name	Shorts
director	Robert Rodriguez
producer	Robert RodriguezElizabeth Avellán
writer	Robert Rodriguez
starring	Jimmy BennettJake ShortTrevor GagnonJon CryerDevon GearhartRebel RodriguezLeslie MannWilliam H. MacyJames Spaderintroducing:Jolie Vanier
music	George OldzieyRobert RodriguezCarl Thiel
cinematography	Robert Rodriguez
editing	Ethan ManiquisRobert Rodriguez
studio	Imagenation Abu DhabiMedia Rights CapitalTroublemaker Studios
distributor	Warner Bros. Pictures
released
runtime	89 minutes
country	United Arab Emirates
language	English
budget	$20,000,000
gross	$25,747,167 }}

Shorts (also known as Shorts: The Adventures of the Wishing Rock poster title or Shorts: A Not-So-Tall Tale trailer title) is a 2009 family comedy/adventure film written and directed by Robert Rodriguez. It was released in the United States on August 21, 2009. A Nintendo DS video game of the same name was announced on June 23, 2009, with a prospective July release date in advance of the movie.

Plot

The movie starts before the logo with a pair of twins (Cambell Westmoreland and Zoe Webb) who decide to have a staring contest. The game throughout the course of the movie as a running gag. Both brother and sister lose because their mom snapped her fingers in front of their faces, causing both to blink at the same time. As they wondered who won the game they began a new round, which starts the logo and begins the film.

Toby "Toe" Thompson (Jimmy Bennett) begins telling the story from his point of view and explaining The Black Box Inc, where all the adults work. It is this company that creates the "Black Box", a small cube that can fill any technological need and which every adult at Black Falls works at. Toe goes to school only to be bullied by his worst enemy Helvetica "Hel" Black (Jolie Vanier) and her brother Colbert "Cole" (Devon Gearhart). Toe speculates in front of everyone that Hel loves him, which infuriates Hel and ends with Toe head first in a trash can. As Toe walks home, Cole and his gang chase him into a construction site filled with piles of dirt and up a tree and start throwing rocks at Toe.

When Cole runs out of rocks, he demands another one, and one of his goons grabs the wishing rock from a pile of dirt and hands it to him which he then throws at Toe and hits him square in the head. Toe wishes for friends as interesting and unique as he is which come in the form of small aliens. Toe takes the aliens to school, which leads to a series of events ending with Toe and Hel falling from the school's roof with broken arms. The aliens leave, but Toe keeps the rock. One alien says Toe has friends all around, but he doesn't know it.

During a thunderstorm, The Wishing Rock falls out of the sky, and gets struck by lightning several times before it lands in the forest behind the Short's House. The three brothers, Loogie (Trevor Gagnon), Laser (Leo Howard), and Lug (Rebel Rodriguez) see the beginning of the rainbow and go looking for a pot of gold, but instead find the rock. Loogie picks it up and wishes that he knew what it was, and the rock tells him as he is holding the rock up to his ear. Loogie tests out the rock by wishing for an unlimited supply of chocolate bars which come flying out of his pockets. The brothers start an argument on what to do with the rock and Loogie wishes for the instructions causing a giant book labeled instructions to fall out of nowhere.

Claiming they can't possibly read the book, Loogie wishes for the short verision of the instructions and a fortune cookie falls into Laser's hands which contains a fortune reading "Make a wish". Loogie then procceds to wish for a fortress with a canyon around it filled with man-eating crocodiles and venoumous snakes to protect the rock from thieves. Laser wants to use it wisely, such as wishing for an end to world hunger and global warming and to wish for world peace. The brothers get into a tug of war and the rock rolls into the canyon. The brothers venture into the canyon, find the rock, and are attacked by the crocodilles and snakes. Loogie jumps into the stomach of the crocodile who swallowed the rock and recovers it, and then wishes the snakes away just as they are attacking Laser.

Loogie comes out claiming that the crocodile ate the science homework that was in his pocket and that he felt it make a wish. They turn around and see the crocodiles standing on their hind legs who proceed to chase them. Loogie wishes that something would take them away, but because Loogie wasn't specific, a giant pterodactyl swoops out of the sky and snatches them up dumping them into the fortress. Laser sees the crocodiles climbing out of the canyon and climbing up the wall, Lug hears their baby sister crying on the baby monitor they brought and demands that they get home. Loogie accidentally wishes for telephonesis (thinking it's telekinesis) and a red telephone pops out of his head. After being corrected by his brothers, he wishes for telekinesis and a giant gust of wind blows the crocodiles away. The pterodactyl flies overhead and, accidentally poops all over Loogie.

