Hawaiian Vacation (2011)

A follow on from Toy Story 3 as it features some of the newer characters from that film.Bonnie is going on holiday to Hawaii. Ken and Barbie thought they would sneak away in Bonnie's school backpack which she does not take with her.Once Ken realises that he is stuck in the home with the rest he is inconsolable. Ken had made plans to give Barbie her first kiss at sunset.Woody and the gang get together to recreate a Hawaiian holiday even though it is snowing outside.A warm story as the friends come together to bring Ken and Barbie closer to their dreams.

So it's nice to see him get some sugar from Barbie, even if Mr. Graham eats his heart out. The shift from make-believe tropics to actual winter brings to mind that old standard, "If ever I would leave you," from CAMELOT. It's almost enough to start changing Barbie's basic image from a gold-digger to a girl with a heart of gold. Not every outfit can cram 17 characters into a short less than six minutes long, but the Pixar folks seem up to most challenges. No doubt they went to extra lengths to balance the pretty big stretches of imagination CARS 2 requires of little kids not versed in James Bond and the whole spy movie genre with something a little more down to earth thrown in as an appetizer before the much longer feature. Perhaps the thinking was that by the time the ads, the previews, the PSAs, and HAWAIIAN VACATION rolled by, half the parents would be standing in line for potty breaks with the wee ones during much of CARS 2's running time. P.S.--Don't forget that MONSTERS UNIVERSITY is one of the 5 flicks recommended by IMDb for fans of CARS 2, so rent it tonight (since 1,156,674 people "like" IMDb on Facebook as of today, a stampede of at least 150,000 or so is rushing to rent MONSTERS UNIVERSITY right now!!) Oops!!! With 243,788 COMPLETED features in its data base to select from for "recommendations," IMDb is listing TWO movies a year away from the big house (BRAVE, & 1906) and another TWO YEARS AWAY from theaters (MONSTERS UNIVERSITY) as 60 per cent of what fans of a big main stream movie should rent tonight. Or maybe IMDb believes people think like WALL-E, and a passing recommendation now will be on the top of our minds in 2013 (or some news fragment from 2009 is fresh in our minds NOW). Well, IMDb, no matter how much the producers of MONSTERS UNIVERSITY bribed you to start beating the drums two years prematurely, it's money down the drain. Only RAINMAN has a chance of remembering this small plug in two years (if he's still alive!). So in the future, do not WASTE my sight lines with promos for movies barely in pre-production (unless you'd like to shill my upcoming remake of BIRTH OF A NATION, now in production for release Memorial Day weekend, 2525).

'TOY STORY TOONS: HAWAIIAN VACATION': Three Stars (Out of Five) The first in a series of 'TOY STORY' short films from Pixar (which debuted before 'CARS 2' in theaters) focuses on the toys' lives after Andy (and the events of the first three films). They're all now living with Bonnie (once again voiced by Emily Hahn) and in this short Bonnie has just left with her mother for a vacation in Hawaii. Barbie and Ken (Jodi Benson and Michael Keaton reprising their voice roles) were planning on stowing away with Bonnie (by hiding in her school backpack) so that they could have their first kiss together on the beach at sunset. They're very upset to find out that Bonnie didn't take her backpack with her but Woody (Tom Hanks voicing for the fourth time) and the rest of the gang decide to help them live out their fantasy there at home instead. The film was directed and co-written (along with Erik Benson, Jason Katz and Christian Roman) by Gary Rydstrom (now having helmed two animated short films). Tim Allen, Joan Cusack, John Ratzenberger, Don Rickles, Wallace Shawn, Bonnie Hunt and nearly all the rest (of the voice talents from the films) reprise their roles as well. Most of the film's jokes fell a little flat for me and I didn't find the story especially emotionally involving or interesting but it still does have a little magic. The animation is still top notch and the toys are all likable and enjoyable cartoon characters. The film is definitely not one of Pixar's best animated short films but it's still an impressive little cartoon by most other standards.Watch our review show 'MOVIE TALK' at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CN5KZOE7p28

Pixar started out by producing short animation pieces to showcase their technology in that line and as they have moved into feature production, they have continued that tradition by releasing a short subject with each feature. HAWAIIAN VACATION is the short subject accompanying the release of CARS 2 and for my money it is even better than the feature.It's a spin off from Pixar's TOY STORY franchise. The toys' owner is going on vacation to Hawaii and Barbie and Ken stow away for a romantic vacation of their own, only to discover that the girl is not taking her school backpack. The toys mock up a vacation for them and the gags are funny, in character and unexpected. What more could you ask?