Monsters, Inc.

by

debbie lynn elias

As children, we all knew one thing to be true - there were monsters hiding in the bedroom closet - and they were verrrry scary. Of course, some adults still think that as well. Now, thanks to the creative genius of Pixar and Disney Studios, our childhood beliefs are proven true...with one exception - maybe the monsters in the closet aren’t so scary after all. Maybe its us who are the scary ones!

A veritable kaleidoscope of color, computer generated animation and cuteness, "Monsters, Inc." is the latest offering from our friends who brought us "Toy Story" and "A Bug’s Life." Set in the behind-the-closet-door city of Monstropolis, Monsters Inc. is the equivalent of our Edison. With a city powered by energy harnessed from screams of children who are scared in the night by the monsters, Monstropolis, and Monsters, Inc. face desperate times. As kids get harder to scare, screams become less frequent. With less screaming, there’s less energy. Thus, energy shortages abound and rolling blackouts are predicted. However, all hope is not lost for Monsters, Inc. has an ace-in-the-hole - champion scarer, James P. "Sulley" Sullivan.

Looking like a cross between an over-sized bear and "Bumble" from "Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer", this lumbering purple and aquamarine colored scarer is the heart and soul of Monsters Inc. With a truly great work ethic and belief in the company motto, "We Scare Because We Care," Sulley together with his co-worker and best friend, spindly-legged, one-eyed, neurotic and phobic, Mike Wazowski, takes his responsibilities seriously and assures company president Henry J. Waternoose that he will do whatever it takes to keep Monstropolis and the company going. Unfortunately, where there’s a good guy, there must be a bad guy and here it takes on the form of Randall Boggs, a slithery, vanishing, mutated chameleonic snake who is determined to dethrone Sulley as scare champ no matter what he has to do, be it lie, cheat or steal.

The fun starts when Sulley opens an adorable bedroom door adorned with purple flowers. Entering the room and seeing no one, he comes back through the door into the factory. Unbeknownst to him, however, a gibberish-talking pig-tailed little girl has snuck back with him and as we all know, children are toxic to monsters. Why, even the mere touch a sock on a monster’s body results in an immediate "2319" (that’s decontamination to you and me) and the appearance of a Haz Mat team! With the utterance of a simple word, "Boo," the little girl (who comes to be known as Boo), puts the fear of God into Sulley and Mike, while she shrieks with delight at "Kitty" and "Mike Wazowski-Mike Wazowski."

With Boo arriving in Monstropolis, mayhem and madness abound as not only do our boys learn of Randall’s evil plot to steal Boo and her screams for use in some diabolical energy scheme, but they can’t seem to keep Boo hidden, leaving child traces everywhere and giving the media a field day with "Kid-tastrophe." Needless to say, Sulley and Mike learn very quickly that children are nothing to fear and embark on an action-packed mission to return Boo to her bedroom. The relationship that blossoms between Boo and her "Kitty" is enchanting.

Voiced by John Goodman (Sulley) and the irrepressible champion of comedy and neurotic characters, Billy Crystal (Mike), the characters comes to life, complete with traits distinct to each actor. Goodman, a lovable galoot, is perfect as Sulley with his soothing baritone voice, while Crystal gives new meaning to smirky freneticism with Mike breaking into comedy routines, facial contortions and parodies of Crystal’s song and dance Oscar schtick. Steve Buscemi is simply mah-velous as Randall Boggs, oozing evil with each slimy syllable, while Hollywood veteran James Coburn as Henry Waternoose gives depth to a character that on the surface seems so innocuous. On hearing Jennifer Tilly as Mike’s girlfriend Celia coo "googly bear" to her beloved, you can’t imagine anyone but her ever even reading for the part.

But the real stars of this film are director Peter Docter and the animators from Pixar. Once again going where no one has gone before in computer generated animation, you find yourself in awe at the detail and realism in Monstropolis and the individual creature characters. Most telling is a scene set in the snow-covered mountains of Nepal where we see Sulley racing against the barren snow, with each of the 3000 individually drawn purple and aqua colored hairs on his fuzzy body wafting in the winter wind. Breathtaking and chilling at the same time.

Guaranteed to entertain kids and adults alike, "Monsters, Inc." is by far the best animated film of the year - good writing, great gags, superior animation, perfect casting, over the top energy and cuteness, and above-all --- characters guaranteed to make Disney’s coffers go "ch-ching" with holiday toy buying!