Monsters University on Blu-Ray Scares Up Family Fun And Colorful Eats! #Shop

Momma Told Me: Sometimes you just have to scare up a little fun.

As a child of the mid 80s, my childhood was marked with some monstrous (pun intended) achievements in family entertainment. Not only did I watch the Atari blossom into the NES, and later real 3D gaming; but this new digital technology soon spilled over into the 1995 Pixar release of Toy Story. Children's films would never be the same again. Flat 2D animation, with a limited palette of colors became almost touchable, shaded, characters bursting from a limitless rainbow of hues. When Monsters Inc. hit theaters in 2001, I was more of a teen, than a child, but still fell in love with the blue 'kitty' and one-eyed grouch, Mike Wazowski. Movie-goers of all ages found a sense of nostalgia in the heartwarming story, brought to life among a riot of color and carefully composed soundboard. Monsters Inc. was an instant classic in any Disney movie library, young or old.

When rumors of a Monsters Inc. sequel began to surface in 2005, fans eagerly awaited an official announcement, they would not see until 2010, then later announced in 2001 as the now known prequel, Monsters University. I'll admit, I was skeptical about Pixar transforming our beloved characters into awkward college students, but remained positive through 2 years of "When's the new Monster's Inc movie coming out?" As concept art and teaser trailers began to leak hardcore Pixar fans, such as our family, gave in to the hype. We'd speculate on the plot, create our own new monsters to star in the film, and soon had an official countdown on the calendar for it's theatrical release. Needless to say, we attended a screening with our arms full of Monster's U merchandise, and our faces painted like Sulley. Our entire family walked out of the theater head over heels with the franchise again; and we soon found ourselves awaiting a new date- the Blu-Ray/DVD release!

While most families are eagerly awaiting the first big holiday of the fall, Halloween, Pixar brilliantly took us all back to #ScarEdu with the smart timing of it's blockbuster Monster's University on an exclusive Blu-Ray + DVD bundle pack, October 29, 2013, sold exclusively at Walmart. When Sabrina (11) had announced she was tired of trick or treating, and did not want to participate this year; she suggested we buy Monster's University and have a mini-party with her neighborhood friends. Since I estimated the costs would be equal to outfitting her in a costume, we headed to Walmart early afternoon, on October 29, and made a beeline for the media/entertainment department. Monsters U was everywhere in the form of DVDs and merchandise, but there was one hole in the display that caught my eye. As Sabrina excitedly clutched her Blu-Ray copy I spotted an exclusive Monster's University 2 Disc Blu-Ray + DVD + InfINity Combo pack, the last on the shelf. With a special introductory price less than $30, taking this amazing bundle home was a no-brainer.

Finding inspiration for our Monster's U shindig came natural; I used all of the beautiful colors and unique monsters we'd seen in the theater to inspire me to set up a fun and affordable spread. While the girls played with the bonus disc Story School and Scare Games interactive features, I whipped up some adorably scary snacks. I balanced sweet with healthy, setting out some small bowls of dried kiwi, mango, and pineapple alongside family favorites like color sorted M and Ms and blueberry yogurt pretzels. For actual 'food' I served the girls 'Squishy' Squibbles Eye Wraps made from a ranch cream cheese base, rolled in tortillas with olives, thin sliced ham, and pimentos. I also whipped up some eerily adorable Mike Wazowski wedge salads with a slice of mozzarella and olive for the classic 'eye'. But our spread wasn't complete- there were the mom friendly Sulley Mini Blackberry Scare Pies, and even an Eta Hiss Hiss Sorority inspired smoothie!

I don't always make taking a movie home a big event, but Monster's U quickly turned into one- Once I'd laid the table full of colorful, and deliciously scary snacks, the girls began to find their own inspiration. Sabrina already has a closet full of branded merchandise waiting for Christmas; but we couldn't help but bring home a Giant Sulley Plush from our Walmart trip. I thought he'd be the star of the viewing, but kids live in a world of their own, and they quickly begged for sharpies to turn our balloons into characters from the movie. As they sat 3 feet from the TV screen (I know, I know), they traced their favorite characters' features like it was their job. Of course, Monsters U had hundreds of unique characters on the #ScareEdu campus, so finding a 'favorite' character was often short-lived, as the next scene presented more options.

