“Eeeee... vaa!”
“Anyone can cook!”
“To infinity, and beyond!” 
“You are a sad, strange little man”
“I'm packing your angry eyes just in case” 
“I am speed. …I eat losers for breakfast!”
“You mean Dad's in trouble or Dad is the trouble?”
“You know for a clownfish, he really isn't that funny”
“So!  Bein' a ladybug automatically makes me a girl?”
“Put that thing back where it came from or so help me!”
“Foreign contaminant!  Whoa-whoa-whoa whoa whoa!”
“I am your wife!  I'm the greatest good you are ever gonna get!” 
“My name is Dug—I have just met you, and I love you—SQUIRREL!” 

With the 82nd Academy Awards® quickly approaching, one studio continues to leave its competitors in the dust.  They continue winning the gold, are always picked first to dance, consistently reach the moon, and always seem to hit a grand slam with an amazing batting average of 1.000.  What other studio repeatedly offers the most fresh and unique storylines versus the same-old-tired-and-lame-ideas-‘cuz-no-one-wants-to-take-the-time-to-think-up-anything-else material?  What movie-house creates the highest “release anticipation” for their films to both child and adult alike?  Who has replaced their parent company, Disney, as the new “family film champ” on the block?  Whose productions consistently rank in the top three of rottentomatoes.com’s highest rated movies each year for most of the last decade?  It’s a bird, it’s a plane, it’s the genius of PIXAR.
To date, the studio has earned 22 Academy Awards®, six Golden Globes and three Grammys—not to mention their plethora of other awards and achievements.  Since the Academy Award® for Best Animated Feature was instituted in 2001, all seven Pixar films have been nominated, with four winning it: Finding Nemo in 2004, The Incredibles in 2005, Ratatouille in 2008, and WALL-E last year.  Included in this year’s nomination for Best Picture, Up is the first Pixar film to be considered and only the second animated film to be nominated (Beauty and the Beast in 1992).  IF you include all my family’s personal trips to Cinetopia here in beautiful Vancouver, USA, Pixar films have made $5.5 billion worldwide.  On their website under “How We Do It,” they reference a scene in Toy Story 2 when the old man repairing Woody tells the impatient toy collector Al, “You can’t rush art.”  Good advice for the rest of Hollywood.
Incorporated in the state of California on February 3rd, 1986, they merged with The Walt Disney Company on January 24, 2006, making one of Pixar’s founding fathers, John Lasseter, Chief Creative Officer of Walt Disney Animation Studios & Pixar Animation Studios.  The company continues to grow and expand, opening their new Glenn McQueen Pixar Animation Center in Vancouver, British Columbia in the near future (named after the Canadian-born Pixar animator who passed away in 2002).
One New Year’s Eve at our house, with a room full of adults, we couldn’t agree on a movie to watch… until I brought out Pixar titles!  Then we couldn’t decide which to watch first, because—to quote the very funny Brian Regan who recalls that the only reason he played baseball as a kid was to receive a snow cone after the game, "GRAPE!  I'm gonna get Grape!  Or, Cherry!  They're both favorites!”—they’re ALL favorites! 
Besides my joy of talking to people about their top-10 movie lists, I also ask what order they would rank the Pixar movies.  Here are their movies listed in my favorite order, with my most favorite listed last and my other favorites listed first, among this list of Pixar favorites—which are all favorites.
#10: A Bug's Life (1998, directed by John Lasseter, with a $364 million worldwide gross).  My least favorite of the Pixar canon, but still one of the best movies of 1998.  The story follows a colony of ants that every season are expected to gather food for a gangster-group of grasshoppers—led by the nefarious Hopper.  The hero, a klutzy inventor named Flik, is given permission by the Queen to venture out and recruit a group of “warrior bugs” to fight off the lousy locusts.  What better way for a movie villain to get what’s coming to them than when Hopper is snatched away by a stoic mama bird and fed to her chicks—satisfyingly creepy!
#9: Finding Nemo (2003, co-directed by Andrew Stanton and Lee Unkrich, with a $865 worldwide gross).  I know, I know.  This one always pops-up towards the top of everyone’s list, but I believe it to be Pixar’s most mundane storyline.  Marlin, an Ocellaris clownfish, sets out to find his only child, Nemo.  Marlin is joined by a sidekick, Dory (not being a fan of Ellen DeGeneres doesn’t help), as together their quest takes them throughout the ocean’s vast space.  I must admit it has some of Pixar’s most dazzling CGI to date.
