Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		5.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		3.0
Overall		4.0

Cars Toon: Mater's Tall Tales Blu-ray Movie Review

"If I'm lyin', I'm cryin'!"

Reviewed by Kenneth Brown November 5, 2010

While immeasurable praise has been heaped on Pixar Animation Studios since John Lasseter's stubborn pull-string sheriff and delusional space ranger first enchanted audiences in 1995, most of it has been directed at the studio's Academy Award-winning feature films. But Pixar has also proven itself a tireless champion of the animated short, delivering bite-sized worlds of critically acclaimed wonder, creating lovable new characters and checking in with old favorites, and giving audiences further access to the studio's boundless imagination. The most notable shorts have debuted in theaters attached to more significant releases, but many more have popped up on television and home video, entertaining audiences of all ages (and all attention spans). Lasseter's latest batch of high-spirited shorts, the nine Tall Tales assembled in this fun and frenzied release, may amount to lighter fare than their Big Screen brethren, but don't be so quick to discount the collection. Inventive, entertaining and inexplicably infectious, Mater's Tall Tales will leave little ones laughing, parents grinning and Cars fans cheering.

El Materdor drives circles around Spain's fiercest bulldozers...

The setup for each Tall Tale is essentially the same. Cars' ever-loyal, ever-bumbling, all-too-endearing tow truck, Mater (voiced by country-fried comedian Larry the Cable Guy), shares a brief but outlandish story from his past with his best friend, Lightning McQueen (Keith Ferguson, a solid stand-in for Owen Wilson). The payoff is always the same too. As McQueen becomes increasingly skeptical of each story, Mater reveals Lightning was actually there to witness the events for himself. Short, sweet and to the point. But the manic magic of Pixar's Cars Toon collection is in the mad-hatter manner in which it all plays out. Sharp pop culture references, cinematic flourishes, smartly conceived genre nods and a variety of rapidfire visual gags pepper the Tall Tales, loading each one with a slew of small, satisfying surprises. Mater's misadventures include:

• Mater the Greater: Mater tells McQueen about his stint as a beloved daredevil, hurling himself over cars, blasting through fiery rings of death, taking to the skies and breaking nearly every part under his hood along the way. Lightning refuses to believe any of it, but soon learns he jumped Carburetor Canyon with his pal.
• Rescue Squad Mater: Turns out Mater was once a firetruck too, dousing burning buildings, rescuing townsfolk and earning the affection of his biggest fans, Mia and Tia (Lindsey Collins and Elissa Knight). Turns out he was also an ER doctor; one who treated a flame-broiled McQueen after a particularly intense fire.
• Monster Truck Mater: Monster truck "wrastler" Mater was the most feared vehicle on the wrestling circuit, pinning everyone from the Ice Creamer to Captain Collision to Doctor Feel Bad to the Rastacarian. Just as feared? His masked tag-team partner, the vicious Frightening McMean.
• Unidentified Flying Mater: A flying hubcap reminds Mater of the night he befriended a UFO named Mat-or, learned to fly (forwards and backwards), stormed Area 51 and eventually caught a ride into space. He tries to remind Lightning of their encounter of the third kind, but McQueen doesn't believe a word.
• El Materdor: Did you hear? Once upon a time, Mater was a famous matador in the arenas of Spain. But how does the skilled warrior survive overwhelming odds and more than a dozen snorting bulldozers? Smooth wheels, quick thinking and a shiny red best friend, of course.
• Moon Mater: When Houston has a problem, it calls auto-naut Mater. Sent to the moon to rescue a stranded ship, the Impala 13, the zero-gravity hero tackles his latest mission with the help of NASA's diligent engineers, space shuttle Roger and, naturally, Lightspeed McQueen.
• Heavy Metal Mater: Then there was the time Mater became a Heavy Metal icon. A recording studio mishap unleashes the front-man's true vocal talents and the throaty "Dagum Dagum" (described by one exec as "the sound of angels printing money") vaults him to stardom with best friend and leather-studded hard rocker, Lightning McQueen.
• Mater Private Eye: The only misfire in Mater's Tall Tales finds our unflinching hero meandering through a black-and-white noir-scape as a private detective. Cute but inconsistent, he and squad car McQueen race to track down Mia for her distraught sister. Clyde left me laughing, but everything else made me anxious to move on.
• Tokyo Mater: Arguably the best of the bunch (as well as the only theatrical short in the collection), Mater travels to Japan, becomes a modified drift racer and accepts a challenge from Tokyo's leading import, the King of Drifting. Before long, he and Lightning Dragon McQueen take to the streets of Tokyo, battle a clan of ninja and rocket toward their ultimate destination, Tokyo Tower.

