Return to the "POINTER VIEW"
                         November 21, 2001

His Point: Since the plot of "Monsters, Inc." is directed toward children, the writers designed it to play out like a Saturday morning cartoon. Oh, excuse me -- the producers call the filming technique Computer Generated Imagery (CGI), but it looks like a cartoon to me. The writers were also cognizant that children have difficulty understanding the deeper nuances of the human condition, so naturally each character is depthless. The premise of the story is that the monsters live in a parallel dimension in which screams supplant the electricity that powers things in our dimension. To fuel their power-hungry society, the monsters of "Monsters, Inc." exploit little children by opening an inter-dimensional door through their bedroom closets and scaring them. This evokes a bloodcurdling scream and therefore power for the monster dimension. Hmm…I think I smell some "tree huggers" in a shameless plot to brainwash our children against the "evil" oil, coal and nuclear power companies…

Her Counterpoint: Casey, for once in your life can you just relax and just enjoy the movie for the entertainment value alone? Pick, pick, pick -- that’s all you ever do. I loved this movie. I was entertained from beginning to end. I laughed and, yes, even had a little tear in my eye at one moment. This is a very funny movie. Billy Crystal and John Goodman were the perfect picks for their monster roles. The audience was in agreement with me with uproarious laughter at all their monster interactive moments. The storyline was wonderful and new, with a refreshing zest and zeal to it. Oh, and who couldn’t fall in love with the little girl, "Boo?"

His Point: Boo? It’s more like "Doo," since in many ways, "Monsters, Inc." is like an episode of "Scooby Doo." Scooby must take the occasional "Scooby Squat" while Shaggy undoubtedly stands by with a plastic pooper scooper and a plastic bag in anticipation. The monsters, on the other hand, are able to use flushing toilets. The writers attempt to capitalize on the whole toilet issue, since every kid has an unexplainable fascination with two things: "number one" and "number two." It seems that the characters are always in a predicament with flushing things down the toilet or getting body parts stuck in flushing toilets.

Her Counterpoint: I have no idea where this "one" and "two" thing is coming from, since I sat through the same movie, although on different days. Maybe that part was when I used the ladies’ room; anyway, the writers did a marvelous job of creating a thoughtful, sweet, fluffy and sensitive story with a wonderful moral ending. It kept most of the kids’ attention and brought about a lot of laughter -- adults and children alike.

His Point: I cannot say I ever laughed, but the movie was okay. This flick is no worse than watching cartoons with the kids on Saturday morning. Then again, it is no better than watching Saturday morning cartoons, either -- it just costs forty dollars more. Recognizing that "Monsters Inc." is intended for children, I give it two stars, as kids’ movies go. **

Her Counterpoint: I attended "Monsters, Inc." with a 30-year-old, a 10-year-old and a 7-year- old. They respectively rated it at 3½ , 3½ and 5 stars. I was enchanted by this movie. I laughed a lot and that’s what we need right now with what is going on in our world. But, because I only shed one little tear, this does not qualify for a real whopper of a winner. I like this movie and say, "Take the kids and go." Sarah gives "Monsters, Inc." three stars. ***