Set in the suburb of Black Falls, where all the houses look the same and everyone works for BLACK BOX Unlimited Worldwide Industries Incorporated, whose Mr. Black’s Black Box is the ultimate communication and do-it-all gadget that’s sweeping the nation. Other than keeping his parents employed, however, Mr. Black’s BLACK BOX has done nothing for 11-year-old Toe Thompson, who just wants to make a few friends… until a mysterious rainbow-colored rock falls from the sky, hits him in the head and changes everything.
The Rainbow Rock does Mr. Black’s BLACK BOX one better: it grants wishes to anyone who holds it. Before long, wishes-gone-wrong have left the neighborhood swarming with tiny spaceships, crocodile armies, giant boogers… and outrageous magical mayhem around every corner. But it’s not until the grown-ups get their hands on the Rock that the trouble really starts. Now Toe and his newfound friends must join forces to save their town from itself, discovering along the way that what you wish for is not always what you want.
Filmmaker Robert Rodriguez has earned acclaim for a wide range of films, including such family hits as the “Spy Kids” trilogy and “The Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl in 3-D.” His new family film, “Shorts,” unleashes the imagination around the central premise of a rock that can grant any wish. “That’s the playground,” he says. “With a story like this, you are challenging yourself to come up with the most amazing things you can possibly imagine. The Rainbow Rock is the ultimate in wishful-fillment. I mean, you tell kids that concept and they immediately start dreaming about all the things they could wish for if they had that rock.”
Read the Full Production Notes
Shorts
Starring: Jon Cryer, William H. Macy, Leslie Mann, James Spader, Jimmy Bennett, Kat Dennings, Trevor Gagnon, Leo Howard, Rebel Rodriguez
Directed by: Robert Rodriguez
Screenplay by: Robert Rodriguez
Release Date: August 21, 2009
MPAA Rating: PG for mild action and some rude humor.
Studio: Warner Bros. Pictures
Box Office Totals
Domestic: $20,187,091 (89.0%)
Foreign: $2,506,090 (11.0%)
Total: $22,693,181 (Worldwide)