Repetitive? A bit. But at a tightly paced, briskly penned, altogether manageable thirty-six minutes, Mater's Tall Tales rarely wear out their welcome. The only real issue is whether or not nine animated shorts and an hour of decent supplemental content is worth the price of admission. Frankly, I'm a bit surprised this earned a standalone release at all. As much as I enjoyed Mater and McQueen's hijinks, both the shorts and the special features could have easily been relegated to the inevitable 2011 Blu-ray release of Cars 2. A more reasonable price tag might have transformed Mater's Tall Tales into a must-have for any family man, animation enthusiast or Pixar completist. As is though, interested parties may want to wait for this one to go on sale at some point during the holiday season.

Cars Toon: Mater's Tall Tales Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Mater's Tall Tales puts the petal to the metal with a dazzling, near-perfect 1080p/AVC-encoded beaut that lives up to the high standards set by previous high definition Pixar releases. Color, contrast and clarity are just as strong and striking as they are on the Blu-ray edition of Cars (and every subsequent Pixar film, for that matter), blacks levels are deep and absorbing, fine detailing is impeccable, edge definition is incredibly crisp and it appears no expense has been spared in the shorts' production or presentation. Moreover, the encode itself is both polished and proficient. I didn't see signs of artifacting, aliasing, noise, compression issues or any other unsightly anomaly, and every burst of Tokyo flame, cloud of Spanish dust and tiny car in Mater's crowds has been meticulously rendered straight from the digital source. In fact, the only issue worth mentioning -- the ever-so-slight banding that briefly disrupts the clear, moonlit skies in a small handful of shots -- will escape all but the most unforgiving videophiles. Even then, I suspect those who do notice the banding will simply shrug their shoulders and round up the resulting 4.8s and 4.9s to a well-deserved 5. I know I did.

Cars Toon: Mater's Tall Tales Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

I don't have a single caveat when it comes to Disney's full-throttle DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 ES surround track. Sure, a discrete 6.1 or 7.1 mix would have been a nice little bonus, but I would be shocked if anyone musters a serious complaint. Dialogue is crisp, clear, lively and perfectly prioritized in the shorts' bustling soundscapes. LFE output is earthy and resonant, lending its unabashed support to every engine, rocket, fireball, guitar, explosion and bulldozer that roars to life in Mater's action-packed stories. Rear speaker activity is aggressive and engaging as well, enveloping the listener in a variety of convincingly crowded stadiums, packed arenas and sold-out concerts. Likewise, directional effects are a blast, pans flawlessly slice through the soundfield, dynamics won't soon be forgotten and each short's soundfield is as immersive as that of any theatrically released Pixar film. Simply put, Disney's lossless track is fantastic.

Cars Toon: Mater's Tall Tales Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

It may not seem like much, but the Cars Toon supplemental package is more than adequate, especially considering Mater's Tall Tales amounts to 36-minutes of animated shorts. An audio commentary or a more extensive PiP track would have been appreciated, but it's hard to complain about the high definition content Pixar has assembled.

• Cars Toons Storyreels (HD, 36 minutes): Each Tall Tales short includes an early-stage storyreel that can be viewed alongside the finished product (via a Picture-in-Picture experience) or individually (full screen sans the final shorts).
• Making Mater's Tall Tales (HD, 5 minutes): An all-too-brief behind-the-scenes featurette that digs into the creation and development of Mater's Tall Tales.
• Mater Bumper-to-Bumper (HD, 7 minutes): John Lasseter, Larry the Cable Guy and others discuss the genesis, evolution, design and personality of McQueen's loyal best friend.
• Unmade Tales (HD, 12 minutes): Quick overviews of five unused/alternate Tall Tale shorts; some inspired, some rightfully shelved.
• Paths to Pixar: Layout (HD, 4 minutes): Pixar mainstays Sylvia Wong, Jeremy Lasky, Craig Good, Bob Whitehill and Rob Anderson outline the role and responsibilities of a layout artist.
• Studio Stories (HD, 2 minutes): Another amusing Pixar "Studio Story" makes its way onto Mater's Tall Tales, this one titled "McQueen Has No Hands."
• Cars Land Sneak Peek (HD, 3 minutes): A promo for a new Cars-themed corner of Disney Land scheduled to open in 2012.
• Mater Private Eye Trailer (HD, 1 minute)
• Sneak Peeks (Disc 1, HD, 11 minutes): Trailers are included for the 2011 theatrical releases of Cars 2 and Tangled, and the Blu-ray editions of The Incredibles, Toy Story 3 and others.

Cars Toon: Mater's Tall Tales Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

The Blu-ray edition of Mater's Tall Tales may not offer everyone enough content to justify paying full price, but those who do pick up a copy (now or later) will be pleased with their purchase. Pixar's nine shorts are a joy to watch unfold, Disney's AV presentation will drop its share of jaws and the disc's supplemental package has a number of notable special features for Cars fans, animation junkies and Pixar purists. All things considered, Mater's Tall Tales earns a measured recommendation from me (as well as a hearty, decisive endorsement from my son).