A favorite scene has Marlin and Dory befriend Bruce the shark who insists they attend a “shark support group”—where the sharks have amazingly vowed not to eat other fish.  "I am a nice shark, not a mindless eating machine.  If I am to change this image, I must first change myself.  Fish are friends, not food."  Today's meeting is “Step 5: Bring a Fish Friend.”  Bruce starts the testimonies: "Hello.  My name is Bruce."  Other sharks: "Hello, Bruce."  Bruce: "It has been three weeks since my last fish."  Now it's Dory's turn: "Hello, I'm Dory... I don't think I've ever eaten a fish."  Applause!  Now it's Marlin's turn, and when he says he doesn't have a problem, they push him forward and all say in unison, "Denial!"  Classic.
#8: Cars (2006, John Lasseter, $462 million worldwide).  Like most guys I know, I’ve been a sport scar fan since drawing them for my friends in 2nd Grade.  And like most kids, have always seen cars as having faces.  Years later, while enjoying a Chevron commercial with animated cars, I thought, “Someone needs to make a movie with these!”  Sure enough, Pixar came in, applied their “magical pixel dust” of great storytelling and hard work, and made an outstanding film.  What’s not to like, with its glossy animation, fabulous soundtrack and fantastic characters?  A fast and furious world which includes the smooth wisecracking voice of Owen Wilson as a slick Le Mans endurance racer, Richard Petty as a vintage Plymouth Superbird, Michael Keaton as a 1980s stock car, Paul Newman as a 1951 “Fabulous” Hudson Hornet, Larry the Cable Guy as a 1951 International Harvester L-170 "boom" truck, and of course, Bonnie Hunt as a gorgeous 2002 996-series Porsche 911 Carrera—whoa!  Of course, with the ridiculously-good Rascal Flatts band performing the opening song, “Life Is a Highway," I was hooked when the green flag dropped!
A favorite scene takes me back to being a kid, riding in the back seat with my brothers and sisters on a cross-country road trip.  Dad mainly stayed on old two-lane interstate highways, winding through small towns littered with ma-and-pa-cafes.  In this scene, Sally takes McQueen on a drive and shows him the crowded interstate highway from a ledge.  McQueen comments that the myriad of cars don't know what they're missing by bypassing the town of Radiator Springs on Route 66.  Another amazing Pixar vignette begins—with James Taylor singing an emotional rendition of Randy Newman’s song, "Our Town—paying homage to the friendliness and pleasure of quaint old towns that have fallen by the wayside due to the influx of freeways.
#7: Ratatouille (2007, Brad Bird and Jan Pinkava, $623 million worldwide.)  This movie showcases one of Hollywood’s most creative and best directors, Brad Bird.  Bird, who grew up here in Portland, Oregon, has been referred to by some as perhaps a modern-day Walt Disney (he’s uncredited for his earlier work on Disney’s The Fox and the Hound).  When his underrated and poorly marketed movie The Iron Giant  hit theaters in 1999, I thought it was one of the best movies of the year (Hogarth’s prayer scene at dinner is absolute gold), with more vivid characters, better acting and crisp storytelling than that year’s biggest disappointment: Star Wars: The Phantom Menace (Jake Lloyd and Jar Jar, anyone?  ‘Nuff said).  The exceptional talents of Bird were brought in to save Ratatouille—featuring Remy the rat with a sensitive nose for fine cuisine—from being Pixar’s first “lackluster.”  It instead became another Pixar blockbuster, as Brad effectively knocked it out of the park!
A wonderful scene finds world-class chef Colette frustrated with the newbie, Linguini.  Colette takes time to sharply give the young man some important cooking tips: "You think cooking is a cute job, like Mommy in the kitchen?  Well, Mommy never had to face the dinner rush when the orders come flooding in, and every dish is different and none are simple, and all of the different cooking times, but must arrive on the customer's table at exactly the same time, hot and perfect!  Every second counts, and you cannot be Mommy!"
