Closure for Randall: A warm hug and a good cry?

[randallsnape7]

Okay... anyone can discuss their opinions on this sentimental thread discussion, but I personally think that given all the hurt, pain and non-stop humiliation Randall has been put through for two whole films, I think once Sulley and Randall reconcile, once and for all, at the end of 'Monsters 3', Sulley should give Randall a big, warm, secure hug of TRUE, no-strings-attached friendship. It would also touch me deeply to see Randall actually break down and sob while being embraced. Not in the sappy, comical sense... but a true and genuine expression and release of all his emotions and past hurts. Randall has NEVER had anyone reach out to him like that, and I can say from personal experience that after enough pain and heartache and anguish for a long number of years, to see someone go out of their way to let you know that they genuinely care for you, and to hug that person in a tight embrace is an incredible feeling... and it can bring MUCH comfort and emotional healing.

I truly think that at the VERY end of the whole ordeal, Randall needs a moment where he is truly emotionally naked and vulnerable, and he needs to be brought to that point. Sulley and Mike need to SEE Randall's deepest emotions for themselves. Sulley is the one who physically heaved him out that door at the end of the second film, so the only way for Sulley to fully redeem himself of that horrific action in Randall's eyes, is for Sulley to open his heart to Randall, and go out of his way to assure him that he is sorry, and that Randall will NEVER be treated that way again. From where I stand, Randall is mentally and emotionally in need of a warm hug and a good cry.

[pitbulllady]

The two of them are going to need to sit down and have one of those soul-baring talks for sure, like what Mike and Sulley had out at the lake. They do not even realize that they have so much in common-both are insecure, compelled by a low self-esteem to let others control them. Mike has to be brought into this, too, though, because it's really HIM for whom Randall still has emotional attachment as someone he'd first thought of as a friend. But yes, the audience and Sulley need to hear in Randall's own words why he did what he did, and see that he is not proud of that and understands that it was all wrong. HE needs to hear from Sulley just why Sulley had that kid in the first place, why he dressed her in a scaly purple costume, hear about Sulley's fears and hang-ups. I am reminded here of a quote by C.S. Lewis: "Friendship is born at that moment when one man says to another, 'WHAT? You TOO? But I thought that no one but myself...' "

pitbulllady

[randallsnape7]

Good quote! Yes, I like all that C.S. Lewis has to say... they are usually Narnia-related, and he's definitely made some profound statements. I've watched C.S. Lewis - Dreamer of Narnia (Disc 3) in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe: Four-Disc Extended Edition Gift Set... very enjoyable.

I agree... each needs to hear the other's side, so they can relate to one another. Once the last healing word has been spoken, do you think Sulley has it in him to actually TELL Randall that he wants his friendship? One of the saddest things of all that I can see throughout both MU and MI is that NO ONE has ever said to Randall "You're my friend.", and it's just so obvious that he's never had that kind of connection before. I personally can see Mike and Randall reforging a bond when Mike goes to fetch Randall so he can defeat the evil at large, but having never established any true connection to Sulley from the start, Sulley is going to have to work hard to make up for manhandling him. For one thing, Sulley must witness first-hand Randall's heroic stand so he and Randall can first be on speaking terms again. The rest will follow.

Consider this quote from the Halloween-themed Disney movie "Tower of Terror": 'The spell of passion can only be countered by its contrary'. Abigail's spell of revenge is averted by Sally's words "I forgive you", thereby stopping the elevators before they can crash and kill the people inside. Granted, by hearing Sulley or Mike explain that Waternoose was evil and manipulative, Randall will be able to see how taken in he was, and thereby seeing that it was wrong to carry out his orders, but Sulley is still going to have to regain all that ground he lost for being the one to manhandle and throw Randall through the door.

A new friendship between Randall and Sulley is not something that can be taken for granted, not even after a quiet talk. After seeing Randall in a better light after their talk, Sulley is going to have to actually make that courageous move, by telling Randall explicitly that he seeks his friendship - that he WANTS to be a true friend. Sulley is also going to have to understand how humiliated and betrayed Randall has been in the past, and he's going to have to promise Randall that he will NEVER treat him again in the way he treated him before. If Randall could hear all that, and know that Sulley understands, this would penetrate Randall's heart and emotions like a shockwave.

