Monsters University fails to capture its predecessor's magic, however is scarily watchable. The question you have to ask yourself is "did we need a prequel to 'Monsters Inc'?". In my opinion no, but here we are anyway. Detailing how Mike and Sully met at university, they participate in the "Scare Games" in order to be taken forward in the "Scare Program". Not all is plain sailing though, Mike wishes to be a "Scarer" but ultimately is too cute for the job. It's a story about proving people wrong, proving yourself right and coming to terms with the realisation that dreams may not be necessarily fulfilled. Let's start with the good. John Goodman and Billy Crystal reprise their unique voice acting roles again, they are simply irreplaceable. The animation was vibrant, colourful and included a glossy aftereffect to enhance the youth of our characters. The story was engaging, although slightly unfocused, and moves along at a consistent pace. The inclusion of past characters will put a smile on faces albeit felt occasionally forced for the sake of fan service to the original. There is one scene that blew me away and that was the conversation between Mike and Sully in the human world by the lake. Monochrome filter, moody atmosphere, tense discussion...I felt it. The overwhelming realisation that Mike isn't scary, the script could've milked that scene into melodrama but instead it was kept light yet powerful. Maybe it's just me, I like me a good dark scene in a child-friendly animation. The problem with this film lies with its characters. What made 'Monsters Inc' so captivating was the dialogue between just two characters. In this we have far too many supporting monsters thrown into the fray which blurs the focus from Mike and Sully, the latter being sidelined to a supporting role. This story is purely focused on Mike, personally I think that was the wrong decision. It should've been balanced. There really was no antagonist, any threat or danger levels were completely omitted. It's a fine prequel, just feels unnecessary.