Loogie then wishes that they could just go back home and start over. The screen goes black and when it comes back on, the boys are back home, but Loogie still has "telephonesis" and the wishing rock. They then argue over what to do with the rock. To solve the dilemma, Loogie wishes that one of them was super-smart, but, as he was not more specific, the power is given to their baby sister (portrayed by Bianca Rodriguez and voiced by Elizabeth Avellan) Loogie then hands the rock to Laser agreeing that his hands are the wrongs hands for the rock. Laser steps outside and wishes for a catapult and put the rock in the launcher and is about to get rid of it and is talked out of it by Loogie who promises to wish for world peace, but the catapult it launched by their sister, making them lose rock in a pile of dirt, which is where Cole found the rock to throw at Toby.

Toe's older sister Stacey (Kat Dennings) arrives to tutor "Nose" Noseworthy (Jake Short), Toe's old germophobic friend. Nose picks his nose against his father's wishes and accidentally flicks the booger into his father's radioactive work study. Nose takes the rock from Stacey and wishes that his dad's inventions worked the way they were supposed too. He gets his wish, but it causes his booger to mutate. Toe and Loogie, now friends, arrive at Nose's house in time to see Nose's booger mutate into a giant monster. They leave as quickly as possible, but Toe gets caught by the booger. Nose rescues him by saying that if the booger mutant should eat his friend, Nose will eat the booger's friend (another booger), and the two run out of the house as soon as the booger mutant gives in to Nose's commands. However, it goes ahead and tries to eat Toe and Nose. After helping Nose's father (William H. Macy) capture the monster outside of the house, Toe and Loogie take the rock and leave.

Mrs. and Mr. Thompson (Leslie Mann and Jon Cryer) are having trouble with their relationship, as Mr. Carbon Black (James Spader) forces them to compete in making a new sales idea for the black box. Mrs. Thompson goes to look at Toe's phone, and finds the rock on the floor in his room. She takes the rock just as Toe wakes up. She and Mr. Thompson go to a Black Box Inc. costume party. While on the patio of Mr. Black's house, she wishes that she and her husband were closer, due to the fact that earlier, Mr. Thompson texted her hugs and kisses , while literally standing right next to her. They become mutated together into a two-headed person and try to hide from Mr. Black.

He finds them and invites them inside (thinking they're wearing a costume). Meanwhile, Toe realizes that Mrs. Thompson took the rock and rushes to the costume party, despite Helvetica warning him against coming. Hel finds the rock as Toe arrives to try and take it back. Toe is interrupted by Cole, who dumps him in the garbage. An infuriated Hel wishes Cole into a dung beetle before losing the rock. The rock is found by Mr. Black who, unaware of its power, accidentally wishes for all of the employees to go for each others throats. In the chaos, Hel takes the rock and tries to tell her dad about it , but he won't listen to her. So Hel wishes that her dad would listein to her for a change, causing his ears to become gigantic.

Hel now drunk with power wishes off her casts and for a rocket bike to escape with the rock, but hits a curb and lands headfirst into a trash can, losing the rock.The rock rolls back to Mr. Black's house and smashes through the door landing at Mr. Black's feet. He picks it up and is tackled by some of the guests. Toe runs in and grabs the rock and wishes everyone back to normal. The doorbell rings and Toe answers it and comes face to face with Helvetica who is furious. She threatens to break every other bone in Toe's body if he doesn't give her the rock. Toe smartly answers "You Wish" before throwing the rock as far as he can, where it lands at the Noseworth's house.

Toe and Loogie contemplate what to do with the rock. They are ambushed by Helvetica and Cole when the rest of the kids show up and they all fight over the rock until it winds up in the hands of Mr. Black. Mr. Black tells all his employees that they are all fired because he has the rock and claims it is the only upgrade the Black Box needs and then considers stopping the business altogether wishes for a giant pile of money . Helevetica tricks him by asking him if he's joking, he states, "My girl,I wish I were," which makes the money disappear and he falls to the edge of the Black Box company building where he is forced to hang on, dangling for his life.

He loses his grip on the rock which falls into the hands of his chief security guard. It is unknown what he was going to wish for because it was interrupted by Hel who wishes that the man was an Oscar-Meyer weiner, which he turns into and thus rolls away. Suddenly a giant teenage boy appears and Mr. Black offers him $10.00 if he helps him down. Stacey realizes that the giant is her ex-boyfriend (which she caused by wishing he would "grow up") and faints, but is revived by Loogie who uses the Black Box as a fan . Mr. Black wishes that he was the most powerful thing in the world and turns into a giant Black Box and the children team up using their previous wishes to stop him. Soon, the infant tells them that the rock is starting to feel misused, as shown by the fact that the rock starts undoing all of their wishes. She also tells them the rock could destroy the Earth because of all of the petty wishes they make. Together they get rid of it and all of the events that happened because of the wishes disappear. Mr. and Mrs. Thompson state that they plan to work together to Mr. Black who agrees.