This situation has actually been precedented in one of my favorite shows: In the 'Jungle Cubs' Season 1 finale episode "Fool me once...", Baloo and Louie give Bagheera a hard time for keeping himself clean. After Baloo accidentally gets his back stuck to a sappy tree bark, and Louie rips it off Baloo's back, Baloo and Louie then hatch up a super-dirty prank by covering Bagheera's body with tree sap, mushrooms, grass, rotten bark, and an apple core on his head while he's taking a nap. A little adventure occurs next while Bagheera is in his humiliated state, but after cleaning himself off by running through a thicket, Bagheera makes his way to a high cliff. After accidentally slipping, he stays on the ledge below long enough to make Baloo and Louie think that he died. Once he appears again, Louie says "We're sorry we put that junk in your fur, Bagheera! I'll make it up to you! Anything you need, trust me! I mean it!", and Baloo says "I learned my lesson! We'll never pull a dumb stunt like that AGAIN!"

So... obviously, Sulley is going to have to assure Randall that henceforth, things will be different between them!

[pitbulllady]

I do think that Sulley is going to have to openly state that he wants to be friends with Randall. That is basically how he won over Mike, out at the lake, by admitting that he'd never told anyone how he really felt, about how afraid he was, because he'd never had anyone he considered to be a FRIEND before, and when Mike actually heard that, it changed everything. Mike was in the same boat as Randall, pretty much. All his life he'd been ignored, rejected and ridiculed, and he'd just become "immune" to it, tuning everyone out, more or less. To some extent, that's part of Mike's condition. He finds it very hard to empathize with ANYONE aside from himself and that will never change. It is what it is. Hearing someone actually SAY that they valued him as a friend, though, helped him to value that person in turn. Sulley was probably the only person aside from Mike's doting parents who had ever TOLD him anything like that. Randall tried to prove it, but never actually SAID it, so Mike completely failed to notice that Randall actually DID care about him at all. Things like that pretty much have to be spelled out directly to Mike. Now, they will have to be spelled out to Randall, not because he's a psychopath with naturally underdeveloped capacity for empathy, but because he's learned not to trust others. I think in his case, Sulley is going to have to do more than just say he wants to be friends. He's gonna have to prove it by sticking up for Randall in some way, because Randall's heard it before, that someone wants to be friends with him or cares about him or values him, only to have them turn on him and reject him after using him, so there's that "once bitten, twice shy" effect going on. That's why he doesn't think of Sulley's offering him a handshake in MI was legit, and why he turned it down rather rudely. It would be nice to see something similar to that scene again, making audiences recall that, with Sulley offering that handshake once more, perhaps with Randall hesitating, making everyone think, "yeah, he's still going to be a jerk and refuse that handshake", and then with him reciprocating, his features relaxing and that defensive "wall" starting to crumble at last. I think that would have just as great an impact on audiences as a tear-jerker hug scene. It MIGHT even be pushing things too much, too soon, if Sulley outwardly states that he wants to be friends, but if he at least indicates that he can forgive Randall, that he values him for whatever it is that Randall has had to do, and thanks him for that, and indicates that he wants to move on and make peace, that will be a start, and open the door eventually for a real friendship, and seeing the three of them as friends, on amicable terms, at least, perhaps joking around at some company social function, will make for a nice closure.

pitbulllady

[randallsnape7]

Hmm... believe it or not, this reminds me of the last scene with Dudley Dursley at the beginning of 'Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1. It's a deleted scene that you will ONLY find in its completed form on YouTube. Uncle Vernon says to Dudley "Come on, Dudley. We're off.", then all of a sudden... in a true 'calm before the storm' scene, Dudley slowly steps over the wagon trailer attached to their car, over the black chain fence, and slowly approaches Harry in front of Number 4, Privet Drive. Keep in mind that the last time Harry and Dudley met, Dudley acted like an OUTRAGEOUS jerk to Harry, saying "Don't kill Cedric! Who's Cedric? Your boyfriend?", but in this serene moment, he is so awkward, he can't even speak. He slowly lifts his hand to shake Harry's and, after fighting a dry throat, he says humbly "I don't... think... you're a waste of space.". The two shake hands, Harry says "Thanks.", then Dudley heads back to the car. At the last, he turns and makes a lazy hand up half-snap half-cool gesture to Harry (looking tragically awkward and sympathetic). It's an excellent scene, by FAR the best Dudley scene, and I ALWAYS have to watch it when I see the movie.

