Film Excess - Free Ukraine - Stop Putin - End the war NOW!!: Monsters University (2013)

11/02/2013

Monsters University (2013) - A funny and inspiring prequel

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A great congregation of monstrous but hilarious characters are gathered on this poster for Dan Scanlon's Monsters University

We first travel back to a glimpse of the trying first school years for one-eyed, green monster Mike Wazowski, until he finally gets to go to Monsters University, his life-long dream, - where he will train himself to become a scarer. But again things line against him: No fraternity except the pariah Oozma Kappas (OK) fraternity will take him in, and what's worse; no one thinks he's scary. The arrogant, impressive blue monster Sullivan is thrown out of school at the same time as Mike, and they both decide to sign up with the OK fraternity to the school's Greek Games in order to win back their chance to become scarers.

Monsters University is the excellent prequel to Pixar's hit animation adventure family movie Monsters, Inc. (2001). It is Pixar's 14th film, and its first prequel. It is written by great Michigander filmmaker, co-writer/director Dan Scanlon (Tracy (2009)), Daniel Gerson (Monsters, Inc. (2001)) and Robert L. Baird (Ferdinand (2017)).

In the course of the story, Mike and Sully learn about work moral, working as a team, conducting yourself with integrity, - and how true friendship can be greatly rewarding. Monsters University is a surprisingly solid, funny and heart-warming follow-up to the wonderfully original first movie, in which a human child got out in Monstropolis and came into Mike and Sully's unfamiliar care.
Billy Crystal (Analyze That (2002)) and John Goodman (Downwardly Mobile (2012, TV movie)) are back to voice the main characters, and Steve Buscemi (Double Whammy (2001)) voices a younger, less evil version of Randy. Helen Mirren (Cause Célèbre (1987, TV movie)) is the imperial Dean Hardscrabble, and other enjoyable voices include those of Bill Hader (Her (2013)), Sean Hayes (The Bucket List (2007)) and Alfred Molina (Angie Tribeca (2016-17)).
A reason to see many good animation films are for their characters, and Monsters University doesn't disappoint. Besides the beloved protagonist pair there are plenty of new, funny, eye-popping characters.Careful brainstorming and research has obviously gone into Monsters University in its depiction of American college life, and it really pays off: From first being a praise of the world of a major, (U.S.) college, we go through classes, student types, clubs, parties, fraternities, and the imaginative Greek Games. Especially funny scenes include a basement initiation for the OK fraternity's two new residents, and a Game discipline about stealth abilities game by way of capture-the-flag under the blurry gaze of an ancient, tentacled monster librarian. The film is really funny, - it oozes with joy in its material, and Randy Newman (The Paper (1994)) has made a terrific, percussion-filled score that lends a full dimension to the grand, high-spirited material.
SPOILER The ending yields yet another valuable lesson about life, which is that college isn't the only way to get to where you're going, and to not give up on your dreams when the straight path you'd imagined proves blocked.
Monsters University is an amazing, wonderful time, - and it can be watched just as well with or without kids.

Dan Scanlon: 2013 in films - according to Film Excess

Watch a trailer for the film here

Cost: Estimagted 200 mil. $
Box office: 743.5 mil. $
= Big hit (returned 3.71 times its cost)

[Monsters University premiered 5 June (London) and runs 104 minutes. Sequel rights-holder Disney had been developing a sequel prior to their acquisition of Pixar in 2006, at which point their project was scrapped, and the reins instead handed back to Pixar's people. Production took place from May 2008 - May 2013 in California. The film opened #1 to an 82.4 mil. $ first weekend in North America, where it spent another weekend at #1 and then another in the top 5 (#4), grossing 268.4 mil. $ (36.1 % of the total gross). The 2nd and 3rd biggest markets were Japan with 90.1 mil. $ (12.1 %) and the UK with 47.1 mil. $ (6.3 %). The film was nominated for 2 BAFTAs, among other honors. The-numbers.com estimate that it made in excess of 134 mil. $ at the North-American home video market. Scanlon returned with Onward (2020). Crystal returned in 6 TV and short credits prior to his theatrical return in The Comedian (2016); Goodman in CollegeHumor Originals (2013, TV-series) and theatrically in The Monuments Men (2014). Monsters University is certified fresh at 80 % with a 6.80/10 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]

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Donald Sutherland has passed away

Born in Canada, Sutherland battled polio as a child. His first credit was in Suspense (1963, TV-series) and his first film was The Castle of the Living Dead (1964). Later credits in his remarkable career include The Saint (1965-66), The Dirty Dozen (1967), M*A*S*H (1970), Kelly's Heroes (1970), Klute (1971), Don't Look Now (1973), 1900 (1976), Casanova (1976), The Eagle Has Landed (1976), Ordinary People (1980), A Dry White Season (1989), JFK (1991), Outbreak (1995), Fallen (1998), Virus (1999), Fierce People (2005), Pride & Prejudice (2005), Lord of War (2005), The Hunger Games (2012), The Undoing (2020, miniseries) and many more. He passed away at age 88. R.I.P.

