Audio Remasterer: Stephen Marcussen.
Movie soundtracks for family films can be a dicey proposition--lots of filler and kitsch, packaged for maximum impulse-buyability. This collection of songs from Disney Pixar films hews to a higher standard, with wall-to-wall hits. A selection of Randy Newman's amiable stride-piano tunes share space with aching ballads by James Taylor and Sarah McLachlan, Rascal Flatt's rockin' cover of "Life is a Highway," and Peter Gabriel's sublime "Down to Earth."
Disney's Pixar films have been about as consistent as the sunrise since 1995's Toy Story, but the same cannot be said for the requisite musical numbers that have served as convenient bathroom breaks for both kids and parents over the course of nine mostly extraordinary films. While there have been some truly memorable offerings from Randy Newman ("You've Got a Friend in Me," Peter Gabriel ("Down to Earth"), and Michael Giacchino -- the latter's contributions to Ratatouille were actually integral to the story -- they mostly come off as semi-enjoyable filler. Disney Pixar Greatest Hits collects 25 tracks from their award-winning feature films, only a few of which are instrumental, and all of which are better than the wince-inducing musical offerings from digital animation competitor DreamWorks. ~ James Christopher Monger minimize