Fluffy and heartwarming

Rating: 7/10 (16 July 2013)

The prequel to one of my favorite animated films, "Monsters University" brings back the classic characters from "Monsters Inc." and tells the story of their university days. John Goodman and Billy Crystal return as the voices of Sully and Mike and the supporting cast is full of stars like Helen Mirren and Steve Buscemi who returns as Randall Boggs. The story mainly revolves around Mike. Ever since he was a child he had dreams of becoming a "scarer" and has waited almost his whole life to go to "Monsters University". Upon his arrival, he doesn't seem to fit in well at the "Scare School" despite all his efforts, he just isn't scary. During the final exams of the semester Mike starts an argument with Sully, who then was a jock and accidentally destroys a famed relict. both of them are kicked out of the "scare program". They are forced to team up with a fraternity and put their differences aside to participate in the annual "Scare Games" because it's their only chance to get back into the "scare program".
As expected from "Pixar", the animation is sleek, colorful and just plain beautiful. They animators have done a great job at bringing the monsters to life and making them as creative as can be. Billy Chrystal and John Goodman display their impeccable talent for voice acting and make the characters even more vivid and comical. The problem with this film is that it tends to feel really campy at times and strays from the original, which can be a good thing, but since "Monsters Inc." was going for a darker tone when it came to the overall style, I would have liked for this film to do the same. The one thing that struck me about "Monsters University" is that it didn't go for the idealistic, predictable ending, but took a more realistic approach to the story even if it was about monsters.
It is campy, but it is a lot of fun. The beautiful animation and superb voice acting make the monsters in the film visually impressive as well as comical. It does not buy in to family movie cliché's despite being reminiscent of a "Revenge of the Nerds" type story. "Monsters University" is a visual delight and will go by in a flash.