When our Monster's University Blu-Ray 'screening' ended there was a call for an encore showing of Monster's Inc, which we, of course, had on hand. While we swapped out DVD's we had a conversation about how important true friendships were, and that Mike and Sulley had become unlikely friends, despite their differences. It was great to see young girls taking about the importance of social acceptance and building friendships, but I was especially grateful to see that Monster's University had provided an entire day of imagination and fun on top of it. If your little monsters are as enamored with this franchise as ours, you simply have to add the Walmart 2 Disc Blu-Ray + DVD + InfINity Combo pack to your library. Not only does the Blu-Ray Bonus Disc offer hours of entertainment, but the Disney InfINity character opens up an entirely new world of exploration for your XBOX and Wii InfINity games. And be sure to stop by the toy department while you're there, Walmart has dozens of exclusive toys and merchandise you won't find anywhere else!

Are you planning on picking up the new Monster's University DVD? Do you have a new favorite character? Psssst, mine's Archie the Scare Pig!

What Daughter Says: Grab the exclusive Monster's University Blu-Ray + DVD + InfINity bundle before they're all gone, for exclusive cheers and scares.

Walk, Slither, Fly, and Scare Your Way To #MonstersU Review

***Our family attended a press screening prior to this feature's release. No form of compensation, or review was contingent upon our viewing. All #MonstersU concept art and screenshots are copyright Disney/Pixar 2013.

Momma Told Me: The best family films entertain the family.

My childhood was timed in such a manner that my very first Disney fascination was Aladdin. It had everything a kid could want, for a feature film of it's time, colorful characters brought to life by the charismatic voice of Robin Williams, and the mesmerizing score of Alan Menken and Tim Rice. I was whole heartedly in love with 2D animation, until Pixar appeared on the scene with their introduction of a whole new genre. Toy Story (1995) revolutionized how children of the future would view animated entertainment. Storytellers were no longer limited by the human hand; concepts could be brought to life through digital programming and computer generation. It was a prequal to the video game revolution of my teenage years.

Now, everyone has a favorite Pixar film. Finding Nemo often receives the most shout outs in pop-culture, though I argue WALL-E was a cinematic breakthrough, visually. Secretly, one of the lesser acclaimed movies, Ratatouille, has always been high atop my list. I'll say it now, for all to read; I never paid much obsession to Monsters Inc. By the time it was released in 2001, I was already in high school. As strange as it sounds, I recall looking forward to A Bug's Life much more than I ever raised a brow at Monster's Inc. However, A Bug's Life was intended to be Pixar's crown jewel, and pushed back behind the release of Toy Story, as it's premiere film. I remember seeing a preview for A Bug's Life in 1994, prior to even Toy Story's release, and asking Momma when that 'bug movie' was going to come out every week for years! And today, who clamors to watch A Bug's Life?

But I digress. As most things tend to go, having a child in one's household can really foster a new perspective. I'm not quite sure how far back it was 'leaked' that Pixar had a Monster's Inc prequel in the works, but I feel as though I, myself, have been put through a lifetime of 'When's the new Monster's movie coming out?' So, you'll imagine my relief when the prophetic screening invite wound up in my inbox last month. I could finally check 'that one' off my list, we were headed to see Monster's University! Of course, in preparation, we watched the original film, a relic to modern childhood films, and I began to fall in love with the characters in a way I hadn't ten years earlier. There are so many things one can see in a Pixar film. I'm sure college papers could be written on the style of character design, the score of music, the story building, etc. Watching a Pixar film is a completely different experience each time, and that's why I love Pixar.

