Shorts

Synopsis: A young boy's discovery of a colorful, wish-granting rock causes chaos in the suburban town of Black Falls when jealous kids and scheming adults alike set out to get their hands on it.
Director(s): Robert Rodriguez
Production: Warner Bros. Pictures
  1 win & 1 nomination.
 
IMDB:
4.8
Metacritic:
53
Rotten Tomatoes:
46%
PG
Year:
2009
89 min
$20,875,468
Website
913 Views


I know. Let's play Who Blinks First.

Loser has to do you-know-what.

Ready, set, go.

There are six steps.

First we state the question.

What's the matter

with you two? Clean up this mess.

Who won?

Oh, man.

This is my neighborhood.

And these are some of my neighbors.

Go 10 paces west.

- One, two...

- That's east, you lunkhead.

Oh, okay.

- One...

- South.

Boys? Come look after your sister.

So much for our treasure hunt.

That baby is always ruining our adventures.

Some of my neighbors are weird.

Okay, that'll do it. Give me your foot.

Other foot.

Okay, inside. The germs are coming.

In fact, some of them

are not very neighborly at all.

And then there's my house...

...with its quaint, adorable, everyday,

supportive and connected family.

Mega power point damage.

Super effective.

Nano-blast. Major confusion.

Still playing with your imaginary friends?

No.

Freak.

I don't think I'm a freak.

Do you think I'm a freak?

Shut up. Who asked you?

And we should be connected.

After all, this is Black Box Unlimited

Worldwide Industries Incorporated...

...or Black, Inc. For short.

You know them as the guys that make

the Black Box all-in-one gadget...

...that's sweeping the nation.

The whole operation is smack-dab in

the middle of the Black Falls Community.

Development to manufacturing

to shipping...

...all in one centralized location.

Hundreds and hundreds of employees

both live and work here...

...including my parents.

I've got a garage full of gadgets.

Why do I need this one, Mr. Black?

What does the Black Box do?

Mike, the question is,

what doesn't it do?

It's not only the ultimate

communication device...

...keeping us connected

to each other and the world.

That's not all. It's also

a multimedia player, a can opener...

...a dog groomer...

...a vacuum cleaner...

...a baby monitor.

It's a shredder.

It calls the ambulance if you fall down

in your bathroom and can't get up.

It removes rust, paint, pet odors.

Thousands of uses.

It's just about everything

you could ever possibly wish for.

In super grande, grande y el nio.

And this is the man

who owns it all, Mr. Black.

Mr. Carbon Black.

I hope that applause was meant

for you, my trusted partners...

...in our quest to put the Black Box...

...in every hand and home

in the civilized world.

That is our goal.

Who can tell us how close

we are to achieving it?

That's right.

Not even close.

And why is that?

Because the Black Box

is facing fierce competition...

...from the Purple Pyramid,

the Silver Cylinder and other such rip-offs.

- They're nowhere near as good.

- They're catching up.

And I can't have them eating

into our profits.

We need to leave them all...

...in the dust!

Let them eat soot.

Sir?

Focus groups have identified our multiple

uses as a drawback instead of a positive.

We're offering a toaster option.

Nowadays, most people

don't even eat bread.

- She's right.

- You're fired.

- So are you.

- But...

Do your spouses also work

for this company?

- Yes.

- Yes.

They're fired as well. Move out

of your homes, effective immediately.

You think fear tactics and cutthroat

competition yield better results?

Well, it won't!

The new Version X upgrade...

...has to shut down the competition

once and for all.

Have them playing catch-up

for the next 10 years.

- Team A leader?

- Yes, sir?

- Team B leader?

- Right here.

I expect results soon. Live up

to this challenge, you make partner.

Don't and you

and your families are out.

But we're married.

I don't see how your social life

is my concern.

So if he loses,

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Robert Rodriguez

Robert Anthony Rodriguez is an American filmmaker, screenwriter, and musician. He shoots and produces many of his films in Mexico and his home state, Texas. more…

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Submitted on August 05, 2018

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    "Shorts" Scripts.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2023. Web. 5 Jun 2023. <https://www.scripts.com/script/shorts_18049>.

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