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Monsters, Inc.
EMAILPRINTBuena Vista Pictures
Generally favorable reviews
Based on 34 critic reviews
How did we calculate this?
Based on 59 votes
Read user comments
Rate this movie >
Movie Info
Genre(s): Family/Kids
Written by:
Dan Gerson
Andrew Stanton
Directed by:
Peter Docter
David Silverman (co-director)
Lee Unkrich (co-director)
Release Date:
Theatrical: November 2, 2001
DVD: September 17, 2002
Running Time: 88 minutes, Color
Origin: USA
Summary
RATING: G for General Audiences
Starring Billy Crystal, John Goodman, James Coburn, Jennifer Tilly, Bonnie Hunt, Mary Gibbs, and Steve Buscemi
The Academy Award-winning creators of "Toy Story" open the door to a frightfully funny world of monsters and mayhem and scare up lots of laughs in their new movie, Monsters, Inc. (Disney/Pixar)
Also On Metacritic
FILM: A Bug's Life Finding Nemo The Incredibles Toy Story Toy Story 2 Up
GAMES: PS2 Monsters Inc.
Also On The Web: Internet Movie Database View The Trailer Official Studio Site
What The Critics Said
All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...
New Times (L.A.) Robert Wilonsky
As giddy and antic as any great Warner Bros. cartoon of the 1930s and '40s -- it bears seeing more than once, if only to allow for the sight gags that play second fiddle to the plot, a rarity in animation -- but also resonant and real. In other words, it's the perfect movie.
Read Full Review >Rolling Stone Peter Travers
It's the Pixar animators who keep grown-ups as riveted as the kids with visual marvels that dazzle and delight.
Read Full Review >LA Weekly Hazel-Dawn Dumpert
The story's charming, the set pieces are wildly inventive, and even the throwaway one-liners, about everything from movie-animation pioneer Ray Harryhausen to the old Oscar Meyer jingle, are hilarious.
Read Full Review >Wall Street Journal Joe Morgenstern
Who doesn't need what this movie has to give?
Newsweek David Ansen
A terrific piece of work: smart, inventive and executed with state-of-the-art finesse.
The New York Times A.O. Scott
There hasn't been a film in years to use creative energy as efficiently as Monsters, Inc.
Read Full Review >Chicago Tribune Mark Caro
The climax, featuring what's essentially a suspended roller coaster of closet doors, is as thrilling as it is imaginative.
Read Full Review >Charlotte Observer Lawrence Toppman
It comes from Pixar, the animation studio that scored with the "Toy Story" series and "A Bug's Life," and it has more zip and a tad less soul than those predecessors.
Read Full Review >Baltimore Sun Michael Sragow
The movie may not be perfect, but it's jam-packed with goodies -- like a breakfast cereal fun-pack with a prize on every box-top.
USA Today Mike Clark
Though the comedy is sometimes more frenetic than inspired and viewer emotions are rarely touched to any notable degree, the movie is as visually inventive as its Pixar predecessors.
Read Full Review >Miami Herald Rene Rodriguez
Movies like Monsters, Inc. literally make you feel like a kid again, marveling at the joyously inventive sights before you, and that's a feat that should not be taken lightly.
Read Full Review >Philadelphia Inquirer Carrie Rickey
"Shrek" is a scintilla funnier, "Toy Story 2" a hair's breadth more poignant, but "MI" is every bit as imaginative and lovable as these other contemporary animation classics.
Read Full Review >New York Post Lou Lumenick
Smart, funny and ingeniously detailed with terrific vocal teamwork.
Read Full Review >Seattle Post-Intelligencer William Arnold
Not quite up to the exalted level of the two predecessors ("Toy Story" and "Toy Story 2"), be assured it's still the most eye-popping and thoroughly entertaining animated film to come down the pike so far this year.
Read Full Review >Film Threat Michael Dequina
Confirms that despite all the technical tools at their disposal, one thing counts head and shoulders above razzle-dazzle eye candy (or anything else, for that matter): the story and characters, and Monsters, Inc. introduces worthy additions to the Pixar pantheon.
Read Full Review >Time Richard Corliss
"Shrek," this film's prime competition for the first Animated Feature Oscar, is a synoptic parody of fairy tales. In Monsters, Inc. the gags aren't as spot-on but the technique is miles ahead. The vision is grander and warmer.
