Director: Pete Docter, David Silverman, Lee Unkrich
Cast: John Goodman, Billy Crystal, Steve Buscemi, Jennifer Tilly
Running time: 92 minutes
Certificate: U
Synopsis: Professional scary monsters Mike and Sulley find themselves terrified when a human child wanders into their world…
It’s a Pixar movie, so we know it’s good. Even on a bad day the studio never fail to impress. Going back and giving a hand-picked selection a 3D makeover may sound to some like an attempt to cash in on old material – which Lucas and Spielberg seem to have cornered the market in – but with Pixar it feels a little different.
To date, I’ve seen two movies in 3D at the cinema. Both, as it happens, were Pixar movies I’d seen in 2D previously. And in both cases, the 3D techniques used were far more subtle and reserved than I would have expected. Theirs is the kind of 3D that draws you into the world, stretching back the horizon, rather than forcing it out of the screen. In the hands of a less subtle company, the monsters of MONSTERS, INC. would be thrust out of the screen and into your field of vision, teeth, claw and fur flying over your head. But here it felt less about the spectacle, more about the story, the world and its characters, which has always been one of Pixar’s strongest assets.
With its great story, fantastic cast and memorable characters, MONSTERS, INC would be a great movie if it had been done with paper models on string. Instead, Pixar gave us cutting edge computer animation. Eleven years on, giving it that extra “third” dimension serves only to deepen your admiration of Pixar’s work.
And no, even in 3D, we couldn’t find that elusive A113 reference.
MONSTERS INC 3D arrives in UK cinemas 18th January.
