 "MONSTERS, INC. has an unrivaled release on Blu-ray that is chock full of bonus material" | 2009-11-12 |
| - Reviewed By User: A2ARQ73X850C9F |
Pixar's 2001 hit, MONSTERS, INC., continued the studio's tradition of creating wonderfully fantastical worlds of incredible imagination in design utilizing the very best in computer animation. What is the hallmark though of a Pixar film is the fact that the development of character is always at the forefront and is never relegated to existing on a superficial level in order to showcase the many hours of hard work that went into creating the animation. MONSTERS, INC. is of course a great buddy picture, pairing two opposites together, and setting them forth on their adventure. Just as Buzz Lightyear and Woody were teamed up to create such a memorable pair in the TOY STORY movies, so too does MONSTERS, INC. couple the diminutive and always frenetic and full of energy Mike Wazowski (Billy Crystal), with his enormous friend Sulley (John Goodman), the leading scarer at Monsters, Inc., a company that exists to provide electricity for Monstropolis by collecting the screams of children as the monsters pop out of the kids' closet doors at night. When a toddler, Boo, inadvertently follows Sulley back through the doorway and into the monsters' own world though, Sulley and Mike must set out to try and get her back to her own world while battling those in the company that have ulterior motives. The result is a wildly funny and dynamically original movie that exudes a tremendous amount of heart from its characters.
The voice casting of Crystal and Goodman is phenomenal, and the two play off of each other so well that they create some hilarious moments on screen. Both though are allowed to fully develop their characters, and the relationship between Mike and Sulley is given the freedom to grow and change throughout the film, and this is key to the story's success. Had the enormously talented Crystal's Wazowski only been seen as the comedic sidekick of Sulley, and never given the liberty to go through his own personal character arc, a much weaker picture would have emerged. Directors Pete Docter, David Silverman and Lee Unkrich though do not go for the easy gag, but rather stay true to each of the character's own motivations, thus allowing their relationship with one another to organically grow throughout the film. By doing so, the team of Mike and Sulley become one of the most memorable from the Pixar catalogue.
Seeing the film in HD at home with the Blu-ray release of the film is in a word, breathtaking. Even though the film is now almost nine years old, the animation in MONSTERS, INC. is still beyond compare. Not only is the world of Monstropolis so completely artistically original and populated with such unique interpretations of monsters, but the level of detail in the animation is staggering. Looking at some of the skin textures of some of the monsters will quickly illustrate how much time and attention to detail went into animating the film, but by far, the scene that best exemplifies just how good the animation in MONSTERS, INC. is involves Mike and Sulley being banished to the Himalayas. Here, the thick blue and purple fur that covers Sulley's body can be seen blowing in the winter storm as small pieces of snow become stuck within it. The animation in this scene alone ranks as among the best, and serves as a milestone in computer animation excellence. Being able to see it in HD at home will bring an entirely new level of admiration for what the filmmakers were able to achieve with the movie.
For the Blu-ray release, Disney is including four discs that include the Blu-ray version of the film, a DVD version, a digital copy and a Blu-ray disc of bonus features. There is so much value with this set, that it, along with the similar edition of UP that is being released on the same day, will prove to be must have Blu-rays for everyone's collection and are rightly sure to be one of the most popular gifts given this holiday season.
The bonus material included with MONSTERS, INC. is simply amazing, and will keep a viewer engaged for hours discovering the vast amount of supplemental material on the film. The bonus features include:
Disc One
Filmmakers' Roundtable (22:00)
MONSTERS, INC. Ride and Go Seek: Building Monstropolis in Japan (7:58)
"For the Birds" Academy Award® Winner for Best Animated Short in 2001 (3:21)
"Mike's New Car" Academy Award® Nominated for Best Animated Short in 2002 (3:46)
Audio Commentary
Disc Two
Roz's 100 Door Challenge-A fun game that will place you in what job you would be best suited for at Monsters, Inc.
