Monsters U/Despicable Me 2 Review

As always, SPOILERS! Read with caution!






The only thing I was relieved concerning Monsters U during its initial announcement was its decision to take the series into the past - I couldn't stomach the idea of a sequel. I suppose you could milk something about the Monsters adjusting to the discovery of children's laughter changing, oh, pretty much everything the monsters believed and devoted their lives to—hell, the prequel alone establishes there's an entire college built around scaring. However, the elephant in the room concerning Boo's reappearance made me reluctant because it's a story I don't think needs to be told.

Regardless, I still approached the film with some reluctance. Sad to say, there just hasn't been an amazing Pixar film since WALL.E. Up? Most people only remember or care about the first ten minutes. Me? I raised my eyebrow when the villain's pet dogs started cooking and piloting jets. But it had an Asian character who's not a walking stereotype, so score one for the good guys. Brave was a bit messy delivering its message. Though it ended the trilogy decently, I think Toy Story should have ended with the second movie. Car 2? Fuck, I hated the first movie, why the hell do I want to watch the second? None of these movies are remotely bad and compared to other mainstream animated films, still better than average, but there was an element or two that caused it to slag behind.

Monsters U sadly falls under that category. The first hour or so is derivative; I swear like 90% of mainstream animated films seems to always focus on the underdogs in some way, shape, or form (Dreamworks' Turbo looks desperate and bland) The cast of lovable losers are quirky, but hardly memorable (except Art and that's mostly because he's a visually creative monster) and I think they missed an opportunity to show off Randells' gradual transformation from gawky geek to repulsive jerkass. Though I suppose if they weren't going to do much with him, it was wise of them to shove him in the background. It's...we've seen this before and while the usual tight script carries it better than most, this is also a Pixar film and I've come to expect more from them.

This review points out something that adds to the derivative: its story lacks the unique point of view Pixar is known for. A lot of their movies portrays the characters' journey from their unique eyes while carrying emotions and concerns familiar to us. Toy Story focuses primarily on loneliness and jealously, but purely from the viewpoint of a toy. They worry their kids will disown them; they struggle with the idea of getting sold or abandoned in the streets; they're afraid and horrified when they end up in a daycare center filled with rambunctious toddlers. Then there's Ratatouille where Remy the rat desires to fulfill his dream of being a chef; easily relatable to many humans, but unique because it's seen from a rat's point of view—one where he has to risk giant kitchen knives and disgusted humans. Even Monsters Inc. established the inversion of monsters panicking over their own feared "monster" – the human child, Boo - and managed to establish her as the central figure of their specific world building because their entire economy relies on kids like her. Monsters U… Monsters U is really just college with monsters in it.

I spent the first hour or so thinking I could take or leave this film. Fortunately, it was the last half hour that really amp it up and delivered the amazing quality Pixar is known for. Those last thirty minutes alone is right up there with some of Pixar's earlier classics. The finale is tense and well-paced and the payoff amazing and satisfactory. Also, I really have to give Pixar credit: Mike and Sully are kicked out of school, never to return. There's no cheap, "Oh, you proved your worth, now get back in." No, they aren't given the easy way out. Hardscrabble admires their innovative minds, parts some wisdom, and departs, leaving the two to actually work from the bottom to get to where they are by Monsters Inc. I'm a firm believer that college is not for everyone, nor should it be ignored. Living in a world where college is the be-all, end-all for a bright future is a train of thought that honestly annoys me, so to see otherwise is inviting and welcomed.

The last act wouldn't have worked as well if not for Sully and Mike's growing friendship. The one thing the film got right from the very start is their relationship with one another. It's exceptionally paced and their rivals-turned-friends feels organic. Their specific talents and traits are so thoroughly emphasized and explore that it smoothly sets the stone for who they would be by Monsters Inc. It's damn brilliant.

I'm honestly not sure how to properly judge this movie. The first hour is really nothing to sing about and sometimes I wonder if it's worth sitting through for the last act, but…the last act is really, really, reaaaaaally good. Overall, Monsters U is exactly what I expected it to be - only slightly above average - but the last stretch proved Pixar still has magic.
AND A HALF OUT OF FIVE




Sadly, I wish I could say this movie was better. The first Despicable Me surprised the hell out of me on how good it actually was. I mean, holy shit, this film wasn't soulless; there's actually, ya know heart in this damn thing. Ignore the squabbling, blatant product placement Minions and at times outlandishly dumbass humors, it's Gru's growing affection for his adopted daughters that carries the film and a great degree of honesty.

