''Mater and the Ghostlight'' is a 2006 American

computer-animated Computer animation is the process used for digitally generating animations. The more general term computer-generated imagery (CGI) encompasses both static scenes (still images) and dynamic images (moving images), while computer animation refer ...

short film A short film is any motion picture that is short enough in running time not to be considered a feature film. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences defines a short film as "an original motion picture that has a running time of 40 minutes ...

released as a special feature on the DVD of Pixar's film ''

Cars A car or automobile is a motor vehicle with wheels. Most definitions of ''cars'' say that they run primarily on roads, Car seat, seat one to eight people, have four wheels, and mainly transport private transport#Personal transport, people in ...

'', which was released in the United States on November 7, 2006. The short, set in the ''Cars'' world, tells a story of Mater being haunted by a mysterious blue light.

Plot

The short opens with Mater pranking the other residents of Radiator Springs by moving Red's flowers, bursting out from a pile of tires (built to resemble the

Colosseum The Colosseum ( ; it, Colosseo ) is an oval amphitheatre in the centre of the city of Rome, Italy, just east of the Roman Forum. It is the largest ancient amphitheatre ever built, and is still the largest standing amphitheatre in the world ...

) to startle

Guido Guido is a given name Latinised from the Old High German name Wido. It originated in Medieval Italy. Guido later became a male first name in Austria, Germany, the Low Countries, Scandinavia, Spain, Portugal, Latin America and Switzerland. The mea ...

and Luigi, dressing up as a cone

vampire A vampire is a mythical creature that subsists by feeding on the Vitalism, vital essence (generally in the form of blood) of the living. In European folklore, vampires are undead, undead creatures that often visited loved ones and caused mi ...

to scare

Sally Sally may refer to: People *Sally (name), a list of notable people with the name Military * Sally (military), an attack by the defenders of a town or fortress under siege against a besieging force; see sally port *Sally, the Allied reporting na ...

, attempting to scare Lizzie while she is sleeping (which is unsuccessful), moving Fillmore's gas cans back outside while he takes them in and finally scaring

Lightning McQueen Montgomery "Lightning" McQueen is a fictional anthropomorphic stock car who is the protagonist of the animated Pixar franchise '' Cars'', primarily voiced by actor Owen Wilson. His appearances include the feature films '' Cars'', ''Cars 2'', and ...

when he believes Mater is hiding behind a pile of cans ready to jump out (what was really behind the pile of cans was one of Mater's signs). This sequence then culminates with Mater teasing McQueen as if he had seen " the Ghostlight," a Route 66

urban legend An urban legend (sometimes contemporary legend, modern legend, urban myth, or urban tale) is a genre of folklore comprising stories or fallacious claims circulated as true, especially as having happened to a "friend of a friend" or a family m ...

Sheriff A sheriff is a government official, with varying duties, existing in some countries with historical ties to England where the office originated. There is an analogous, although independently developed, office in Iceland that is commonly transla ...

admonishes him for mocking the urban legend. When McQueen asks about the Ghostlight, Sheriff explains that the Ghostlight is a blue paranormal orb of light that haunts Radiator Springs, but Mater reminds Lightning that it is not real. Sheriff points out that it ''is'' real, shocking them. He then tells everyone the tale of the Ghostlight, explaining the disappearance of a young couple that encountered it, leaving behind two "out-of-state license plates" and that it hates nothing more than the sound of clanking metal. At this point, Mater is so scared that he begins making the noise that the Ghostlight dislikes the most and tries to stop himself. Sheriff ends the story with a warning that the Ghostlight could be anywhere. The rest of the residents say goodnight and turn off all the store lights, leaving a nervous and scared Mater all alone in the dark. Nervous, he returns to his junkyard and sees a shadow of a monster and, in a sudden shock, shines his light on it, revealing it to be just a pile of junk with another of his signs. After he accidentally breaks his headlight in fear, he enters his wall-less garage and closes the door, which then falls down. A light suddenly appears in front of him and he panics, believing it to be the Ghostlight until he realizes it is just a lightning bug. Suddenly, a blue light appears behind him. After using his mirror to observe it, he runs for it thinking it is that Ghostlight. For the remainder of the short, mayhem ensues as Mater is pursued by the Ghostlight, ultimately revealed to be just a lantern affixed to Mater's towing cable by Lightning and Guido. He wakes Frank and his tractors and drives through Willy’s Butte and goes into slow motion (in a matter similar to

Doc Hudson Doctor Hudson Hornet, MD (also known as The Fabulous Hudson Hornet, Hud, Doc Hudson, or simply, Doc) is an animated, anthropomorphic retired race car which appears in the 2006 Pixar film ''Cars'' as a medical doctor and a local judge. He is ...