Yeah, it would be nice to see some instance where Randall is put in a similar position where he was in the previous film, but the second time around he slowly opens his heart and chooses to trust someone - whether it's Sulley or anyone for that matter... that would be a good first step, most certainly. In fact, you might argue that just Randall believing Mike that there's a problem back at Monsters, Inc. would start testing his level of trust even then. Randall could even have a similar scene with Sulley - much like what you described, once Sulley knows that Randall has returned to the factory and knows that Mike fetched him.

But, still... I think by the end (like the next to last scene, or just before that), Randall NEEDS to be hugged by Sulley. Whatever their conversation, what would lead to this is when Sulley openly states to Randall that he wants to be his friend. As the conversation progresses, we could see... very gradually... that Randall's defenses are giving way. Slowly but surely. It would also be necessary for Sulley to state that even though Randall is a hero who saved Monstropolis, Sulley accepts him the way he is... that it's not BECAUSE of his heroic act, or anything. He's truly opening his heart to give Randall the chance to have the friend he never had - no ulterior motives. I think once Randall realizes this, it would be the final straw that would permanently tear down Randall's defensive wall.

To stay true to life, if Sulley were to hug Randall, and KEEP him in that hug for a prolonged moment, Randall would truly lose every defense he's held onto, and would be unable to stop himself from sobbing. I will state that not every conflicted or struggling character in a movie needs to cry, but I really think in Randall's particular case, he actually does. Nothing would convey more openly and plainly to general audiences - including Randall's haters - that Randall has truly changed than if he were allowed to cry. So much emotions could be conveyed in Randall's tears: Regret, remorse, overwhelming surprise at being hugged, letting go of a lifetime of humiliation, pain, and insecurity, gratitude to Sulley, even slight embarrassment at how emotionally vulnerable he realizes he truly is, and his inability to hold himself together because of Sulley's hug, comfort in knowing that his worst days are behind him and his future is suddenly bright, the joy of knowing that he is loved just the way he is... and shocking disbelief that the one to ultimately reach out to him (aside from Mike) was someone he had been at odds with for so long, and that the arms that hurled him out the door are now embracing him with love and forgiveness.

I can even hear Sulley saying softly to him during the hug, "Never banished again, my friend.". Once we see something that momentous, it would pave the way now for Mike, Sulley, and Randall to start relaxing and enoying life together as friends, which would be a wonderful tone to end the movie on.

[pitbulllady]

It doesn't look like we'll be seeing that closure happen anytime soon. Disney CEO Bob Iger just made an announcement today confirming that Pixar is working on Cars 3, which is likely to be their 2017 planned sequel, and that Brad Bird is working with Pixar on a script for The Incredibles 3. That means that there will be NO MI sequel for at least another five years.

pitbulllady

[conteremo]

Oh no! This will be a hard wait...I just hope there will be another Monsters.

Cars, ugh, that has to be my least favorite Pixar franchise. It's popular with kids and seems to make a killing off of merchandise sales, though, so I'm not surprised they're making another one.

And do you mean The Incredibles 2? I'm down for that one, though I'm still sad that it means another Monsters isn't in the works...probably. Some have said that there have been proposals and a script for another Monsters film, but that may just be rumors. The second Incredibles will be awhile coming, though, seeing as the script apparently isn't even done yet.

[randallsnape7]

On the contrary, that is very good news... because - truth be told, I intend to begin my College education next year at CalArts... and one of the places I have wanted to work at for years after I finish film school is Pixar. If and when I make it there, well... you do the math. I'll see what I can do.

[pitbulllady]

Mar 19, 2014 5:34:23 GMT -5 randallsnape7 said:

On the contrary, that is very good news... because - truth be told, I intend to begin my College education next year at CalArts... and one of the places I have wanted to work at for years after I finish film school is Pixar. If and when I make it there, well... you do the math. I'll see what I can do.

