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Monsters, Inc. (2001)

Trailer
1:23 | Trailer
In order to power the city, monsters have to scare children so that they scream. However, the children are toxic to the monsters, and after a child gets through, 2 monsters realize things may not be what they think.

Directors:

Pete Docter, David Silverman (co-director) | 1 more credit »

Writers:

Pete Docter (original story by), Jill Culton (original story by) | 4 more credits »
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Popularity
1,073 ( 27)
Top Rated Movies #232 | Won 1 Oscar. Another 14 wins & 38 nominations. See more awards »

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Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
John Goodman ... Sullivan (voice)
Billy Crystal ... Mike (voice)
Mary Gibbs ... Boo (voice)
Steve Buscemi ... Randall (voice)
James Coburn ... Waternoose (voice)
Jennifer Tilly ... Celia (voice)
Bob Peterson ... Roz (voice)
John Ratzenberger ... Yeti (voice)
Frank Oz ... Fungus (voice)
Daniel Gerson ... Needleman & Smitty (voice)
Steve Susskind ... Floor Manager (voice)
Bonnie Hunt ... Flint (voice)
Jeff Pidgeon ... Bile (voice)
Samuel Lord Black Samuel Lord Black ... George Sanderson (voice) (as Sam Black)
Jack Angel Jack Angel ... Additional Voices (voice)
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Storyline

A city of monsters with no humans called Monstropolis centers around the city's power company, Monsters, Inc. The lovable, confident, tough, furry blue behemoth-like giant monster named James P. Sullivan (better known as Sulley) and his wisecracking best friend, short, green cyclops monster Mike Wazowski, discover what happens when the real world interacts with theirs in the form of a 2-year-old baby girl dubbed "Boo," who accidentally sneaks into the monster world with Sulley one night. And now it's up to Sulley and Mike to send Boo back in her door before anybody finds out, especially two evil villains such as Sulley's main rival as a scarer, chameleon-like Randall (a monster that Boo is very afraid of), who possesses the ability to change the color of his skin, and Mike and Sulley's boss Mr. Waternoose, the chairman and chief executive officer of Monsters, Inc. Written by Anthony Pereyra {hypersonic91@yahoo.com}

Plot Summary | Plot Synopsis

Taglines:

Returning to theatres for the first time in 3D (2012 3D re-release) See more »


Certificate:

G | See all certifications »

Parents Guide:

View content advisory »
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Did You Know?

Trivia

A sequel to the movie was originally planned by Circle 7 Animation, titled Monsters Inc 2: Lost In Scaradise. The plot would focus on Mike & Sulley visiting Boo on her birthday, only to find out Boo has moved. So Mike & Sulley must travel through the human world to find Boo. This sequel was cancelled when Circle 7 shut down. See more »

Goofs

When Waternoose congratulates Sulley on an 'impressive display' of scaring, different shaped monsters are just coming in to shot to walk past behind Sulley. The shot cuts to Waternoose and then back to Sulley in just a couple of seconds and the monsters behind him have gone. See more »

Quotes

[first lines]
Flint: All right, Mr. Bile, is it?
Bile: Uh, my friends call me Phlem.
Flint: Uh-huh, Mr. Bile, can you tell me what you did wrong?
Bile: I fell down?
Flint: No, No, before that.
[Turning to the Trainees behind her]
Flint: Can anyone tell me Mr. Bile's big mistake? Anyone?
[the Trainees look confused]
Flint: [Playing the Footage on the Screen above of Bile entering the room] Alright let's check footage, right there. The Door! And leaving the door open is the worst mistake that any employee could make, because...
[...]
See more »

Crazy Credits

No monsters were harmed in the making of this motion picture. See more »

Alternate Versions

For the Blu-Ray release, the Snowman's snow cones have been digitally altered to look plain yellow, as opposed to the original version, which looks rather like snow that had been urinated on. See more »

Connections

References Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (2001) See more »

Soundtracks

If I Didn't Have You
Music and Lyrics by Randy Newman
Performed by Billy Crystal and John Goodman
Produced by Randy Newman, Chris Montan, and Frank Wolf
See more »

User Reviews

`Monsters, Inc.' is the best animated feature this year and one of the greatest of all time.
25 October 2001 | by jdesandoSee all my reviews

You may admire the hair detail on Sully the Yeti's arm, but you will be amazed at the warmth of characterization in `Monsters, Inc.,' surpassing even the great `Shrek' earlier this year. Goodman and Crystal are a comedic team reminiscent of the zaniest Martin and Lewis days. Crystal's Borscht-belt routines brought smiles even to this jaded and admittedly tough-on-comedy critic. I thought Eddie Murphy's donkey in `Shrek' was smart and funny; Crystal's one-eyed monster is even better with its wry and annoying wit.

Cleaning the environment of child contamination is a hilarious conceit that turns around the usual fears children have of monsters in closets. It is also a chilling parallel to the challenge of removing anthrax from today's letters. Generally, the allegorical underpinnings of animation are natural for the medium, powerful like the images of the novel `Animal Farm' for political and sociological levels of meaning. For example, the endless-door motif in this film is an ingenious metaphor for the scary and glorious possibilities the present and future hold for kids.

Even before you see this feature, Pixar offers the short feature `For the Birds' -- a brilliant takeoff on Hitchcock's memorable film besides being a great commentary on diversity. The expressions around the animated eyes, as the little birds deal with the big bird interloper, are more expressive than those of most contemporary film actors, with the exception of Brando, Pacino, Depp, and Streep.

The short trailer for `Star Wars II: Attack of the Clones' may precede the showing as it did ours for an added delight.

`Monsters, Inc.' is the best animated feature this year and one of the greatest of all time.


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Frequently Asked Questions

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Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook | Pixar

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

2 November 2001 (USA) See more »

Also Known As:

Monstres, inc. See more »

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Box Office

Budget:

$115,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$62,577,067, 4 November 2001

Gross USA:

$289,916,256

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$632,316,649
See more on IMDbPro »

Company Credits

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Technical Specs

Runtime:

Sound Mix:

SDDS | Dolby Digital | DTS (Digital DTS Sound)| Dolby Atmos (3D re-release)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1
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