The Film
Pixar is pretty well known for putting out quality films, most notably the Toy Story and Cars franchises. Just last week, the studio released a Blu-ray for its 13th theatrical effort, Brave. However, in between all of those larger releases, the Pixar animation geeks just can't stop cranking out cartoons -- and we love them for it.
The studio has a ton of short films floating about. Some have been shown theatrically and some occasionally show up on the Disney Channel. Disney-Pixar has created a little one-stop film festival with the Pixar Short Films Collection: Volume 2. The installment includes a total of 12 shorts, all with optional commentary. It's a really cool collection, which deserves to be broken down by film.
Your Friend the Rat marks the return of Ratatouille's Remy (Patton Oswalt), who delivers the history of the rat, with the help of his brother Emile (Peter Sohn). At 11 minutes, it's a little on the long side and the animation is a mixed bag. It may even creep out some of the wee ones. That said, Oswalt has such a good delivery, you should glide right through this one. (Includes optional commentary with Director Jim Capobianco and Production Designer Nate Wragg)
BURN-E brings the characters from WALL-E back into our atmosphere -- sort of. While trying to fix a broken lamp, BURN-E gets locked outside the ship, with hilarious results. (Includes optional commentary with Director Angus MacLane)
Partly Cloudy delivers two interesting revelations. First of all, storks bring all sorts of babies -- not just the human ones. Also, if you've been wondering where those babies come from, this short will answer your question, with funny, sweet results. (Includes optional commentary with Director Peter Sohn)
Dug's Special Mission provides a little backstory on Doug, the "talking" dog from the 2009 film Up. This finds Doug on his birthday, seeking out a special mission and the admiration of his dog "friends." Instead, he's pretty much treated like an annoying clown. It's a little shaky in parts, but the end result will bring a little tear to your eye. (Includes optional commentary with Director Ronnie del Carmen and Supervising Technical Director Brad Winemiller)
George & A.J was my least favorite of this lot. The hand-drawn adventures of the two Shady Oaks Retirement Village nurses from Up seemed slow and sloppy compared to the rest of what's presented here. Also, it just wasn't all that funny! (Includes optional commentary with Director Josh Cooley)
Day & Night hides a great lesson inside its gorgeous animation and amusing portrayal of its two main characters. See, the two characters couldn't be more different, yet so similar. If you missed this one when it played with Toy Story 3, it's a must-see. (Includes optional commentary with Director Teddy Newton and Layout Artist Sandra Karpman)
Hawaiian Vacation is the sweeter of the two Toy Story shorts on the disc, with Woody (Tom Hanks), Buzz (Tim Allen) and the whole crew trying to recreate the perfect getaway for Barbie and Ken (Jodie Benson and Michael Keaton). It's very entertaining and frankly, any Toy Story is always appreciated. (Includes optional commentary with Director Gary Rydstrom, Story Supervisor Jason Katz and Supervising Animator Angus MacLane)
Air Mater is strictly for hardcore Cars fans, specifically ones of Mater (Larry the Cable Guy). This one is another of Mater's Tall Tales, with our lovable tow truck getting some air -- literally. (Includes optional commentary with Director Rob Gibbs, Producer Kim Adam and Production Designer Bob Pauley)
Small Fry is the second of the Toy Story-inspired shorts. This one finds Buzz (Tim Allen) getting sabotaged by his mini me from a fast food restaurant. Once left behind, he finds some solace and a ton of weird, discarded Happy Meal-style toys bonding in a support group. (Includes optional commentary with Director Angus MacLane)
Time Travel Mater is another one of Mater's Tall Tales, with the tow truck going back in time to save the fate of Radiator Springs. It's a fun little adventure and includes the vocal talents of John Michael Higgins and Katherine Helmond. (Includes optional commentary with Director Rob Gibbs, Editor Torbin Xan Bullock and Production Designer Anthony Christov)
La Luna is featured in 2D and 3D on the new Brave Blu-ray. In every dimension, it's stunning. It's also a very sweet story of three generations (grandpa, dad and Bambino), who spend the night sweeping falling stars on the moon. (Includes optional commentary with Director Enrico Casarosa and Producer Kevin Reher)
The Picture
Like all of Pixar's theatrical features, the image presented on each of these shorts is absolutely stunning. Of course, the animation varies on some of them. However, if you own any Disney-Pixar Blu-rays, you should pretty much know what you're getting into. All 12 of these shorts are oozing with gorgeous colors and stunning details. The studio just can't seem to disappoint.
The Sound
The audio format varies by film, but Pixar fans should be very pleased with most of the selections. The first half of the films on the disc all have an English Dolby Digital 5.1 track. The Toy Story-inpired short Hawaiian Vacation kicks things up to a DTS-HD HR 7.1 track, with Small Fry and La Luna adding in a Dolby TrueHD 7.1 mix. However, despite dropping back down to Dolby TrueHD 5.1, Air Mater and Time Travel Mater seems to pack the most punch -- probably because of the nature of those shorts. They're loud, dad gum!
The Extras
Itching for a little more animation? If this release's 12 short films (with optional commentaries!) aren't enough, this section features another seven entries. These aren't as polished as the films that comprise the main attraction. However, they're not supposed to be. This section actually shows off some of the earlier works of three of Pixar's directors: John Lasseter, Andrew Stanton and Pete Docter. It's a neat addition and like the main shorts, all of these films also include an optional commentary track.
Final Thoughts
It's hard to go wrong with anything related to Disney-Pixar. Sure, some of the entries in the Pixar Short Films Collection: Volume 2 are better than others. Everyone will have their favorites. However, there will be favorites. If you already have the first installment or even some of the studio's full-length releases on Blu-ray, this is no-brainer.
Product Details
| Overall | |
|---|---|
| Video | |
| Audio | |
| Movie | |
| Extras |
