Monsters University Review

Are you ready for the most frightastic experience a monster can have? Welcome to college. In Pixar's new film and first ever prequel Monsters University, Mike Wazowski begins his freshmen year at the college of his dreams, and is now able to pursue his goal that was set when he was a monster tike: to become the all time around best scarer. But when fellow scare major James P. Sullivan comes into the picture, and his scaring abilities are questioned, Mike will have to do everything in his power to prove that there is more to this little monster than what they all see, and that you can find friends in the most unlikely places. 

Following the success of the first movie Monsters Inc., Pixar made a gamble on making their first prequel based off that film. While Pixar is known for their achievement in sequels like the Toy Story franchise and films for the world of Cars (which will now include the upcoming movie Planes) many speculated on whether they would triumph in the art of prequels. Monsters University proves that they can.

This movie, while may not be as admirable as the first film, is still a delight to watch. While children will laugh at the slapstick comedy, adults will find the tie in to the college atmosphere recognizable and true making it even more hilarious. Pixar ingeniously incorporates all that makes college what it is into the monster equivalent from the preppy SGA members to the fraternities and sororities ROR (Roar Omega Roar), HSS (Eta Hiss Hiss), JOX (Jaws Theta Chi), PNK (Python Nu Kappa), and the fraternity of Mike and Sully OK (Oozma Kappa). 

This film not only expands more on the monster world and on how Mike and Sully first became friends, but also does a remarkable job of referencing back to the first movie, revealing things that may not appear important, but then is shown that there is more to the simple things than the audience realizes. It also manages to bring back to focus that this is definitely not a sequel; screams are the only power source, there is no laugh floor, and children are still the deadliest things in the universe. The presence of the closet doors and the scream tanks also aids in bringing back the first movie, showing that it is still the monster world, only a different part of it.    

They may have not broken the all time scare record, but Pixar has succeeded in making a wonderful prequel to one of their most popular movies.