all there is for them to establish and then exit the theater. 

Luckily in my town, teenagers my age do watch this and get a good laugh. I still believe Pixar films are for everybody. 

So let's get onto this movie shall we? 

Monsters University is the story of Mike Wazowski and James Sullivan. We all know that Mike is that rounded one-eye and green monster who's a teacher's pet. 

A person who aces in the class. We do see that time lapse where Mike becomes the kid in the class that answers every single question asked by Mike's grade class teacher, Professor Knight.

Yes he's this guy

An orange dinosaur-like monster. Sometimes he puts on glasses, sometimes he doesn't. And has mounted spikes on his head which behaves as a hair. And goes around in a typical white collar shirt with a tie. 

And carries a clipboard.

Yeah he's just the teacher. And in the class, that's when we meet James P. Sullivan. Another freshmen just like Mike. He's like a slacker. He's famous for his name "Sullivan". 

Because his dad was one of the top scarer in the Scream factory. And now he comes into the story. This is how he makes his entrance. 

He's like some drunk prankster or so. He never brings anything to class. Not even something simple like a pencil or a pen. 

He's kind of a slacker, I guess you can say. Sometimes I can't really describe characters well.

So the movie starts out as Mike is in elementary school aged equally with the other classmates at the age of 6. One day they were on a field trip to the Monsters Inc. building.

Mike was the kid that's always left out and he's always being looked down. Got off the bus. No one picked him to be his buddy for the trip.

So he ends up with the teacher again. I guess he always end up with her. Sad, but that's who he is. Then all the Scarers walks along the hallway as the class turns around and wow. 

Then there's this tentacle scarer. Blue. And he was the scarer that made Mike wanna become a scarer. The Scaring of kids starts. All the monsters went into the door and scare the heck out of the kids at night. 

Supply all the screams for the world they live in. Mike crossed the safety line and jumped into the room to witness how that Scarer does his work on a usual day. 

Well except today there's kids on their field trip and Mike was one of them. He jumped in quickly and it's funny how no one seems to run after him and catches him before he could even jump into that kid's room with that Scarer.

So he saw how this Scarer uses his strategy. Be careful of all the toys the kid left on the floor because the monsters thinks it's toxic or germ infected. 

We all know that in the first film. A furry orange monster with a short horn. Got his fur all shaved off after having a human sock on his back. 

And he has a dog cone on his neck. Yeah :|

And Mike just hides behind the stuff that the kid had near his closet door. While he witnesses the Scarer's work. 

Scratching the edge of the bed. And then roars or makes a horrifying pose that would make the kid scream. And the Scarer did his work and exited the door. 

Just to know that this is not the usual oh! "Done scaring the hell out of that human kid". It's "Woah, there's a monster kid behind my tentacle legs".

Mike was standing behind that Scarer's legs. And that Scarer is cool. He's not mean.

But of course, he can scare human kids just like any other Scarer in the scream factory. And Mike's face was just there smiling.

And I giggled a little. The scarer puts the hat onto Mike's head. And tells Mike that what he did back there was stealthy and good.

Mike solely wants to be a scarer for his life until he made his goal in the scream factory. And continue working there. 

Oh yes so the Scarer that inspired Mike was Frank. Frank McCay. Yeah Frank inspired Mike to become a scarer and recommends Mike to go to this school. 

So it appears that there are few more universities than just the name "Monsters University". 

Alright so years later, Mike was old enough to enter the university. The university that he aims to go. So he steps into the line where you see the big sign Monsters University. The big entrance. Enters and register to be a college student and got excited. 

Got a card. A book of some sort. Probably a yearbook. And on his way to the dorms, he walks pass a crowded area of monsters. The only monster I remembered having fun out in that opened area is that giant purple monster.

That was playing frisbee. Mike entered the dorm to get his key. And opened the door, it appears that Randall or in this film, Randy. Is his roommate.

Randall is this poor-sighted nerdy scarer that has what it takes to well? Become a scarer. 

But he was a nerd and yet no one picks on him. So I was gonna suspect that somehow at some part of this film is what made him rivals with Sullivan.

So Mike and Randy are roommates and hang out sometimes. Like that scene where Mike was under a tree reading the Scaring tutorial books. 

And I actually wanted Randy to MORE...in this film. Randy was just the chameleon lizard monster that wants to be with the cool ROR monsters.

The ROR monsters are like the basketball team, the big guys. Those people who are indeed scary. Or mostly because those who have a chance.

So Randy wanted to go to this party that was conducted by the ROR team. And Mike refused cause he wants to study scaring. 

