This latest Disney effort is another in the new run of animations which are depending less and less on the cultural rapes that its fairytales and historically-based films can be, and is innovating much newer and funkier storylines.
Monsters, Inc. is the kind of lunatic rationalisation of a child�s perception of the world that will attract both children and adults. Monsters Inc. provides the electricity for Monstropolis. The cupboard doors of every child in the world are used as a sort of vortex into the human world, and by scaring the hell out of them, they fill up little tanks with their screams and effectively run their city on children�s fear. Which is much more fun than all that nonsense involving magnetic fields and the like.
Sully, the big green furry thing, is Monsters, Inc.�s best scarer. Unfortunately, children these days just don�t scare so easily, and with the company going under, there is a lot of competition to be No.1. Of course, this is where the bad guy comes in, Randall, an ambitious blue lizard thing who can blend into his surroundings (you know the type). This is made all the more complicated when a small child escapes into Monstropolis and attaches herself to Sully� lots of devious cheatings from Randall and adventures with the kid follow, leading to intrigue and� etc etc.
This film had such a promising premise I was disappointed when the story didn�t come up to my expectations. It seemed well thought out in some moments, while other plot developments that could have been exploited for some great scenes were simply dropped in almost as afterthoughts. It may well be that I don�t grasp things quick enough, but I was left feeling that the film just wasn�t clever enough for its own storyline.
On the upside, there are some great things about it. Boo, the kid. She�s not so much a character but a havoc-causer, and her movements are so realistically toddler-y that she made me go all gooey and forget my usual mutterings about �cute� Disney characters. Also, the chase scene in the vault that stores all the cupboard doors is fantastic in all senses of the word. The conclusion to the film was a sweet idea, but like many aspects, it was under-exploited, which led to me wondering how much better this film could have been. But as a comedy and a good story it�s definitely worth a watch.
Oh � and I hate those muffed takes they show at the end of comedy films. Doing it with animation just isn�t funny. |