#6: Up (2009, Pete Docter and Bob Peterson, $723 million worldwide).  Like a couple other Pixar films, the marketing campaign for this movie didn’t excite me.  I thought this could be the studio’s first dud.  I was wrong.  For almost five minutes, starting at the seven-minute mark in the movie, I knew they had struck gold again.  With this scene, Pixar gives their most masterful vignette to date when Carl and Ellie's life together is chronicled—beautifully and without dialogue—from their wedding day to their twilight years.  The Pixar team did more in those five minutes than anything found in a plethora of other Hollywood movies combined.  If you missed it, this one scene is worth the price of admission.  Hopefully this Pixar gem will walk away with some well deserved hardware on May 7th.
Other great moments include Carl and Russell running into a talking dog (Carl: “Did that dog just say "Hi there?”   Dog: “Oh yes. … My name is Dug. I have just met you, and I love you,” as he jumps on Carl, “My master made me this collar.  He is a good and smart master and he made me this collar so that I may speak—SQUIRREL!”) and when Carl sacrifices material things to save his friends (Carl runs back to his grounded house—with thousands of helium balloons tied to it—and tries to get it airborne again. But no matter how hard he struggles, it won't budge.  Angered, he throws a chair off the porch and gets an idea!  Running throughout the house, Carl begins throwing everything he can find out the front door—giving no thought to cost or emotional attachment—laying aside every weight and anything which could easily ensnare him, enabling him to fly with endurance the race that is set before him, keeping his main objective in mind: to save that which was lost!). 
#5 WALL·E (2008, Andrew Stanton, $521 million worldwide).  Though I could’ve done without some of Stanton's consumerism and environmental wrist-slaps, his story set in the year 2805 is both visually stunning and adorable.  It seems all of humanity is living in outer space on a gigantic luxury liner while one lone trash compacting robot is left behind to clean up humans’ enormous mess.  The evolving romance of WALL-E and EVE, once again, touts the incredible ability of Pixar to tell a better dialogue-free story in 10 minutes, than most of the drivel coming from other studios can do in an entire film (most “romantic comedies” being rushed down the pike pale in comparison—ugh!).
A favorite scene finds the ship’s captain (pastor?) setting a switch to return the vessel back to Earth—ending humankind's 700 year space vacation of getting fed, fat and entertained in their hover chairs (where no one has ever volunteered to help or serve on the ship).  The new mission surprises the passengers (congregation?) and refuses to let them eat and lounge around doing nothing as normal, but readies them for their flight back.  Everyone is gathered in a large area while the captain continues to fight off the auto-pilot—making the ship list—causing all the jelly-like-passengers to slide to one end (hilarious!).  Since no one has walked or hardly moved in years, everyone just slides into each other towards the bottom, with a few brave souls actually extending their hands to TOUCH and HELP someone else—including a smattering of children.
#4: Toy Story 2 (1999, John Lasseter, $485 million worldwide).  A rarity among sequels, with this second offering being just as outstanding at the first.  The owner of Al’s Toy Barn, Al McWhiggin (Wayne Knight from Seinfeld and Jurassic Park fame), steals Woody and plans to sell him and other “Roundup” characters to a toy museum in Tokyo.     
So many wonderful scenes, including Buzz accidently freeing his arch-nemesis, Emperor Zurg; the banter between Woody and Jessie the Yodeling Cowgirl (performed expertly by Joan Cusack); the deception of Stinky Pete the Prospector (Kelsey Grammer)—who really IS stinky; and the joy of seeing Tour Guide Barbie and Barbie on Backpack (Jodi Benson—The Little Mermaid’s Ariel) come to life!
#3: Toy Story (1995, John Lasseter, $362 million worldwide).  The original film that started it all—some would argue the best—was the first fully computer-generated feature film ever released.  The story, of course, centers around a young boy’s group of toys who come to life when their owner is not around.  The iconic characters include Woody (Tom Hanks), Buzz Lightyear (Tim Allen), Mr. Potato Head (Don Rickles), Slinky Dog (the late Jim Varney), Rex (Wallace Shawn), Hamm (John Ratzenberger), Bo Peep (Annie Potts), and the green army sergeant (R. Lee Ermey).  I challenge anyone to find a scarier animated villain than Sid (voiced by Erik von Detten), who creates nightmarish mutant toys in his sparetime!