But before he could start, the pig mascot came into the room and goes under either Mike's or Randy's bed (I dunno).

And from that, James climbs in. Tells Mike to go under and tame that little beast. However the pig got Mike's hat.

And oh yeah, the pig has horizontal one line pupils. Like a goat's eye. The pig is a wild one. Mike caught him but the pig runs out of the bed and Mike makes his scream.

You know that famous "YAAA!!!"

You know, when people screams like this, it just kinda makes me think that they are excited or something when they're not.

So the pig escapes out of the window. Mike and James got out of the dorm building. And goes after the pig.

James continues chasing after the pig. Mike, unlike James, uses a strategy to have the pig end up in that trash can. After James caught the pig.

He bumped into the ROR team. And the ROR leader who is Johnny Worthington. 

He is this monster with a big jaw. Fangs. And has large horn as ears.

And has dinosaur tail and quite furry.

Johnny saw the stun Mike did but fails to acknowledge that it was Mike who is the one who caught it. James was the one who only take the pig out of the can.

Johnny sees that James has the potential and Johnny now has James on his team. But the ROR team sees that Mike isn't scary and he's not worth joining the ROR team.

Johnny suggest Mike to join the OK team. The lousiest of all the teams in Monsters University. Those that are basically losers.

And then as I mentioned early in this review, there was a time lapse where Mike was answering all of Professor Knight's questions.

And acing the class. James failed in the test paper while Mike showed off his high score. The ROR was dissapointed in James. And they told James that if he wants to be in the ROR, he's going to try to go on top of Mike.

If he does, he can be confirmed as a member of the ROR team. But fails as the final test consists of a scare simulation. As Mike and James are mad at each other. 

Competiting who could do a better roar. James would. And during the simulation test, the Dean. The school's headmistress. 

Who is a monster who is half dragon and half centipede. And for her, I felt she's just the boss who is everywhere. You see that one scene where the Scare Games was happening, she just crawls around the pillar and onto the high observation platform. 

In the sewers. So James accidentally damage the Dean's scream energy container. And flies around the class and catching everyone's attention.

And then Dean drops James and Mike out of the scaring program. And yes, James is mad at Mike. And James felt dishonored after getting kicked out of the ROR team.

Mike was left with one last chance as to enter the Scare Games. It's like the Hunger Games, but in this case, it's all for monsters and taken in different scenarios.

I dunno, I never really watch Hunger Games. Not interested. So Mike joins the Oozma Kappa, OK. For the Scare Games. And enter their team home. 

There they meet the oldest member and the president of the team, Don Carlton. Who is an octopus with a bat-wing like moustache and eyebrows. Specs.


And then we have a monsters named Terri and Terry who shares the same body. And has tentacles as legs. And the Terri is the one with a dance major. 

And also Art. A furry U-shaped monster. And also Squishy. A gummy like monster that has multiple eyes. And his house is the OK team's dorm. 

Of course, Mike is in it too. But to join the Scare Games, the team needed 6 members. So James had no other choices but to join OK after getting kicked out of the ROR. 

And we have the PNK. Lacking an I. Which means it's this group cheerleader team. They're basically Python monsters I guess? Snake-like? Yeah.

They all have long waving hair with, three-eyed, pink sweaters, pom pom-like skirts and socks. And skinny legs.

So they're not scary obviously. They suck. All of them look similar and has a color scheme that is close to pink or slightly red or orange. 

And that's that. And they can breath fire. To be honest, that kinda doesn't make sense though, I mean, they're pythons.

How can they be...ah nevermind. 

So anyways, James however joins OK just to make sure he could "mop the floor with" Mike. Mike had no choice but to let James in.

Then in the Scare Games,  the first challenge was to not step on toxicated spiky balls that when you touch it, it inflates that part of your body. 

OK almost lost that challenge when another team was caught cheating using oil that is immune to those spikes. 

So they had luck. OK starts winning all the challenges. And before the final one, the ROR invited the OK to prank them later when the ROR team decides to make an announcement and congratulates the OK on a false occasion. And humiliates them in front of the whole school to discourage them. 

Dump paint onto them and sprinkled stars onto them. Later the next day, there were posters, newspapers everywhere. On the ground, lamp posts, and even on the bell building. 

The OK looked down on Mike. Mike went back to the OK house and all the members were just laying down on the couches, leaning the wall disgraced. 

Mike then decides to tell the group to have a group field trip into the Monsters Inc. by creating a hole in the fence using an applier.

However security catches them on the window on the roof of the scare factory. They however escaped. 