Given the time-line involved in the making of a typical Pixar film, from the first ideas and the decision to go ahead with it, to the final product that is ready for at least limited screenings, that will still be very problematic. That time line is usually around five years, which means that if we're going to have a MI2 within the next 5-7 years, SOMEONE has to already be brainstorming ideas at Pixar, and it has to have been green-lighted for pre-production. If Brad Bird is only just now writing the script for The Incredibles 2, that means it's at least going to be another 4-5 years before we see THAT movie, and it, at least, has been officially announced and confirmed. Disney-Pixar has already released their film line-up through 2018, and it doesn't include The Incredibles 2, so that should give you an idea of how far out we're looking at the possibility of a MI2, that has NOT been confirmed yet. The thing is, the main voice actors from that franchise are not young men, and I myself am not young, either, and I am dealing with a lot of health issues daily. I don't bother people with the details, but statistically my chances of still being around 7 year from now are not looking good.

Now, assuming that you ARE hired by Pixar(and this is not easy to achieve), you are not going to be in a position where you yourself can have much influence over their films. It takes time to work your way up to that, and if MI2 is not already well into production when you graduate in five years(I assume you still have this final year of high school to complete), then we are going to be looking at an 8+ year "window" of release, getting closer to that 12-year lag that we saw between the first and second Monsters films.

pitbulllady

[randallsnape7]

I actually graduated from home schooling back in 2011, for your information. Selecting the right college is what has taken so long, but I know where I want to go now. I'm 24 years old, so I guess that's why I'm not so daunted by a long wait. I've waited for countless things. I understand what you were saying about Pixar, but it's just still worth a shot to me.

You made a good point - I'm aware that Billy Crystal and John Goodman are among the older actors (not quite sure about Steve Buscemi), so as a bonus, I personally think a 'Monsters 3' involving Randall's redemption should be the swan song for the three main actors and their involvement in the 'Monsters' franchise. Who knows? Maybe it'll be another 'Indiana Jones Chapter 26: Kingdom of the Crystal Skull' type wait! (Loved the movie to death... don't get me wrong there. I was merely commenting on the outrageous wait time Indy fans endured till 2008 to see the movie.)

Hmm... Disney presents, a Pixar Animation Studios film.... VROOM! "You ain't nothin' but a hound dog... cryin' all the time!" LOL!!!
Just kidding...

[pitbulllady]

Mar 19, 2014 22:20:41 GMT -5 randallsnape7 said:

I actually graduated from home schooling back in 2011, for your information. Selecting the right college is what has taken so long, but I know where I want to go now. I'm 24 years old, so I guess that's why I'm not so daunted by a long wait. I've waited for countless things. I understand what you were saying about Pixar, but it's just still worth a shot to me.

You made a good point - I'm aware that Billy Crystal and John Goodman are among the older actors (not quite sure about Steve Buscemi), so as a bonus, I personally think a 'Monsters 3' involving Randall's redemption should be the swan song for the three main actors and their involvement in the 'Monsters' franchise. Who knows? Maybe it'll be another 'Indiana Jones Chapter 26: Kingdom of the Crystal Skull' type wait! (Loved the movie to death... don't get me wrong there. I was merely commenting on the outrageous wait time Indy fans endured till 2008 to see the movie.)

Hmm... Disney presents, a Pixar Animation Studios film.... VROOM! "You ain't nothin' but a hound dog... cryin' all the time!" LOL!!!
Just kidding...

I didn't know that you were 24, and when you said that you would be starting college next year, I assumed, incorrectly, that you were just finishing up your high school senior year. It's actually a plus, I think, that you waited to attend college, because that gives you a few years of maturity that most college freshmen don't have.

Steve Buscemi is the youngest of the three main voice actors; he turned 56 back in December. John Goodman will turn 62 this June, and Billy Crystal just had his 66th birthday on March 14. Crystal commented on how exhausted he was following each voice-over session for MU, because he had to inject the energy level of an 18-year-old into his character, and even just with voicing, that is pretty demanding when you are way, way past the age of 18 yourself!

pitbulllady