Washington Post Desson Thomson
Whatever its ultimate position on the greatest hits list, Monsters, Inc. is supple and technologically sophisticated entertainment.
New York Magazine Peter Rainer
Much more kid-oriented than any other computer-animated movie thus far. In other words, it's much more Disneyish. I enjoyed it.
Read Full Review >Chicago Reader Lisa Alspector
An unprecedented friendship between a monster and a child leads to an amazing chase scene.
Read Full Review >Austin Chronicle Marc Savlov
The spirited interplay between Goodman and Crystal is both wacky and, dare I say, charming.
Read Full Review >Chicago Sun-Times Roger Ebert
Monsters, Inc. is cheerful, high-energy fun, and like the other Pixar movies, has a running supply of gags and references aimed at grownups.
Read Full Review >New York Daily News Jack Mathews
Rarely does an animated character merge as perfectly with the persona of the actor providing his voice as the star of Monsters, Inc. does with John Goodman.
Christian Science Monitor David Sterritt
The movie's cutest twist is that the monsters are more scared of kids than kids are of them, because they think human children are toxic.
Read Full Review >San Francisco Chronicle Carla Meyer
Funny and sweet enough to delight kids and inventive enough to satisfy adults.
Read Full Review >Entertainment Weekly Lisa Schwarzbaum
Monsters, Inc. has got that swing, that zippity, multilevel awareness of kids'-eye sensibilities and adult-pitched humor.
Read Full Review >Slate David Edelstein
Doesn’t have the warmth of the Toy Story pictures, but it still boasts a very entertaining slapstick-farce structure and some neat hairy, oozy, tendrilly creatures.
Read Full Review >Salon.com Charles Taylor
It's a nice movie. But Disney has never learned that "nice," especially in comedy, is a negative virtue.
Read Full Review >Variety Todd McCarthy
Clever and jokey in a vaudeville sort of way, but lacks the heart and sheer imagination of the company's best work for Disney, "Toy Story 2" and "A Bug's Life."
Read Full Review >Portland Oregonian Shawn Levy
It's a good movie, mind you, with great bits in it, but it still falls short of rapture.
Boston Globe Jay Carr
By any other standard, the creatures in Monsters, Inc. would be impressive. But by the high standard Pixar not only set itself, but invented, they're only ordinary.
Washington Post Rita Kempley
Marvels of animation abound in Monsters, Inc. -- when it comes to irreverent humor and real heart, Monsters doesn't quite measure up.
Los Angeles Times Kenneth Turan
Though it has its charms, Monsters, Inc. does not measure up. As a childhood entertainment it is certainly fine, but Pixar's celebrated lure for adults is largely absent.
Read Full Review >TV Guide Frank Lovece
The funny lines fall flat and the relationships and conversations among adult characters are straight out of 1950s sitcoms. Now that's scary.
Read Full Review >Village Voice Michael Atkinson
But Monsters, Inc. -- directed by Pixar soldier Pete Docter, not by master digital comic John Lasseter -- turns out to be stingy on context, commentary, and the prism-ing view of pop culture that made the earlier films mint.
Read Full Review >What Our Users Said
The average user rating for this movie is 8.7 (out of 10) based on 59 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.
Mark H. gave it a10:
Watched at least 30 times withthe kids and not once did I feel forced, fantastic.
Dani P. gave it a10:
It was an amazing movie and i loved it!!!!
sloppy joe gave it a10:
Pros: every econd is hilarious, i could watch it over and over again, superior visuals. cons: NONE!
Kamie H. gave it a 10:
AWESOME!!!!!
Patrick H. gave it a 10:
Fantastic!!! :)))
Andrew M. gave it a 9:
(9.5) As much fun as the two Toy Story's and the comparison stops there! This is Monsters, Inc. A unique story with unique characters. Moreover, is has a script that's hilarious, voice talent that's impeccable, and the whole group of filmmakers are simply geniuses. It's cliched throughout but, heck, who cares! You love the heroes, adore the victim, and despise the villian(s). And you're supposed to! Not to mention that you laugh yourself silly at the side-characters. C'mon, who doesn't love Roz?!? This film has everything and age is not a prerequisite. It will thrill audiences for many many years to come.
Pat C. gave it an 8:
Pretty good for shallow cartoon characters.
