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Shorts

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Shorts (2009)

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Reviews Counted:18

Fresh:10

Rotten:8

Average Rating:5.6/10

Consensus: Shorts has imagination and energy, but most viewers beyond elementary school will likely tire of the kiddie humor and sensory overload.

Rated: PG [See Full Rating] for mild action and some rude humor.

Runtime: 89 mins

Genre: Science-Fiction/Fantasy

Theatrical Release:Aug 21, 2009 Wide

Box Office: $20,875,468

Synopsis: Shorts is set in the suburb of Black Falls, where all the houses look the same and everyone works for BLACK BOX Unlimited Worldwide Industries Incorporated, whose Mr. Black’s BLACK BOX is the... Shorts is set in the suburb of Black Falls, where all the houses look the same and everyone works for BLACK BOX Unlimited Worldwide Industries Incorporated, whose Mr. Black’s BLACK BOX is the ultimate communication and do-it-all gadget that’s sweeping the nation. Other than keeping his parents employed, however, Mr. Black’s BLACK BOX has done nothing for 11-year-old Toe Thompson, who just wants to make a few friends…until a mysterious rainbow-colored rock falls from the sky, hits him in the head and changes everything. The Rainbow Rock does Mr. Black’s BLACK BOX one better: it grants wishes to anyone who holds it. Before long, wishes-gone-wrong have left the neighborhood swarming with tiny spaceships, crocodile armies, giant boogers…and outrageous magical mayhem around every corner. But it’s not until the grown-ups get their hands on the Rock that the trouble really starts. Now Toe and his newfound friends must join forces to save their town from itself, discovering along the way that what you wish for is not always what you want. --© Warner Bros [More]

Starring: Jon Cryer, William H. Macy, Leslie Mann, James Spader

Starring: Jon Cryer, William H. Macy, Leslie Mann, James Spader, Jimmy Bennett, Kat Dennings, Trevor Gagnon, Leo Howard, Devon Gearhart, Rebel Rodriguez, Jake Short, Jolie Vanier

Director: Robert Rodriguez

Director: Robert Rodriguez
Screenwriter: Robert Rodriguez
Producer: Robert Rodriguez, Elizabeth Avellan
Composer: Robert Rodriguez, Carl Thiel, George Oldziey
Studio: Warner Bros.

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Release:

Nov 24, 2009

[DVD Details]
 
 

DVD Features:

  • Region 1
  • Dual Layer

Audio:

  • Dolby Digital 5.1 - English, French, Spanish
  • Subtitles - English, French, Spanish
 
 
 
 

Reviews for Shorts

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1 - 18 (sorted by date)
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The latest child's-eye adventure from Robert Rodriguez, Shorts doesn't hit the heights of his Spy Kids series. But it provides just enough smart, silly fun for families desperately seeking an easy escape from hazy August humidity.

Full Review Source: New York Daily News | comment Comment
08/21/09
Elizabeth Weitzman
Elizabeth Weitzman
New York Daily News
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The movie is as lumpy and misshapen as a giant booger.

Full Review Source: New York Post | comment 1 Comment
08/21/09
Kyle Smith
Kyle Smith
New York Post
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Yes, I realize this is a kids' movie, but that's no excuse for short-circuiting creativity.

Full Review Source: Los Angeles Times | comment Comment
08/21/09
Betsy Sharkey
Betsy Sharkey
Los Angeles Times
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My fourth-grader giggled maniacally. The 9-year-old in me did, too.

Full Review Source: Houston Chronicle | comment Comment
08/21/09
Amy Biancolli
Amy Biancolli
Houston Chronicle
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Be careful what you wish for, Shorts reminds us; you just might get it. Especially if that wishing was along the lines of a smart and funny kids' flick.

Full Review Source: Toronto Star | comment Comment
08/21/09
Linda Barnard
Linda Barnard
Toronto Star
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Magic vies with technology in this exuberant adventure comedy, which unfolds achronologically in a series of zany, effects-laden vignettes.

Full Review Source: Chicago Reader | comment Comment
08/21/09
Andrea Gronvall
Andrea Gronvall
Chicago Reader
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

If parents feel like they've seen much of Shorts before, its celebration of mayhem and restless, thrill-seeking vibe will absorb young viewers, especially as the boredom of late summer begins to set in.

Full Review Source: Washington Post | comment Comment
08/21/09
Ann Hornaday
Ann Hornaday
Washington Post
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Feels underwritten and overdressed.

Full Review Source: New York Times | comment Comment
08/21/09
Jeannette Catsoulis
Jeannette Catsoulis
New York Times
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Shorts is this summer's hip family flick.

Full Review Source: Globe and Mail | comment Comment
08/21/09
Jennie Punter
Jennie Punter
Globe and Mail
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Can we wish for a fresher subplot than that of pleasure-deadened grown-ups who live their lives in a stupor of consumerism?

Full Review Source: Entertainment Weekly | comment Comment
08/21/09
Lisa Schwarzbaum
Lisa Schwarzbaum
Entertainment Weekly
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Fast-paced, imaginative and often cute, Shorts is slight but enjoyable family fare.

Full Review Source: USA Today | comment Comment
08/20/09
Claudia Puig
Claudia Puig
USA Today
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Shorts channels the same gross-out overkill as the Captain Underpants books that parents endure and pre-teen boys so dearly love. The difference is that those books have an editor (and they’re funnier).

Full Review Source: Boston Globe | comment Comment
08/20/09
Ty Burr
Ty Burr
Boston Globe
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It's like Shorts raided the concession stand and then has to sit slumped in its seat long after the sugar buzz wears off.

Full Review Source: Philadelphia Inquirer | comment Comment
08/20/09
David Hiltbrand
David Hiltbrand
Philadelphia Inquirer
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Slipped into Robert Rodriguez's smart, funny, fast-as-lightning kids' movie, Shorts, are several sly comments on American culture and the tyranny of technology.

Full Review Source: Newsday | comment Comment
08/20/09
Rafer Guzman
Rafer Guzman
Newsday
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Somewhere around the time a giant booger runs riot through the town, one wishes for a bit more adult supervision.

Full Review Source: Associated Press | comment Comment
08/19/09
Jake Coyle
Jake Coyle
Associated Press
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A cute and mildly clever fantasy.

Full Review Source: Village Voice | comment 1 Comment
08/18/09
Aaron Hillis
Aaron Hillis
Village Voice
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

The CG slapstick soon grows wearying and even predictable.

Full Review Source: Hollywood Reporter | comment Comment
08/10/09
Kirk Honeycutt
Kirk Honeycutt
Hollywood Reporter
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More zippy, diverting fun from Robert Rodriguez's family filmmaking factory.

Full Review Source: Variety | comment Comment
08/10/09
Justin Chang
Justin Chang
Variety
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