Monsters University- A Charming and Mildly Humorous Prequel Weighted Down by Unoriginal Formula and Predictable Development

Rating: 6/10 (19 June 2013)

Pixar's creative soul has slowly begun to drain most likely due to its ill-advised marriage with the overbearing influential force of Disney as we're seeing their consistent quality and originality slowly disappear from existence with occasional reminders of what made them so unique. Three out of four of Pixar's last couple of films can all be categorized in the sequel department, including the excellent Toy Story 3, the annoyingly awful Cars 2, and their latest genial yet unoriginal Monsters University, with one original yet subpar effort in Brave that at least reminded us that despite weak plot they can make some awe-inspiring visual animation. Monsters University might be mildly humorous in its animated mockery of college life, whether it's the obnoxiousness of the frat culture or the awkwardness of social fits, but what it truly lacks is what Pixar is known for, which is meaningfully deep values, inventive inspiration, and original storytelling. This unnecessary prequel to Monsters Inc. simply borrows the template of Revenge of the Nerds and inserts the familiar characters of Mike Wazowski (Billy Crystal) and James P. Sullivan (John Goodman) in a rather typical underdog college adventure giving us an occasionally fun but more often tedious trek through their formative years. Nothing about the film even remotely justifies its own existence since everything from the unoriginal story to the gimmicky humor to the formation of the characters never feels organic. Ironically enough at the heart of Monsters University is the message that sometimes it's alright to simply be OK, which is the best word that can describe this arguably watchable but incredibly unambitious work of animation. Pixar has gone from creating exceptional original storytelling combined with gracefully executed pristine animation with the likes of Up, The Incredibles, and Finding Nemo to now churning out basic children's entertainment which is not only disappointing, it's practically shameful. Despite this relentlessly negative perception on the unnecessary existence of Monsters University there is enough guilty charm and likable scenarios featuring two favorite characters from the Pixar universe that will undoubtedly please most audiences at the basic level. But basic was never a word that would even enter a conversation about the quality of a Pixar film and it's unfortunate that this is the third consecutive film in a row from the company to warrant that description.
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