What If I Said ‘Monsters, Inc.’ Is The Best Pixar Movie? 

With the impending release of Inside Out 2 this weekend, the age-old question that millennials love to ask each other at parties is once again back in the zeitgeist: What’s the best Pixar movie?

Toy Story is always a safe answer. It’s hard to argue with the film that started it all. If you want to be a little edgier, you might go with Toy Story 2 maybe, or even Toy Story 3. (The latter argument will, of course, come with an anecdote about watching Toy Story 3 mere weeks before going away for college.) Then, of course, there’s Finding Nemo, the first-ever Pixar movie to take home the Oscar for Best Animated Feature. Or WALL-E—a crowd-pleaser, especially if that crowd is nerdy. If you’re on the younger side, perhaps Inside Out is your favorite. Or, if you’re older, maybe you’ll stump for A Bug’s Life.

But I’m here to tell you that while all of these movies are excellent, none are the correct answer to this question. Because though it rarely tops the many internet lists out there, the best Pixar movie is 2001’s Monsters, Inc. There. I said it!

Directed by Peter Docter—who also directed the first Inside Out film, Up, and Soul for Pixar—with a screenplay by Andrew Stanton and Daniel Gerson, Monsters Inc. is a classice, early-days Pixar movie, before Disney acquired the company in 2006. That decade following the 1995 release of Toy Story is often hailed as Pixar’s golden era—though that legacy is now marred by disgraced former executive John Lasseter, who left the company in 2018 after a bombshell report documented his pattern of alleged sexual misconduct. Docter said on the Monsters, Inc. DVD commentary that he and Lasseter were asked to do something in the vain of Toy Story—so in an attempt to “tap into a childlike notion that was similar to that,” he pitched the idea of a film about the monsters in children’s closets. And so, Monsters, Inc. was born.

Monsters, Inc. is often helmed as Pixar’s funniest movie. This is true. John Goodman and Billy Crystal are a classic odd couple comedy duo. James P. Sullivan (voiced by Goodman) is the all-star jock, and Mike Wazowski (voiced by Crystal) is his goofy, nerdy BFF. Crystal, especially, was in top form, wooing a new generation of fans who still know him best to this day as the one-eyed monster who can’t believe he’s on TV, even though his face is covered by a logo. (Other classic Crystal deliveries include:”Put that thing back where it came from, or so help me,” “I always wanted a pet that could kill me,” and my personal favorite—guessing that the scare floor will be “…painted?” when everyone goes to lunch.)

Then there are all the clever visual gags, like a crosswalk sign that turns from “Don’t Stalk” to “Stalk.” Or the garbage monster who sweeps up trash, only to pout it directly into his mouth. Or the jelly monster who slips through a sewer grate, leaving only his hat and false teeth behind. And these are all from just one scene! There’s also Mike putting a giant contact into his singular eye, the snakes that make up Cecilia’s Medusa-like hair that reflect her mood, and literal mud that the corporate boss drinks like coffee. The list is endless.

But what truly makes Monsters, Inc. the best Pixar movie isn’t the humor. It’s brilliant, original concept and the fresh, creative execution. Personifying the so-called monsters in children’s closets is the kind of no-brainer good idea that makes you go, “Oh, of course.” Screenplay writers Andrew Stanton and Daniel Gerson—alongside credited “story by” writers Jill Culton, Jeff Pidgeon, and Ralph Eggleston—took that already great idea so much further.

Screams as an energy source? Inspired. The fact that monsters fear human children just as much as human children fear them? Poetic. A giant room filled with thousands of doors and conveyor belts? Mind-blowing. Laughter turning out to be ten times more powerful than fear? Absolutely, positively show-stopping! Yes, Monsters, Inc. is very funny. It also boasts a tightly plotted script, top-notch world-building, and a clear moral message. These are trademarks of almost all of Pixar’s filmography—but no one did it better than Sully and Mike. The fact that they made us laugh so hard along the way was just a bonus.

Look, I’m probably biased. I was 9 years old when Monsters, Inc. opened in theaters, and 9 is arguably the perfect age to be for a Pixar film. You’re young enough to crave cuddly, animated protagonists, and old enough to appreciate Pixar’s complex storytelling. But before you get pulled into a best-Pixar-movie argument in the coming weeks, go ahead and give Monsters, Inc. a rewatch. (It’s a breezy 92 minutes, and streaming on Disney+!) Even if you don’t join me in my subjectively correct opinion, you’ll still have a blast.