Monsters, Inc. (G, 2001)

common sense media says

Cute, kid-friendly monster movie; may scare sensitive kids.


parents & educators say
  • 32% say there are positive messages
  • 29% say there are positive role models

What parents need to know

Parents need to know that this movie is about closet monsters, but from their point of view -- scaring kids is their 9-to-5 job. Kids who are scared easily often come around, especially when the monster Sulley turns into a softy and takes care of the little girl in the story who isn't the least bit afraid of him. However there is one scene where a monster the child does fear straps her to a chair and tries to steel her screams. Kids will find it funny that most monsters fear any contact with kids -- when one monster gets a child's sock on him the whole factory panics and biohazard workers quarantine and shave him. Young kids may need help understanding what the monsters in yellow suits are doing to him and why.

Positive messages: Strong messages of friendship and that facing fears is a positive thing.
Positive role models: A closet monster learns to make kids laugh instead of scare them.
Violence & scariness: Comic peril, cartoon violence. The monsters are terrified of children for most of the film, which takes out some scariness. One of these closet monsters is scary and straps a toddler to a chair to catch her screams in a machine. Her monster friend saves her.
Sexy stuff: Not applicable.
Language: Not applicable.
Consumerism: This movie is part of the Disney-Pixar dynasty, with plenty of merchandise associated with the film. Toy Story toys are on the floor in one child's room.
Drinking, drugs, & smoking: Not applicable.

More on Monsters, Inc.

What to talk about

Talk to your kids
  • Families can talk about what Sulley learns about kids and how he changes the factory for the better in the end.

  • They can also talk about how each kid was scared by a certain kind of monster. Why was Boo scared of Randall and not Sulley? Why was Sulley considered such a top-notch scarer then?

  • What would make you laugh the hardest if it came out of your closet?

What's the story?

What's the story?

The monsters in MONSTERS, INC. are more afraid of kids than kids are of monsters. But monsters need to collect kids' screams to fuel their world, and children are getting so hard to scare that the monsters' world is suffering from rolling blackouts. Top scarer John "Sully" Sullivan (voiced by John Goodman) and rival Randall Boggs (Steve Buscemi) work as hard as they can to break the scream-collection record. But when Randall inadvertently lets a human child into the monster world, the monsters find out what being scared is really like.

Is it any good?

Is it any good?
 

This movie is utterly delightful. It should be put in the dictionary to illustrate the word, "adorable." It has the same delicious mixture of heart, humor, and technical wizardry that made A Bug's Life and the two Toy Story movies into instant classics. Like Jim Henson, who decided to make his Sesame Street characters monsters so that kids would never be afraid of monsters again, the people behind this movie have created monsters that even the shiest child will find completely unscary. In fact, kids may decide that multiple heads, removable eyes, and hair made from snakes are kind of cute.

There are lots of terrific DVD extras, including background info, a music video, ideas that never made it onto the screen, and a game.

Movie themes & details

Movie Details
Studio: Pixar Animation Studios
Director: Andrew Adamson
Cast: Billy Crystal, John Goodman, Mary Gibbs
Genre: Family and Kids
Run time: 92 minutes
Theatrical release: November 2, 2001
DVD release: September 17, 2002
MPAA Rating: G

This review was written by Nell Minow
 
 

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What parents & educators say

5
Based on 34 parent & educator reviews:
  • 32% say there are positive messages
  • 29% say there are positive role models

Most useful reviews by all members

FitMama
parent of 4 and 6 year old
 
Great movie but not for younger kids with bedtime monster problems :)
My son was just under 5yo when he first saw this movie at a friend's house. It evoked bedtime monster issues the first week after he saw it. However, his younger brother (now 4) watches it with him with no problems so I think it depends on the child.

 
For The Monster In Your Closet
I can't think of a better way to help a child get over their "monster in the closet" phase. The movie depicts monsters as having very human-like traits--basically just like you and me except they look different. Monsters, Inc. is a great movie for teaching the value of friendship, hard work, and doing the right thing even though it hurts. You could make Billy Crystal a serial killer in a movie and he'd still be Billy Crystal. This movie is no exception. His zany antics will leave even young kids howling in laughter. John Goodman's "papa bear" persona brings feelings of safety and security to the table as well. The friendship/camaraderie amongst them is very powerful and I think that's a good value that kids need to learn. Sully (Goodman) spend the whole movie trying to do the right thing and correct Randall's (Steve Buscemi) mistake. Randall, the bad guy, demonstrates that greed and vanity are bad, as he's constantly trying to be a more productive worker than Sully. Both monsters demonstrate a great work ethic (or in Randall's case a great desire to have a good work ethic), which is important for children to learn as well. Having said all of that, parts of this movie will scare most young children...especially the first two minutes of the movie. Randall and his accomplice (Mr. Waternoose, voiced by the late, great James Coburn) are scary at times, but both demonstrate well the power of greed. The end of the movie offers that there are alternate and more ethical ways of making a living. It also demonstrates that doing the right thing is important, whether letting go of someone you love, or refusing to cheat in order to make it to the top. All in all it's a phenomenal film. Disney really upped the ante on the upscaling of this one. The 1080p video of the Blu-Ray is stunning as is it's lossless HD-DTS soundtrack.

amfsf
parent of 4 year old
 
Fun movie, lots of questions from kids
My 3 year old was not scared, but lots of "whys" and "hows". Since EVERYTHING is make-believe (monsters, capturing screams, monster city, free standing doors that open into a kids room etc.), he had a hard time understanding some of the plot.

