If you were from this time and interested in computer animations, then Pixar Short Films: Volume 1 is pure nostalgia gold. If you are too young to remember these groundbreaking films or simply didn't get interested in computer animation until more recently, Pixar Short Films: Volume 1 provides a fascinating look at the history of computer animation and the company that shaped this nascent industry.
Pixar Short Films: Volume 1 has 13 different Pixar shorts in one place. You get: The Adventures of Andre & Wally B., Luxo Jr., Red's Dream, Tin Toy, Knick Knack, Geri's Game, For The Birds, Mike's New Car, Boundin', Jack-Jack Attack, One Man Band, Mater And The Ghostlight and Lifted.
The most popular of these has to be Luxo Jr.. This short focuses on the playful curiosity of a very energetic young desk lamp. While the graphical quality was groundbreaking for its time, the aspect that really captured the hearts of the audience was that computer generated inanimate objects were not only given motion, but imbued with emotions. By the way, Luxo Jr. should be familiar looking; he's become a mascot and logo for Pixar, replacing the "i" in Pixar in their credit screens before their films.
It is worth mentioning that not all of these shorts have happy endings. Red's Dream, for example, is about a unicycle in a bicycle shop and it's dreams of performing in a circus. Alas, it is only a dream, and he returns, depressed, to a corner of the shop at the end of the short. During part of the commentary, one of the folks from Pixar refers to Red's Dream as being from Pixar's "Blue Period."
One of my favorites was One Man Band, which features a couple of down-on-their-luck one-man-bands competing for a small girl's gold coin. This one is a very musical short, and in the end, the little girl has the last laugh, as she's quite the performer, herself.
As an extra bonus, there are four Sesame Street skits featuring Luxo Jr. and two secret bonus shorts that were intended as tech demos. To find these, look around in the menus and watch for the symbol of a flag and of a chair. Tech geeks will appreciate these more than typical movie-goers will, however.
If you're a fan of computer animation, the only question is what media to get Pixar Short Films: Volume 1 on; DVD or Blu-ray. And to that, I would suggest getting the highest resolution you can handle. When trying to decide on a score for Pixar Short Films: Volume 1, I asked Psibabe what her thoughts were. As she said, "The only thing that was wrong with it was there wasn't more." Aptly put, Psibabe; aptly put.