’s slide in ''

''). The other residents of Radiator Springs watch as Mater drives around frantically with the "Ghostlight" on his tail, before Mater tires himself out and discovers the truth. The cars tell him it was all a prank to pay him back for all his pranks he played on them. Sheriff gently tells Mater that the only thing to be scared of on Route 66 is "his imagination." Doc jokingly adds that all Mater really had to fear was "the Screaming Banshee" before they all leave Mater, alone and frightened once again. In a

post-credits scene A post-credits scene (commonly referred to as a stinger or credit cookie) or mid-credits scene is a short clip that appears after all or some of the closing credits have rolled and sometimes after a production logo of a film, TV series, or video g ...

, Mater actually encounters the Screaming Banshee (which is actually an enormous truck who is both a

monster truck A monster truck is a specialized off-road vehicle with a heavy duty suspension, four-wheel steering, large-displacement V8 engines and oversized tires constructed for competition and entertainment uses. Originally created by modifying stock p ...

and a construction vehicle with a broken windshield and a "BANSHEE" logo on the front) on the road, but unaware it is him, warns him of the Banshee before departing for the safety of his junkyard once again, leaving the monstrous vehicle confused.

Cast

Larry the Cable Guy Daniel Lawrence Whitney (born February 17, 1963), known professionally by his persona Larry the Cable Guy, is an American stand-up comedian, actor, producer, country music artist, and former radio personality. He was one of the members of the ...

as Mater *

Owen Wilson Owen Cunningham Wilson (born November 18, 1968) is an American actor. He has had a long association with filmmaker Wes Anderson with whom he shared writing and acting credits for ''Bottle Rocket'' (1996), '' Rushmore'' (1998), and '' The Royal ...

Bonnie Hunt Bonnie Lynn Hunt (born September 22, 1961) is an American actress, comedian, director, producer, writer and television host. Her film roles include ''Rain Man'', ''Beethoven'', '' Beethoven's 2nd'', ''Jumanji'', ''Jerry Maguire'', '' The Green ...

Sally Carrera Sally Carrera is a fictional character in Pixar's ''Cars'' franchise. Sally is a 2002 Porsche 911 Carerra, and the character is modeled after Dawn Welch, the proprietor of Rock Cafe in Oklahoma. Sally is the town attorney for Radiator Springs, ...

Paul Newman Paul Leonard Newman (January 26, 1925 – September 26, 2008) was an American actor, film director, race car driver, philanthropist, and entrepreneur. He was the recipient of numerous awards, including an Academy Award, a BAFTA Award, three ...

Michael Wallis Michael Wallis (born October 7, 1945) is an American journalist, popular historian, author and speaker. He has written seventeen books,Danna Sue Walker"Award-winning author speaks to library backers" ''Tulsa World'', March 7, 2010. including ''R ...

Cheech Marin :''The surname'' Marin ''is of Spanish language origin. In Spanish, it is spelled'' Marín'', with an acute accent on the'' í. Richard Anthony "Cheech" Marin (born July 13, 1946) is an American actor, musician, comedian, and activist who gain ...

as Ramone *

Paul Dooley Paul Dooley (born Paul Brown; February 22, 1928) is an American character actor, writer and comedian. He is known for his roles in '' Breaking Away'', '' Sixteen Candles'', and ''Popeye''. Early life Dooley was born Paul Brown on February 22, ...

as Sarge Non-speaking characters appearing in the film include Luigi, Guido, Flo, Fillmore, Lizzie, Mack, Frank and Red.

Release

''Mater and the Ghostlight'' premiered on November 7, 2006, on the ''Cars'' DVD release as a special feature. On November 6, 2007, it got its first Blu-ray releases, once again attached as a special to ''Cars'' and as part of ''

Pixar Short Films Collection, Volume 1 ''Pixar Short Films Collection, Volume 1'' is a home video compilation released by Walt Disney Home Entertainment on November 9, 2007, containing 13 of Pixar's short films. It was followed by '' Pixar Short Films Collection, Volume 2'', which was ...

''.

References

External links

* at Pixar * at Disney * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Mater And The Ghostlight 2006 short films 2000s American animated films 2000s animated short films 2006 black comedy films American black comedy films American animated short films Cars (franchise) Films based on urban legends Short films directed by John Lasseter Films set in Arizona Pixar short films Films with screenplays by John Lasseter Films with screenplays by Joe Ranft 2006 comedy films 2000s English-language films American short films Films about automobiles