In my review of Inglorious Basterds, I talked about improv and Quentin Tarantino.  It is interesting that on the same weekend, I see a movie made by Tarantino’s partner and friend, Robert Rodriguez, and am once again thinking of improv games.

But I am ahead of myself…..

Over the years, Rodriguez has done what Tarantino could never do – cross over to the family market.  His success with Spy Kids let him work with other kids stories to see what would work.  Such is the case with Shorts.

Shorts is movie about the effects of a wishing rock on a group of people.  Readers of The Monkey’s Paw can already see where this story is headed.  However, the story is not told in a linear fashion.  Much like the game Chapters that is played at SAK Comedy Lab, Shorts is a series of chapters to a story that have been jumbled up.  The execution of this style came off better than anticipated and I give Rodriguez credit for trying it.  The other thing I give him credit for is not putting all of the jokes in the trailer, including some nice wordplay with character names.

Is it predictable?  yes

Is it lame at times? yes

Will this be on constant repeat in DVD players? Yes

My advice:  Take the kids one afternoon and relax – remember what you wish for may not be exactly what you had in mind…