DM2 serves to make the story bigger and grander, but fails to deliver expectations. There are a number of subplots that had the potential to be fantastic, but with so many to accomplish in a 90 minute film, they're either short of satisfaction at best, terribly incompetent at worse. The rest of this review is going to encompass an assload of nitpicking.

New villain El Macho (potentially offensive Mexican stereotype notwithstanding) is about as decent as DM1's Vector, if not better, but his motivation lacks. Why did he quit the villain gig twenty years back and what was his particular motivation for returning to his old life? His son is even less prominent, serving only as Margo's love interest before he quickly dumps her for another. It doesn't contribute anything, doesn't elevate Margo's character, and amounts to a whole lot of wasted screen (though Gru freeze raying the boy after "dumping" his daughter is hilarious sweet.)

Arguably, the girls don't do much of anything. Margo's subplot was an attempt to shoehorn her into a relevant role, but it is doesn't contribute or change anything. Poor middle child Edith is the least developed and mostly just there. Agnes likely has the biggest spotlight of the three on virtue of playing up the cuteness over her enthusiastic approval towards Gru's new love interest, but they get painfully little to do. Hell, they barely communicate with Lucy which I personally feel is problematic given she marries Gru at the end.

Lucy is the best character in the movie though. I really like that she isn't conventionally attractive - the big nose is actually quite cute on her. Her competent nature is balanced with her overeager and clumsy demeanor, giving her a quirk that most female leads do not have. She's not "the better sex" who condescends or outshines the male lead, but compliments Gru at every turn. For the first half, her relationship with Gru is the best part of the film. It's the second half where it falls apart as Gru and Lucy fall in love too quickly that their heartbreak of nearly losing one another rings false. Lucy also suffers "Dumbass in Distress" syndrome when El Macho captures her, forcing Gru to rescue her in the grand climax. No, really, he literally drags her by the arm and she doesn't even struggle. Granted, she was more confused than anything at the time, but we can't get one scene of her at least trying to fight her way out? She's just…kidnapped and all that competence flew out the window. It saddens me that this is still an issue.

There's an even smaller subplot where Dr. Nefario quits to work for another villain because he misses the evil life. Outside of some blatant foreshadowing, he doesn't appear until the end and quickly changes his mind and rejoins the Gru Crew. It's not a bad reasoning because he values his family above all else, but it does drive the question on what the Minions mean to him. He's the one who experiments and transform them into these hellish little beasts, seemingly with no qualm. So...are the Minions not family? I suppose they're more like employees than anything, but they live in the house, they do chores, they comfort, etc. Gru even treats them kindly. Seems kind of callous.

Also, what's with the jam/jelly plot? Why the jam/jelly? Why did they chose this specific field for Gru to work on after he stops being a baddie? It's not a callback to the first film and there's no specific reasoning why he chose it, he just did. They use the jellies in the finale, but that drives an even bigger question: why are the jellies necessary to support the antidote? Why can't the antidote just work itself? Never explains. Honestly, I'm not going to lie, I kind of miss Gru as a villain. He's actually not as interesting as the first and his only remarkable traits show up whenever he pulls indecent (but oftentimes well meaning) acts that prove he still has a bit of immorality to him. One of the things I liked about the first film is that the ending never specifically stated Gru turned good; he just became a loving father. Frankly, I was hoping and banking on him continuing the villain road and raising his three daughters to be master thieves like him. I think that would have been awesome and unique from what really happened. Though him joining the Anti-Villain League is probably a lot better than most. Ahh well, I'll always have my headcanon.

I think a lot of these could have worked if they cut down on the numerous Minion antics. They were horribly amusing in the first movie, but nowhere near as prominent as the second film loves to do. Every five minutes is filled with these little yellow bastards because _{go see their upcoming Minion movies folks} even though their actual importance could have been summed up in about two or three scenes of foreshadowing.

It also suffers from something kid's shows should not have: excessive noises. I actually went back and rewatched the first movie after I saw this to compare and whew, yeah, the first one is much more sedated. There are spaces to breathe and little nuances added to the core cast to give them a sense of development and reasons for their actions. Gru's disdain and eventual love for his adopted daughters is exceptionally well paced and remains the centerfold of the movie, and it's almost always heartfelt. The sequel foregoes all that. Not one moment is quiet or any less frantic; it zips from one kookiness to another with little time to breath. The first film at least had some subtly, this one is just, as Nostalgic Critic said, noise, noise, noise.

Despicable Me seem to be beginner's luck more than anything. The sequel, while mildly amusing, really falls behind. Damn shame, really.
OUT OF FIVE



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