I've already shared our journey to see #MonstersU, which involved minor face painting, to resemble Sulley, and the furious clutching of Monsters University dog toys (shown above). I'd picked up some jumbo quarter machine (prize) balls and stuffed them with $.25 candy from the party store, and the three of us arrived over an hour early, bums in seat, clutching Mike or Sulley dog toy. By this point I was pretty excited. I'd kept my media buzz on the film to a minimum, so the film would be as 'fresh' as possible, and boy was it worth it! But first the audience was treated to a classic Pixar short, the acclaimed The Blue Umbrella. This entirely animated masterpiece pushes the limits of computer rendering with rapid movement and vibrant colors against moody shadowing. It is, at it's simplest, a tale of two umbrellas in the big city, but it is ultimately an uplifting bit of commentary on the human, erm Umbrella?, spirit. And, if that didn't get the message across, the point here is to arrive at your seats before the lights go down, so you can catch this Pixar short!

But what about the actual film? It seems almost a mute point to even 'review' the film at this point. Chances are the happy meal hype and constant stream of commercials had your kids drag you over the weekend. For those still undecided, I'm here to offer a rare, and enthusiastic 2 thumbs up. Recall me saying I was never much of a Monster's Inc fan? Well #MonstersU not only stands on it's own as a separate film, but the prequal style makes it exceedingly appropriate to serve as the introduction into the Monsters franchise for younger generations. I do have to say, I was not thrilled to hear we were going into yet another '3D' film- but grumbles aside about grease smeared plastic glasses, Monster's University lacked the classical 'cheap 3D' visual gimmicks. You know, the ones where a hundred arrows are flying at the screen for no other plot reason than to play with visual boundaries? This 3D feature played beautifully to my eyes, and naturally to my perception with beautiful 3D rendering that brought textures to life, not action sequences.

Monster's University seemed to quadruple the amount of 'monster' in this film. That's great, because young children love to use their imagination to craft these bumps in the night, and Pixar brought nearly every type of monster conceived to life, from scary to Squishy. And there are plenty of new core characters to fall in love with; did I mention Squishy? Perhaps one of the more loveable newer characters Squishy is a multi-eyed, blob like character that happens to have a mother who owns the Oozma Kappa (OK) sorority house our famed heroes, Mike and Sulley, wind up in. Speaking of characters, keep your eyes open for Archie the Scare Pig mascot, shown above, who I am officially petitioning to be made the next Monster's U plush.

So, does the transition from working Monsters to wild and rambunctious college students lose some of the younger crowd in the mix? I was worried some of the 'University' themes might get a little mature for the K-5 group, but I praise Pixar for a classy job well done. Of course, the entire premise is of two Monsters living the 'campus' life, and trying to figure out where they fit in. The majority of the main plot circles around sororities and fraternities; I'd rather not have our 10 year old asking too many questions about their real life counterparts. Thankfully, Pixar kept the shenanigans, and 'events' to a PG, Monsters nature, which was quite classy.

Aside from this film literally tickling my retinas (I could watch this for days and feel giddy from the explosion of colors, patters, and textures), Monster's University is without a doubt a visual triumph, sure to entertain even the staunchest of Pixar skeptics. I loved seeing our beloved heroes from childhood up, and found it interesting how the movie wove around the core message of friendship. Believe it or not, loveable Sulley is really quite the schmuck for the first 70 minutes of the film. Sabrina (10) actually switched from Sulley to Mike plush characters after walking out of the theater. The ugly green, one-eyed, monster that previously had little fan appeal is now a childhood role model (go figure). As put by a 10 year-old, "Sulley might be cuter, and better at scaring, but Mike's a real friend, and you don't find many of those!"

Parents, do expect some thematically intense scenes, particularly with Dean Hardscrabble (possibly the most terrifying representation of a monster in the entire film), and a few moments of breathtaking fear towards the end, as our heroes reach the climax of their journey. Obviously, since this is a prequel, we know everything turns out fine; be sure to remind the little ones of that! Overall, I am certain we will be seeing this on the big screen again, within the next few weeks; and I'd go so far as to say it is one of my favorite films of the year, so far. Not bad for a 'kids film,' right?