Pixar Fun Factory Tour (3:34)
Story is King (2:00)
Monsters are King (1:29)
Original Treatment (13:40)
Story Pitch: Back to Work (4:36)
Banished Concepts: Intro to Banished Concepts, Assistant Sulley (2:15), End of Day (2:22), Bad Scare (2:51), Scream Refinery (1:06), Original Sulley Intro (1:00)
Storyboard to Film Comparison: Storyreel (5:14), Final Color (5:14), Split Screen Comparison (5:14)
Art Gallery
Designing Monstropolis (4:48)
Set Dressing Intro (3:24)
Location Flyarounds
Monster File: Cast of Characters (5:51), What Makes a Great Monster (1:24)
Animation: Animation Process (3:11), Early Tests (8:02), Opening Title Animation (2:06), Hard Parts (4:58), Shots Department (2:16), Production Demonstration: Intro, Storyreel (1:50), Layout (1:50), Animation (1:50), Final Color (1:50)
Music and Sound: Monster Song (4:13), Sound Design (3:15)
Release: The Premiere (:56), Trailers and TV Spots, International Inserts (1:06), Multi-Language Clip Reel (3:45), Toys (1:29), Outtakes and Company Play (7:00)
Wrap-Up (:42)
New Monster Adventures: Monster TV Treats (1:09), Ponkickies 21, "If I Didn't Have You" Music Video (1:11)
Behind the Scenes: On the Job with Mike and Sulley (2:31)
Orientation: Welcome to Monsters, Inc. (:58), Your First Day (3:34), History of the Monster World (1:36) |
| |
| "Sheer fun - family entertainment" | 2009-11-03 |
| - Reviewed By c3_p0 |
IMHO the two best Disney pictures of the past decade plus are Monsters Inc. and The Incredibles. (ok, Toy Story may come close, but it's primarily a boy's movie)
Monsters Inc. is VERY appropriate for boys or girls; and family viewing. I guarantee that both young and old will enjoy the story - and young children will not be frightened by these monsters. The heart of the movie is the relationship that develops between Sully (big blue fur ball) and Boo - the child that manages to enter the monster world. Children enjoy the fact that mosters are as afraid of children as human children often are of monsters. It's a real ground leveler. Though there are 'good' and 'bad' monsters in the show, good triumphs and it leaves everyone feeling happy in the end.
Disney sells a wonderful 26" stuffed Sully for about $30. If you want to make those little eyes light up this Christmas, consider a present including both the movie and the stuffed animal. It's guaranteed to make the most timid child unafraid of bedtime. |
| |
| "Cute Movie" | 2009-11-01 |
| - Reviewed By User: A33SE61L3TZWGT |
| This is one of he only Pixar movies I didnt own. I had to have it. Awesome movie. My three year old LOVES it. The disc was in great shape, and I got a steal-of-a-deal on Amazon. |
| |
| "This film has style" | 2009-09-30 |
| - Reviewed By User: ALNRJZMNHMJD7 |
| First, let me just say that it is a very, very good and funny movie, but I will come back to its many good points. I have to say that as a Pixar / Disney movie it lacked something from the pervious Toy Stories, but at first I could not quite put my finger on the problem. However after reviewing other digital movie I now can see the main problem. Lets start with Titan A.E. digital quality mostly excellent, however no realism in most scenes, other then the people which often seemed cartoonish. Final Fantasy, very, very good graphics the people very real, although the surrounding environment, was the Fantasy. Now Shrek not commenting on the story line, the environment from the grass to the buildings were just perfect, and put the unreal characters in a setting which MADE them real, so we felt that the film was real. Toy Story 1 & 2, again especially in the 2nd the environment was perfect, also because it was in a place which we all recognises (an average city) it made everything seem real. Now finally Monsters Inc, the graphics were another step up from Toy Story 2, however all the realism was gone. This was because of where the film was set, take the scene where Sulley and Wazowski are walking down the street, on the way they pass funny cars, a Jelly Monster, and a giant and you feel that the realism we got in Toy Story is lost. Having said that the world they created was very funny, and for a change you could feel in the graphics Disney's involvement, leading to many cartoonish environments, with a Pixar's touch. Having said all that this film was brilliant, and the graphics on the little girl `Boo' we excellent. I could comment on the fact that the story line is very predicable, but it's aimed at kids and so is very easy for them to understand. As I said earlier it is a very funny movie, with a lot more comedy then Toy Story had. All the characters have certain funny quirks and mannerisms, which adds to the laughs. Also I have to say that although John Goodman did a very good job as Sulley, for me Billy Crystal made the movie his own, as the voice of Wazowski bringing more then an extra dimension to the character. Although I have to say I didn't for some reason connect to the characters as I did with Toy Story, but that could just be me. Another thing that I have to point out is the ending, well after the ending, like Toy Story 2 there's funny outtakes, but then there more and takes credits to another level. I would recommend people to go and see the movie just to see the end, and was still sitting even when the screen went black waiting for more. Well to wrap up this review this film has style, great humour, a fine plot for kids, great graphics and more, yes go and see it. |
| |
| "Beautiful in Bluray" | 2009-09-10 |
| - Reviewed By alexg23 |
Before anyone starts saying this has not been released yet and there cannot be a review of the Bluray edition let me tell you this, this movie has been available in Japan and Mexico for quite some time now, and I was able to get a copy of the Mexican edition, which was at one time, identical to the one to be released in the US. It is a 3 disc edition (2 BD plus DVD copy of the movie), this has now been changed to a 4 disc set in the US to include the additional digital copy.