Roger Corman has passed away

Born in Detroit, Michigan, Corman had a sprawling, intellectually hungry life as a youth and young man before arriving with his first film in 1955, Five Guns West. He would follow that with titles such as Apache Woman, It Conquered the World, Attack of the Crab Monsters, Teenage Cave Man, A Bucket of Blood, House of Usher, The Little Shop of Horrors, The Pit and the Pendulum, The Intruder, The Raven, The Terror, The Masque of Red Death, The Tomb of Ligeia, The Wild Angels, The Trip, Bloody Mama and many more. As a producer he was behind almost 500 films. Arguably among the most important filmmakers of the 20th century, Corman passed away at age 98. R.I.P.

William Friedkin has died

Born in Chicago, Friedkin accrued TV credits prior to his advance to the big screen as the director of Good TImes (1967), The Birthday Party (1968), The Night They Raided Minsky's (1968) and The Boys in the Band (1970) before his major breakthrough, The French Connection (1971), for which he won his only Oscar. He followed it up with the even bigger smash, The Exorcist (1973), arguably the best horror film of all time, for which he was Oscar-nominated. Later credits include Sorcerer (1977), Cruising (1980), To Live and Die in L.A. (1985), Rampage (1987), Rules of Engagement (2000), Killer Joe (2011) and The Devil and Father Amorth (2017, documentary). Friedkin passed away at age 87. R.I.P.

Louise Fletcher has passed away

Born in Alabama to deaf parents, Fletcher got her first credits in late-1950s TV-series.She took a 10 year-long sabbatical to devote her time to motherhood after the release of A Gathering of Eagles, but then came back and soon saw her career's most important part, as Nurse Ratched in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975), for which she won her sole Oscar. Later credits include Exorcist II: The Heretic (1977), The Lucky Star (1980), Brainstorm (1983), Two Moon Junction (1988), Cruel Intentions (1999), A Perfect Man (2013) and many more. Fletcher passed away at age 88. R.I.P.

Jean-Luc Godard has passed away

Born in Paris, France, Godard lived much of his life in Switzerland. He wrote for French film criticism magazine Cahiers du Cinema and became foundational for the New French Wave that inspired new waves in scores of other countries across the world with his Breathless (1960). Later credits include A Woman Is A Woman (1961), Vivre Sa Vie (1962), Le Petit Soldat (1962), Contempt (1963), Alphaville (1965), Pierrot le Fou (1965), 2 or 3 Things I Know About Her (1967), Weekend (1967), Every Man for Himself (1980), King Lear (1987), Century of Cinema (1995, documentary), Goodbye to Language (2014) and many more. Godard died of assisted suicide at age 91. R.I.P.

Wolfgang Petersen has died

James Caan has died

Caan was born the son of Jewish immigrants from Germany in New York. He got his start on TV in the early 1960s. His credits include El Dorado (1966), The Rain People (1969), Brian's Song (1971, TV movie), The Godfather (1972), - for which he earned his only Oscar nomination, - Slither (1973), The Gambler (1974), Funny Lady (1975), Rollerball (1975), Silent Movie (1976), Hide in Plain Sight (1980), - the only film he also directed, - Thief (1981), Misery (1990), Honeymoon in Vegas (1992), Bottle Rocket (1996), Eraser (1996), Dogville (2003), Elf (2003), Las Vegas (2003-07), Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs (2009) and many more. Caan passed away at age 82. R.I.P.

Jean-Louis Trintignant has died

Born in Vaucluse, France, Trintignant's theatrical debut as an actor was in If All the Guys in the World... (1955). Later credits include ...And God Created Woman (1956), The Seven Deadly Sins (1961), Inferno (1964), A Man and A Woman (1966), My Love, My Love (1967), A Man to Kill (1967), The Great Silence (1968), Z (1969), The Assassination (1972), Three Colors: Red (1994), Amour (2012), Happy End (2017) and many more. He also wrote and directed two films in the 1970s. Trintignant passed away at age 91. R.I.P.

Ray Liotta has died

Adopted from an orphenage at a young age, Liotta got hooked on acting in high school. He had various TV credits in the late 1970s and early 80s, with his film debut in The Lonely Lady (1983). Later credits include Something Wild (1986), Field of Dreams (1989), Goodfellas (1990), Cop Land (1997), Hannibal (2001), Blow (2001), Narc (2002), John Q (2002), Identity (2003), Observe and Report (2009), Youth in Revolt (2009), The Details (2011), Killing THem Softly (2012), The Place Beyond the Pines (2012), Shades of Blue (2016-18), The Simpsons (2018, TV-series), Marriage Story (2019), The Many Saints of Newark (2021), Black Bird (2022, TV-series) and many more. Liotta passed away at age 67 in his sleep while on production in the Dominican Republic. R.I.P.

Philip Baker Hall has died

Born in Ohio, Hall didn't start acting until he was 30. His long list of credits include Zabriskie Point (1970), Miami Vice (1987, TV-series), Midnight Run (1988), Ghostbusters II (1989), Cheers (1993, TV-series), Hard Eight (1996), The Rock (1996), Air Force One (1997), Boogie Nights (1997), Seinfeld (1991-98), Rush Hour (1998), The Insider (1999), Magnolia (1999), The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999), Bruce Almighty (2003), Dogville (2003), The Zodiac (2005), Zodiac (2007), Curb Your Enthusiasm (2004-09), Mr. Popper's Penguins (2011), Modern Family (2011-12) and many more. Hall passed away at age 90. R.I.P.

Film Excess - Free Ukraine - Stop Putin - End the war NOW!!

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11/02/2013

Monsters University (2013) - A funny and inspiring prequel

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