Movie Project Day 10: Pixar Short Films Collection - Volume 1

Of all the Pixar DVDs I own, I have not purchased Pixar Short Films Collection - Volume 1, nor implied that I would like to receive it as a gift. This could be partially due to the fact that since we own all the Pixar titles released to date and the short films are included on each of the titles, with the exception of The Adventures of André and Wally B. as it was produced under the Lucasfilm Computer Graphics Project, not Pixar.

However, it is quite interesting to see each of the films together, watching the technology improve with each subsequent film. This volume also contains four quick shorts featuring the lamps from Luxo Jr. which were aired on Sesame Street. I had never seen these segments before since I didn't watch Sesame Street in 1991 when they were produced. In addition to all this, the commentary from John Lasseter and the other directors for each of the short films (excluding Mike's New Car and Jack-Jack Attack) adds a wonderful bit of insight to the creativity, genius, and desperation that was the fuel to create these unique films. While Jack-Jack Attack had no commentary track, Mike's New Car was fresh and young. Moreso young.

For some reason which I have yet to find out, and may never discover, instead of the directors doing commentary for this short film, they had their children talk about it. The short itself is very silly and doesn't add any great character development to Monsters, Inc. stars, Mike and Sulley, and therefore, why should there be any serious talk overshadowing it? Perhaps it was a birthday present to their children, or even more likely, the children asked the directors, who then couldn't find a reason not to let them do it and figured, "Why not?" The result, a commentary track that my daughter absolutely loves.

That not to say Mike's New Car is her favourite of the Volume. Rini has watched the entire disc so many times, I am almost reconsidering purchasing a copy or putting it on a wish list. My wife doubly so. It's still a joy to watch these bits of animation, and since only four of the thirteen shorts contain any type of dialogue, Rini is fine with talking about the films as they are playing. Now, when she watches "Red's Dream", she says "Thank you!" every time he takes a bow. This was brought about by asking what the characters are feeling and how their actions represent that, but after some time it has evolved into making up lines for these silent characters.

While not everyone shares my feelings for Pixar, ie. PIXAR4LIFE, the title alone speaks of what this company has made, and what they have in store. Volume 1 marks the beginning of a collection that both children and adults will enjoy as much, and possibly more than, the movies that coincide with them.