The Zit

Written, produced, and directed by Walt Disney alum Mike Blum, this computer-animated short (made over a three-year period and featuring the work of 70 professional Disney animators) is essentially a one-trick pony of a short (although it's a good one) in which a junior high schooler getting ready for a school dance notices a zit that (humorously) magnifies to nearly the size of his head as he frantically tries to make it disappear (using “Zit-Be-Gone”), or even pop it. Let's just say that the cinematic denouement—involving some creative thinking on the part of the lad and a willing cat—is admirably over-the-top gross (if you're a preteen, read: cool), and our hero learns a time-honored lesson: i.e., don't sweat the small stuff, whether it's a pimple or a cowlick. Presented widescreen in Dolby Digital 5.1 or stereo, this title—which made YALSA's 2006 list of selected VHS/DVD titles—is recommended. Aud: I, J, P. (R. Pitman)