Then the final challenge where the Scare simulation is conducted in the school's stadium. What happens is that the two remaining teams (OK and ROR) are having one member of each group to go into one room and scare a remotely robot engineered child.

OK however manages to top the ROR. As James went in the room before Mike. But he cheated by damaging the last lever inside the panel under the bed. 

The panel which controls the difficulty. Yeah it's like a console or PC game, difficulty level.

Mike went in later and used the same strategy that that Frank used back in the days of Mike's 6-year old class field trip to the scream factory.

Scratched the side of the bed stand. And scare the simulated kid. The OK won. After the games, Mike was so happy that he made it through.

But when Mike starts doing whatever action to the robotic kid, it is scared easily. Mike then opens the panel and discovers a broken lever. 

And soon finds out that James did it solely because he wanted OK to win. But fails as Mike got heartbroken and mad at James.


Later on back at the University when the labs are closing down. Mike manages to snatch a key from one of the scientist in the lab that had just locked the door.

Mike manages to unlock it and close the door and enter the door that leads to a summer camp where there was a bunk of elementary girls. Mike failed to scare them as they were not frightened.

However James tells Dean that he help the OK team cheat and Dean expels them making them leave the next morning. 

Fortunately, reports were made to Dean as the school goes to the lab only to find that someone snugged into the lab. James knew it was Mike and goes in. Dean made the lab secured as the CDA arrives and then deactivates the door.

James however went in to go look for Mike. But when James got in, the bunks were empty as the cops arrived and the girls were outside. 

James spotted a completely smashed window. And manages to go through the hole. However his crash through the window made a crash noise alerting the cops. 

Cops later chased after James but failed as James outruns them and later manages to find Mike by a lakeside. Sitting sadly that he can never be a scarer.

James motivated Mike and goes back to the bunk of the summer camp. And scare the hell out of the cops with James' powerful lion roar that powered the door and filled up all the scream energy containers while Dean was in there.

The door exploded and terrified Dean. The school's headmistress was indeed shocked and surprised. However didn't change the fact that Mike and James are still expelled.

Expelled and made the front cover of the local newspaper. Mike and James left the school big entrance. And says goodbye to each other.

And yeah I almost felt that that was the end. But of course not. Mike goes onto the bus and as he was about to leave, James catches after the bus. 

Tells Mike that it doesn't have to end like this (or so, maybe he said something else, i forgot). The Dean then approaches the two of them.

Telling them that she was indeed surprised and it was the only thing that mattered to her in their journey of this University. She flies back into the University.

And Mike tells James that there's still hope to get into the Monsters Inc. 

So they signed up for the mailroom and their boss is the Abominable Snowman. They monster we met back at the first movie.

And I was kinda curious about that scene. If they only knew him when they got lost in the snow and bumped into the Snowman, how is he? Well, here?

I dunno. I guess he's just suppose to make an appearance. And I'm actually glad they did, I actually kinda forgot who he was until I saw him at the end of this movie.

So then we got photo time-lapse that Mike sticked onto his locker walls. As they work their way up to becoming a scare team.

And then the rest of the story? Is in the first film obviously. We can see it from there. 

It was a really cool exciting awesome ending. Man I love Pixar films so much. Note I may get some parts of the plot mixed so I guess it's best if you go...
>> HERE TO READ THE PLOT <<

Even though it's not so detailed. But I do not strongly recommend you read it from there. Unless you find that I got the plot mixed after watching the movie.

Or so. 

Although when I read the end of the plot of Wikipedia. It said that there WAS an after credits scene.

It was well, you guys remember the snail monster scene where he was extremely slow on his way to class. Such that school already ended and the entire school is at their dorms.

A janitor monster told the snail that school ended and the snail obviously took hours to get back to his dorm. Poor snail :P

Yeah I can't believe I missed that scene.

This movie is awesome. And I really wanna watch it again. If I have a chance, I'll watch it again when school reopens next week.

Yeah I have a month holiday now. It's awesome :)

Man now that I watched it. I have it stuck in my head. I hope I could get it on DVD when it comes out :)

Monsters University. Ah.... :D

Oh! I almost forgot. I dunno if I mentioned this already. But the rivalry of Randy who is later named Randall. Is because he got humiliated by James. With the heart pink&white camouflage. 

Yeah :)

Oh well. Hope to see more Pixar/ Dreamworks films like this. And see you guys soon. Don't forget to comment, share and get more viewers.

CHAO! XD

Wow, that is one big Mike grass statue. Heh heh :D

Okay bye guys ;)