Common Sense Media Review
By Sandie Angulo Chen
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Exceptional collection of animated shorts for whole family.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 4+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Watch
What's the Story?
Pixar is following up their popular first collection of short films with another volume with 12 shorts. The stories range from spinoffs from familiar Pixar movies, like "Small Fry" and "Hawaiian Vacation," both of which take place in the post-Toy Story 3 universe; "George and A.J." and "Dug's Special Mission" follows secondary Up characters; and a couple of Mater's Tall Tales focus on beloved Cars character, Air Mater. There are new, more high-concept shorts as well, like "La Luna" that chronicles three generations who clean the moon and "Day and Night," about the personification of daytime and nighttime; while "Presto" tells the straightforward tale of a magician whose hungry rabbit turns the tables on him for the sake of a carrot.
Is It Any Good?
All 12 of the Pixar shorts are worth watching, from the avante garde-feeling "Day and Night" to the hilarity of the Toy Story shorts. One of the funniest is "George and A.J.," which shows what happens when other elderly folks figure out a way to propel their houses into the great beyond. By the end of the short, kids and parents alike will not be able to contain their laughter as the poor put-upon retirement home drivers deal with one last escaping resident.
The genius of the shorts is the brilliant little details, like the names of all the discarded kids' meal toys in "Small Fry" or the way the toys get together to create a perfect "Hawaiian Vacation" right in Bonnie's bedroom. With such fabulously crafted short films at less than six minutes a piece, it's probable families will want to rewatch a few of their favorites again and again.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about whether they prefer cartoons with talking animals, realistic ones with just animated people, or ones where inanimate objects are anthropomorphized.
Did you like the short films based in a Pixar universe you already knew -- like Toy Story or Up -- or the completely original ones?
Which other Pixar movies do you think should have shorts dedicated to them?
Movie Details
- On DVD or streaming : November 13, 2012
- Cast : Jane Lynch , Tim Allen , Tom Hanks
- Inclusion Information : Female Movie Actor(s) , Gay Movie Actor(s)
- Studio : Pixar Animation Studios
- Genre : Family and Kids
- Character Strengths : Courage , Teamwork
- Run time : 75 minutes
- MPAA rating :
- Last updated : September 24, 2025
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