Shorts

All about the futility of wish fulfillment, Shorts is a magical live-action fantasy adventure set in the suburban town of Black Falls, where nerdy 11-year-old Toe Thompson (Jimmy Bennett) is relentlessly picked on by classmates Helvetica Black (Jolie Vanier) and her brother Cole (Devon Gearhart). Bullying runs in the Black family, as evidenced by their father (James Spader), the ruthless CEO of Black Box Industries, where Toe's workaholic parents (Leslie Mann and Jon Cryer) are forced to compete against one another. Toe's life is transformed when he obtains a mysterious Rainbow Rock that has the power to grant wishes. Actually, the Short brothers—Loogie (Trevor Gagnon), Lug (Rebel Rodriguez), and Laser (Leo Howard)—find the colorful stone first, creating neighborhood chaos when they wish for a fortress guarded by venomous snakes and ravenous crocodiles that can walk on their hind legs, although things get even weirder when the germ-phobic Dr. Noseworthy (William H. Macy) and his son Nose (Jake Short) are forced to battle the Big, Bad Booger. Told out of chronological order in short, interwoven snippets (hence the title), the cautionary fable Shorts is writer-director Robert Rodriguez's best family film since Spy Kids. Recommended. [Note: DVD/Blu-ray extras include a “Ten Minute Cooking School: Chocolate Chip Volcano Cookies” recipe segment with director Robert Rodriguez (10 min.), the behind-the-scenes featurette “Ten Minute Film School: Short Shorts” (9 min.), and trailers. Exclusive to the Blu-ray release are “The Magic of Shorts” featurette on effects (10 min.), “Shorts Show and Tell” on moviemaking secrets (9 min.), the BD-Live function, and bonus DVD and digital copies of the film. Bottom line: a fine extras package for a solid family film.] (S. Granger)