What Daughter Says: As if you weren't going to already, get into a theater and see this film!

Less Words Wednesday: Of Monsters + Babes #MonstersU

Of Monsters and Babes:

Not to flash forward the story, or to pander to Disney advertising, but this has been one Monsters (University) filled week. Sabrina (10) has been counting down to this film since, perhaps, birth. For the past year every screening we have attended has been chump change, only second to the eventual question, "When's the new Monsters movie coming out?" Thanks to brilliant marketing on Pixar's part, which begins releasing 'hype' clips as soon as the first CG snippet is off the cutting room floor (years in advance of it's actual release). But I digress, today is Less Words Wednesday, so let's briefly sum up this week.

This is Sabrina's (10) last week of school for this year. Her fourth grade class has been practicing a musical 'play' called California Missions and More, which we have been subject to listening to for the past 2 weeks (and adored every minute, of course). Their class was set to have 2 daily performances at 8:30, and 9:30 AM, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. As it turns out, I was the only of Sabrina's family to make it yesterday and sat through what has become the only double viewing now scheduled this week. The play was quite campy, and there were certainly some kids who craved the spotlight more than others. I was just glad I could make Sabrina smile as she fought not to fall asleep between the lines of her classmates.

As lunch was just around the corner by the time the second show wrapped I gave into please for McDonalds (none of my family ever brought me lunch when I was in school), and came back to spend lunchtime with Sabrina. When I had asked what she wanted she inquired if there was a chain with Monsters University toys. After scouring the internet I realized there wasn't,quite yet, and Subway was the closest with a knapsack branded meal carrier. I did, however, think to sneak into our local Walgreens (which happened to be the one in our area with the least amount of Monsters U merchandise), and score 2 dog toys of Sulley and Mike to sneak in our Happy Meals.

The 'dog toys' actually got fought over, and were an extra big hit for their squeakers (kids, right?) Lunchtime with 10/11 year-olds is certainly an interesting experience. No sooner had my bum hit the bench to eat than a precocious 11 year old trounced up to me, "Excuse me. I just wanted to let you know Chicken Nuggets are made from pink goo. My sister learned it in High School." I'm not sure if she was implicating I was younger than, or equal in age to her sister, and assert her sister's intellect, but it was ironic in contrast to the barrage of "Are you Sabrina's mother?" questions I received. I know there's some confusion here on the blog at times, so I'll clarify again, for those who are curious; I'm Sabrina's Aunt :)

After school, which it felt as though I had spent the entire day at (when you consider I have to be there 30 minutes before last bell just to get a parking space), we headed to the party store for face paint. Though it was in the mid-80s, we all painted our faces to look like Sulley (who as it turns out is kind of a meanie in the new film, and has apparently now lost his status as 'favorite' monster, but more on that in my review). Then we piled in Jay's Cutlass and I promptly snapped the photo above. Oh to be a kid and have the luxury of napping- us adults were too busy trying to navigate Los Angeles traffic!

When we got home, a tad past 'bedtime' Sabrina was still re-energized and bouncing off the wall. Perhaps that was due to the 'dinner' of popcorn and candy at the theater (I know, I'm an awful role model, but it's my job to spoil.)  Today Sabrina has her first school dance just after lunchtime, so you can imagine the nerves and excitement fueling her last night! Jay also went to see her class's play this morning, and is bringing the twerp lunch (again) as I type (can you say spoiled?) Then we have a lovely afternoon of squirt guns, #IceCreamFloats and water balloons planned with Nora in the back yard. Living in a condo we don't get to recreate outside as often as I'd like, so we get a little crazy when we can reserve the space. The above snapshot is from Nora's last Big Day Out. Somebody got a little wild and began hitting the shoes!