Disc one starts with an intro by director Pete Docter, in which he pretty much explains all the contents in this 'glorious' high definition version of the movie. A mini documentary on the 'Monsters, Inc: Ride & Go Seek ' ride in Disney Japan is also included. The highlight to me was the creators 'Round table' in which they talk about the process of creating the movie, some deleted scenes not included in prior DVD versions are shown here and they finally explained to me why is it so difficult to get a reservation at 'Harryhausen's' if all the staff from the scare floor seems to hang around there!
The Pixar shorts 'For the birds' and 'Mike's new car' (originally made on 4:3 format) are also included in HD format (as previously released in 'Pixar shorts)
The movie is presented in 1:85:1 aspect ratio. The word that comes to mind to describe how this looks is simply 'Beautiful', the colors, the textures, Sullivan's fur, the character's skin textures, Roz' sweater. Details pop up, colors are bright and clear. I had never noted that the real name of 'Boo' is actually in the movie until I saw it on Bluray!
The audio is another improvement of this BD edition. Presented in an uncompressed 5.1 track, the music by Randy Newman and the sound effects (check the audio in the door chamber sequence or every time 'Boo' laughs/cries and there is a power variation) sound just great. Spanish and French Dolby Digital tracks are also included. An audio commentary with the creators provides a lot of details of the movie, since I have watched this over and over with my 2 year old kid I have been able to play the commentary a couple times so he watches the movie and I learn about how it was made.
One thing I noted though, the end credits in the Bluray are not the same as in the DVD. The DVD will have the bloopers play while the credits roll, while the Bluray does not. Those 'Bloopers' though are included in disc 2 as additional features.
Disc 2 includes a feature called the 'Employee's manual' Additional spots created to promote the film are included too. Storyboards and drawings from the artists in HD as well as the '100 doors challenge', which is like a trivia game in which based on your responses you will be offered a position in Monsters Inc. Disc 3 as mentioned earlier, is a DVD copy of the movie (in the Mexican edition the 4:3 presentation is included, NOT widescreen) which is great as my kid can have that to watch it as many times as he desires.
Fans of the movie or any Pixar movie should not miss this!
|
| |
| "More than a great movie" | 2009-09-02 |
| - Reviewed By User: A2PS4H8DUNWHDA |
REVIEW REPRINTED FROM "KIDS' FLICKS (DADS PICKS)" BY TOM LAMARR
[...]
"Monsters, Inc. saved my life."
So began a recent meeting of Teletubbies Survivors.
The dad continued quietly, glancing down at his hands as he spoke. "Someone gave it to us, used, might even have been on VHS. I was losing hope, didn't think I'd ever watch anything funny or clever again. I mean, have you ever seen Barney's Adventure Bus on widescreen HD? I love you, you love me... I don't think so."
"But there was Arthur," a mom spoke up. "That show's well written... and funny. And Sesame Street has its moments."
"Monsters, Inc. was different," the dad said. "The characters were likable and interesting. The humor worked--that opening scene is ingenious--and the plot had real tension. I didn't know computer animation had progressed that far."
"What about the ending?" an older mom volunteered. "Talk about emotionally satisfying. Monsters, Inc. has got to be my favorite movie with either John Goodman or Billy Crystal, and that's saying a lot."
"Has anyone been to the interactive theater in Disney World?" another Survivor asked, showing genuine excitement in her voice. "It's one of the few things they've added in the past ten years. Very well done. Highly recommended."
"I had a question about something else," a dad new to the group spoke up. "What was the significance of that vacuum cleaner pet or robot or whatever it was on Teletubbies?"
"Please," said the first dad, surprising the others with his volume. "Not tonight. I'm just not up for it."
"Noo-noo," a woman murmured near the back of the room. "Noo-noo."
"Now see what you've done!" snapped the mom in the seat to her left. "Jen's crying."
"No one wants to think about that part of our lives right now," the first dad said. "Let's share memories of Monsters, Inc."
[...]
|
| |
Expedited Available