One classic moment—hinting at blind religious tradition—finds Buzz trying to garner the help of a spaceship full of toy aliens at a kiddy pizzeria…   Buzz: “This is an intergalactic emergency.  I need to commandeer your vessel to Sector 12.  Who's in charge here?”  Aliens (all pointing up): “The Claw!”  Alien #1: “The Claw is our master.”  Alien #2: “The Claw chooses who will go and who will stay.”  Woody: “This is ludicrous.” 
#2: Monsters, Inc. (2001, Pete Docter, $525 million worldwide).  One of the most original and creative stories of any animated film (and perhaps live-action film) that I can remember!  Monstropolis is a city populated by monsters.  Monsters, Inc. is the power utility that harvests the raw energy from children’s screams when employees visit them in their bedrooms at night.  Brilliant!  And could there be more memorable and better voiced characters than John Goodman’s Sulley and the comic genius of Billy Crystal’s Mike Wazowski?  The entire voice talent is fabulous, with Mary Gibbs giving us the adorable "Boo" and the unforgettable rasp of Bob Peterson as Roz (“Well, isn't that nice?”).
One of the best scenes finds Sulley and Mike fighting in the factory over what to do with “Boo,” the cute two-year-old girl whom Sulley has lovingly named…   Mike: “You're not supposed to name it. Once you name it, you start getting attached to it. Now put that thing back where it came from or so help me...”  Mike then pauses as he notices their argument has the attention of the surrounding workers…   Mike: “Oh, hey. We're rehearsing a…a scene for the upcoming company play called, uh, ‘Put That Thing Back Where It Came From Or So Help Me.’  It's a musical,” as the two begin singing the title. 
            #1: The Incredibles (2004, directed by Brad Bird with a $631 million worldwide gross).  Being a fan of superheroes since a wee-lad in Sunday School, it’s no wonder this masterpiece lands as my favorite Pixar movie so far.  Bird’s Incredibles is his own original story, and after selling Pixar on the idea, went on to direct and even provide the voice for the hilarious character of costume designer Edna ‘E’ Mode.  Bird recalls the inside joke that the movie’s villain, Syndrome, was actually based on Bird's likeness, which he didn’t realize until the film was too far into production to change (look at a picture of both side-by-side!).
A favorite scene finds Mr. Incredible working as an insurance adjuster with an elderly lady sitting at his desk.  He's just denied her claim, and when she starts to sob, Bob is moved with compassion and secretly gives her the inside scoop: “All right, listen closely.  I'd LIKE to help you, but I can't.  I'd LIKE to tell you to take a copy of your policy to Norma Wilcox (while handing her a pen and notepad)... that's W-I-L-C-O-X, on the third floor.  But I can't..."  No sooner does he bend the rules when his boss appears, reminding him it’s not about PEOPLE, it’s about MONEY! 
Another favorite—which, again, no one does these type of scenes better, with little or no dialogue, than Pixar—is when Bob loses his unfulfilling job and finally has a chance to become Mr. Incredible again.  Being able to use his giftings and talents as he once did invigorates his life.  He starts to work out, becomes more loving to his wife and spends more time with his kids.  Doing what he was born to do allows him to enjoy a fulfilled life once again (always get misty-eyed with this one, dang it). 
Another scene that is pure gold finds Mr. Incredible’s super-pal, Lucius, at home getting ready to take his wife out for a previously arranged night out on the town.  Suddenly, outside the window of their high-rise apartment, a giant killer-robot rampages by on its path to destroy the city.  He frantically looks for his "Frozone" supersuit to help stop the mayhem.  Unable to find it, he asks his wife where it is.  "WHY do you need to know?" she asks.  "You tell me where my suit is, woman!  We are talking about the greater good!"   "GREATER GOOD?  I am your wife!  I'm the greatest good you are EVER gonna get!"

            What’s next for Hollywood’s finest studio?
My release anticipation continues to run high for Pixar’s next films on the horizon: Toy Story 3 is set to premiere this year, with Newt scheduled for the summer of 2011.  After that, The Bear and the Bow releases around Christmas 2011, and Cars 2 in 2012.  Though I’m not a patient man when it comes to Pixar, I’m thankful they stick to their creed:  “You can’t rush art.”  Good advice for the rest of Hollywood.