Disappointed, but not very surprised...

Rating: 6/10 (21 July 2013)

Note: This viewing took place while a middle aged crone sitting a few seats away thought it was her duty to giggle at every single whimsical moment in the film, whether it was funny or not. Either it was an unsupervised visit to the cinema for her from her place of residence, or she really needed to stay off the happy pills.
Ever get the feeling that you're watching a movie where the pitch for it was done, long before they'd even started on the script? Well, that's the case here: "HEY MONSTERS INC WAS A BIG HIT!! WE CAN'T DO A FOLLOW UP SINCE THE ENDING OF IT WAS SO FINITE... I KNOW! LET'S DO A PREQUEL WHICH FOLLOWS MIKE AND SCULLY IN UNIVERSITY BEFORE THEY'D EVEN MET!! WE'LL INCLUDE LITTLE CAMEOS OF MOST THE CHARACTERS FROM THE FIRST ONE, AND GET THIS... THE DUO START OUT AS WORST ENEMIES!! WON'T THAT BE A GAS?! WHAT? YOU WANT TO KNOW WHAT THE PLOT IS? WHO CARES, JUST BUNG IN SOMETHING ABOUT A BIG SCARE CONTEST, AND THROW IN A FEW MORALS ABOUT TEAMWORK AND EVERYONE BEING SPECIAL IN THEIR OWN WAY. OH... AND COME UP WITH SOME CUTE IDEA FOR NEW MONSTERS THAT THE PEOPLE WILL LOVE. THE PLUSH TOY SALES WILL SHOOT THROUGH THE ROOF!!"
I found all that out by listening with a glass outside the producer's door... actually, no I didn't it was just a rough guess as to what transpired just before the movie was greenlit... So don't arrest me, Disney!! What it all adds up to is an accomplished piece of cinema that all the family will enjoy with a fair few amusing moments (but certainly not as many as the individual I was located near would suggest) and a great climax where EVERYTHING, quite literally, in on the line. But it lacks soul, there feels no need for it's existence and it pales in comparison to the enchanting original. There's no substitute here for Scully's heartrending relationship with the little girl Boo, just lots of knockabout fun and very obvious, overdone Life Lessons. For any normal company, this would be more than sufficient, but this is PIXAR we're talking about here, so you can't help but feel the bar should be set far higher (Mind you, their last two movies, Cars 2 and Brave weren't so hot, so maybe it's about time we started reevaluating our expectations...)
And their next release will be a sequel to the much cherished Finding Nemo. I'm an optimistic person by nature truly, but I do feel the worst. Hopefully this time around they have a legitimate excuse for doing another in the series, and not just letting the dollar signs talk... 6/10