Tokyo Mater 3-D Short Goes in Front of Bolt
Disney Animated Short Based on Cars, Directed by John Lasseter
Dec 11, 2008
If you haven't seen Bolt in 3-D yet, John Lasseter and Disney Animation is giving audiences a new reason to see the flick: starting this Friday, a new animated short featuring Tow Mater from Cars will be playing in front of the movie in 3-D theatres.
"Tokyo Mater" Plays in Front of Bolt in 3-D Theatres
Directed by Pixar co-founder and Disney Animation creative kingpin John Lasseter, "Tokyo Mater" is the fourth in a series of Cars shorts (the previous three premiered on Toon Disney in late October). It's a tall tale of how Tow Mater – voiced again by Larry the Cable Guy – gets challenged to a street race after towing a stranded automobile to Japan. The down-home tow truck eventually becomes the drifting king of Tokyo.
Only Larry the Cable Guy returned for this short: Lightning McQueen (originally voiced by Owen Wilson) and Doc Hudson (the late Paul Newman) were voiced by sound-alike actors.
Unlike Disney/Pixar's recent feature-length releases, which have explored deeper themes, the animated shorts are good-natured fun. John Lasseter is clearly a fan of Chuck Jones' classic work on Looney Tunes, and recent Disney/Pixar shorts like "One Man Band" and "Presto" have worked within that dynamic.
"Most of the jokes in "Tokyo Mater" are gentle ribbings of Japanese culture," writes Rotten Tomatoes' Alex Vo, who has seen the short. "Getting modified, mingling with uber-cheerful auto girls, some martial arts, and the appearance of ninja cars."
"It’s just an excuse for a barrage of anime jokes, sight gag references to films like Monsters Inc. and WALL-E, insane visual puns about donuts, and ninjas," writes Moriarty from AICN, who viewed the short with his son. "It’s a tsunami of eye candy, and the 3-D is used to really pull you into the screen and make the race even more visceral. Toshi (Moriarty's child) had to stand up because he was so engrossed in the race both times, and I noticed something . . . this is the first time he’s enjoyed something in 3-D."
This new short is seen as a way to rekindle excitement for the Disney animated film starring Miley Cyrus and John Travolta. Bolt had the bad luck to debut next to the teenage vampire flick Twilight, which meant its initial $26 million box office was far less than expected. It bounced back over the Thanksgiving weekend ($27 million) only to fall to $6 million in its 3rd week. So far, Bolt has made $79,381,422 in domestic theatres.
"Tokyo Mater" is another way for Lasseter and Disney/Pixar to keep the franchise in the public consciousness while the Emeryville studio tools up Cars 2 for 2011. Ratatouille producer Brad Lewis will direct the sequel, which follows Lightning McQueen and the rest of the Cars cast to the European racing circuit.
"Tokyo Mater" Replaced "Glago's Guest"
Disney Animation was originally going to place the Chris Williams short "Glago's Guest" before Bolt when it debuted in theatres. The short followed a Russian soldier, watching over a lonely guardpost in 1920's Siberia, who receives unexpected visitors.
However, the short was believed to have not tested well with audiences and so Bolt was on its own when it hit theatres on November 21st.
 |