Fangbite91
kid, 11 years old
 
Very violent
I do not like the monsters roaring or the machine that catches kids screams. My little brother watched it with me once and he was afraid of the crushing machine and the monsters roaring, in one part, Mike Wizowski goes on a date for a monsters birthday but it is not sexy. It is kind of disturbing and loud when the little girl screams and cries. But this movie tells kids that there is no need to be afraid if monsters coming out of your closet and scaring you, I like this movie but parents, please read the review up top about Monsters Inc before letting your kids watch that because it is a very violent movie. But still very funny and awesome, the end is my favorite part.

HelloKittyFairy
kid, 12 years old
 
Easily Laughable
I'm 10 and I still watch Monsters inc.! It's shuch a fun movie to see. I love Sully and Boo. But I thin kit is good for 6+ because older kids might not get as good of a laugh unlike little children. No bad stuff whatsoever. Great for the whole family!

Jeusus-Christ ...
teen, 17 years old
 
Pixar has great films like this!
I disliked the crushing machine when I was little but It was a great film. It's true that it was pretty violent. Yes the monsters were a little scary but at the end they were all very funny. It tells how it is not always a good idea to scare people. Especially a toddler. I loved this movie. A good kids movie even though it's violent. Count on pixar as much as you can!!

viobird
kid, 11 years old
 
cute.
I love this movie a lot billy crystal is so funny!

arthur16morgana
teen, 16 years old
 
i like this movie.its funny.and i love boo.shes a cute an funny little girl.the monsters were funny too.

amber092099
kid, 12 years old
 
ilove it

moderator
kid, 13 years old
 
:)
good movie, but a lot of disney merchandise throughout the film and could scare some kids, so parents or older siblings should watch it with them and give them a place to hide- it can get a bit freaky at times for easily scared kids.

oag721
teen, 14 years old
 
A favorite
I love Pixar. This was the film that really got me into them--not Toy Story, as that was popular and I was wary of popular things (but I love them now!). I think I was either 4 or 5 when I saw it. It's still a family favorite and I still love to watch it. Parents should just know that some scenes could be scary to young children--I was a bit scared of the scene where Randall hooks his new machine up to Boo when I was younger.

Dominicboo1
teen, 16 years old
 
More Clever Than Creepy
Sulley only scares for the good of the monster world, and doesn't want to scare Boo off duty. Mike and Sulley let nothing get in the way of their friendship. Pixar never made a bad movie and thisis a perfect example of my opinion. Enjoy this movie for a perfectly appropriate but not kidified cartoon. Very mild "scary scenes".

24cool
kid, 8 years old
 
Good for4 5 6 7 year olds
Good movie. A little bit of it may be scary to 4 and 5 year olds. It has some jokes for aldults.

Peenut2k7
kid, 10 years old
 
Pretty Scary for 6 and under
When I was 5 or so, I disliked the "Crushing Machine". Monsters may be scary for younger children. Kids may cry when Sulley accidentaly scares Boo, a 2 year old child. But now that I am 10 (and maybe over according to when you are reading this), I have seen the whole movie and learned that it is fairly adorable and innocent. 4 stars.

Ren and Stimpy ...
kid, 11 years old
 
Wonderful! Always loved it!
What is so good about this movie!!! It is like the biggest comedy I have ever seen! It made me almost wanna cry because it was so beautiful!

KinbJune
teen, 13 years old
 
Our Company is the Most Entertaining Yet!
Pixar has made many good films, and I know that Disney's live action department is poor, so I guess you can infer, that I think this is one of the best movies ever made! I absolutely love the comedy, and they don't have to use any crude comedy to get the message across that people are supposed to laugh. And I'm absolutely overjoyed that Pixar is going to go back to this title. They started filming Monsters Inc. 2 on September 6, 2010, and it is scheduled for release on November 2, 2012. Check it out on movieinsider*!

robinrunner
teen, 14 years old
 
Entertaining and imaginative flick on how it's never too late too change your "scary" habits.
This is the first movie I ever saw at a movie theater. One of my favorites. I think you could watch this a bunch of times and it would never loose it's charm. It's basically different point of view of the monster in your closet. Parents will enjoy showing this to any member of the family no matter what age. The only problems with Monsters inc. is at times villains like Randel or Mr. Waternoose can look a bit frightning and may do something scary. But good triumphs over evil and the laughs, the tears, and the cuteness of Boo will make up for it!

coralinefan020 ...
teen, 15 years old
 
Monster Inc scares you with a good time
Monster's Inc has always been one of my favorite Pixar Films. It might scare littler kids but it had a great story, great voice acting, and just overall an amazing movie.

Justino4
teen, 14 years old
 
G for Good
This isn't a bad G rated movie. Although the movie is set in a scary form, there weren't any sirious scary moments.

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ON: Content is appropriate for kids this age.
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