He later reverts the Black Box into the Green Box, suggesting it to be more environmental. Mr. Noseworthy and son lose their germophobia, Mr. and Mrs. Thompson become closer, and last it is suggested that Hel and Toe will marry in the future,then Hel said "I didn't say that". In the end, all the children become friends and walk off while Loogie wishes that their story became a Hollywood movie, to which Hel replies "like that's gonna happen"

The Wishes

Loogie's wishes: To wish he knew what the rock did, the instructions for the rock, candy bars, a fortress (and a canyon full of venomous snakes and crocodiles), and accidentally wishes for Telephonesis instead of Telekinesis. Second last wish is that one of his siblings was super smart. His last wish was for his crocodile army.

Laser's wishes: A catapult to get rid of the wishing rock, and for long arms.

Toby's wishes: Alien friends, then for his alien friends to come back. Then for his cast to come off.

Helvetica's wish: Accidentally wished that her brother turned into a Dung beetle, a motorcycle to escape from her father and after wishing that her father would listen for once (giving him giant ears), a giant Wasp to confront her father as a giant black box, Invisibility, and finally for casts to be off, and her braces off.

Mr. Black's wish: A powerful giant black box to control Black box community and giant pile of money, and accidentally wishes he was only joking (the pile of money disappears).

Cole's wish: A giant dung beetle to help Helvetica confronting his father as a giant black box.

Stacey's wish: Accidentally wishes that her boyfriend would grow up.

Mrs. Thompson's wish: Accidentally wishes that her husband and herself were similar to Conjoined twins.

Nose's wish: Accidentally wishes that he can fly in his bird form.Then that his dads inventions worked.

Worker's wish: to be an Oscar Meyer Wiener. (This one's actually caused by Helvetica.)

Cast

Jimmy Bennett as Toby Thompson.

Jon Cryer as Mr. Bill Thompson, Toby's father who works at Black Box, Inc.

Leslie Mann as Mrs. Jane Thompson, Toby's mother who also works at Black Box, Inc.

Kat Dennings as Stacey Thompson, Toby's older sister.

William H. Macy as Dr. Noseworthy, A germophobe scientist who doesn't like Contamination.

Jolie Vanier as Helvetica Black, a girl who secretly has a crush on Toby and is the leader of her gang.

Devon Gearhart as Colbert "Cole" Black, Carbon’s son and captain of the football team. He's Helvetica's right hand boy as that he cares deeply for her.

James Spader as Mr. Carbon Black, a greedy man who invented the black box and founded the Black Box Community.

Trevor Gagnon as Loogie Short, a boy who found the wishing rock. When he had the wishing rock he wished for unreasonable stuff. He flirted with Toby's older sister through out the movie.

Rebel Rodriguez as Lug Short, Loogie's older brother. He is the most video game obsessed and easily angered of the three Short brothers.

Leo Howard as Laser Short, Loogie's older brother. He seems to be the smartest of the three Short brothers.

Bianca Rodriguez as the Short brothers' infant sister, simply referred to as "(the) Baby". She is voiced by Elizabeth Avellan

Jake Short as "Nose" Noseworthy, a germophobe scientist like his father.

Racer Rodriguez as Bully #1, a member of Helvetica's gang.

Rocket Rodriguez as Bully #2, also a member of Helvetica's gang.

Alejandro Rose-Garcia as John, Stacey's boyfriend.

Cambell Westmoreland as Blinker #1

Zoe Webb as Blinker #2

Sequel

It was announced on January 1, 2010 that a sequel to the movie Shorts would be filmed in 2010 and be released sometime in 2011. It will be called Shorts 2: The Last Stand and casting "Sam Hildestad" as Lucas Thompson, Toby's cousin who comes to stay who apparently has the wishing rock with him. The sequel will most likely be released in 2012, as Robert Rodriguez currently has his hands full with Spy Kids: All the Time in the World and Sin City 2.

Reception

Reviews for the film have been mixed. The film holds a rating of 45% on Rotten Tomatoes based on 93 reviews, with a Top Critics rating of 56% based on 19 reviews.

Box office

For its opening weekend, the film made $6,410,339 upon an average of $2,065 from 3,105 theaters. It opened at #6, being overshadowed by Inglourious Basterds, G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, and Julie & Julia. Overall, the film was a minor success at the box office, grossing about $21 million in the United States and Canada, and about $26 million worldwide. It is considered a financial disappointment compared to other films that Robert Rodriguez has directed, making only a third of what the Spy Kids films had made. However, the film was made on a low budget, and the overall box office return recouped it and made a huge profit for distributor Warner Bros.

References

External links

Official Site

Official Facebook

Category:2009 films Category:American films Category:Fantasy-comedy films Category:Films directed by Robert Rodriguez Category:Media Rights Capital films Category:Warner Bros. films Category:Children's fantasy films

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