Monsters, Inc.

Released 2001
Animated
Voices Billy Crystal, John Goodman, James Coburn, Jennifer Tilly, Mary Gibbs, Steve Buscemi, Sam "Penguin" Black, John Ratzenberger
Directed by Pete Docter

The new animated feature from Pixar reveals that it is true (as every child knows) that there are monsters in the bedroom closet, especially after the lights have been put out. What we did not realize is that the monsters are on assignment. A closet door, which by day leads to a closet, at night leads directly to Monstropolis, the world of monsters, which is powered by Scream Heat. The only reason monsters jump out of closets and scare kids is to collect their screams, which are to Monstropolis as power plants are to the rest of us.

As the movie opens, Monstropolis faces a crisis: Kids are getting too hard to scare, and there's a scream shortage. ''Rolling blackouts'' are predicted. A complete energy shutdown is a possibility. Responsibility falls on the broad shoulders of a big blue monster named Sully (voice by John Goodman), who is the leading scream-producer. Sully looks like a cross between a gorilla and a bear. His best pal, Mike Wazowski (voice by Billy Crystal), is a green eyeball with arms and legs. Sully is brave and dedicated. Wazowski is phobic, frightened, and malingering. Together, they cover the spectrum of work traits.

''Monsters, Inc.'' is cheerful, high-energy fun, and like the other Pixar movies, has a running supply of gags and references aimed at grownups (I liked the restaurant named Harryhausen's, after the animation pioneer). I also enjoyed the sly way that the monster world mirrors our own, right down to production quotas and sales slogans. ''We Scare,'' they assure us, ''Because We Care.''

Summary by Roger Ebert

Pixar does it again--"Monsters, Inc." is a scream! It's not as good as their previous three flicks, but that's an awfully high standard. I really enjoyed the city of Monstropolis, which was essentially the same as our world but just a little skewed. I liked the subtle comment early in the film about our industrialization and the power shortages some parts of the country are facing now. Unless we can learn to use laughs instead of screams, it's just a matter of time before the blackouts spread to the rest of the country. At any rate, "Monsters, Inc." is more cutesy than its predecessors, with the character, Boo. As Sulley grew to love and care for Boo, you could actually hear parents' hearts melting throughout the audience. While this could have been cloying, I thought they struck a good balance. I also liked how it started with a short Pixar film called "For the Birds," which wasn't great but was cute. It's nice to see a short again, and I wish they were shown at all movies. They give the audience a chance to settle down, and they're a lot of fun. As I said before, "Monsters, Inc." isn't as good as the previous Pixar films. There are some moments that wane, but there are a lot of laughs. I found myself laughing out loud many times, and my heart was warmed as well. --Bill Alward, November 4, 2001