Toon Talk: Short Stories from The Lamp

The recent DVD release of Disney/Pixar's Ratatouille offers little in the bonus material we have come to expect from them, but there is one item included on it that does make it worth the extra change: the brand new short Your Friend the Rat. Starring Ratatouille’s leading rodents Remy and Emile, this partly traditionally animated gem harkens back to Disney’s Oscar-winning It’s Tough To Be a Bird in both style and approach and, quite simply, knocks it out of the park. Hysterical yet historical, the two rats take you the viewer on a rollicking, colorful journey through time to witness the significant moments of the past when their kind crossed paths with ours. It’s like The History Channel by way of Ward Kimball; a must see.

Also new this week is the first DVD volume of Pixar’s award-winning shorts, which includes 13 mini-movies from the vaults of the studio (they have one of those too, don’t they?) ranging from the sublime (Geri’s Game, Boundin’) to the … not so sublime (Mater and the Ghost Light). Viewing them all at once, one not only gets an opportunity to see the evolution of the Pixar studio, but the art form of computer animation itself.

Of the early efforts, Luxo Jr. is the most well known, mostly because its titular character has been prominently featured in the studio’s logo for years (prompting the nickname “The Lamp” for the company now owned by “The Mouse”). The most influential would be Tin Toy, which not only led to Toy Story, but also won the first Academy Award for a short animated wholly with computers. Other highlights include the “non-busty” version of Knick Knack, the hilarious For the Birds and the droll One Man Band.

Click here to buy Ratatouilleand Pixar Short Films Collection - Volume 1on DVD from Amazon.com.