Go above and beyond and you achieve greatness

Rating: 10/10 (22 April 2011)

Toy Story was the first entirely computer animated film in its time of release in 1995, and it puts Pixar on the map for a generation of amazingly crafted films to be made. The attention to detail is exquisite in this picture as reflections, flexibilities, and movement are all captured in such a stunning format it's almost too much to comprehend. Everything moves so fluently, is crafted with such a broad mind it's still astonishing to this date.
CGI animation is made with wondrous creativity and the possibilities to show off it's style are virtually unlimited. Though when companies in 2011 make kids movies like these they forget about the storyline and just make the film loud and colorful to attract the youth's attention. Not Pixar. Pixar is so much smarter. They understand good animation and a great storyline with characters. Show me a Pixar movie that isn't at least above average and I'll show you a car that can you can drive with no wheels.
But CGI animation has it's downsides. Being released in 1995, Toy Story was the first computer animated film. Meaning other companies were racing their technology where everyone wanted to take advantage of the CGI craze. The main company in this heated competition was DreamWorks Animation Studios. Their first feature film was Antz, notable for being almost a direct knockoff of Pixar's A Bug's Life which came out the same year (1998). Following Antz came others like Chicken Run and The Road to El Dorado. Still none of which lived up to Toy Story's caliber.
DreamWorks scored big when releasing Shrek in 2001. It definitely put them on the map of animation companies, and it's surely remembered more than Chicken Run. But still, while Shrek had a more rapid fire sequel release schedule than Toy Story, none of which had the same heart, message, or love any of these films had.
One last downside is that CGI, no matter which way you look at it, killed hand drawn animation. Generations of kids now likely will never get to experience the classic animation like they should. If they do they will most likely hate it after being exposed to all the glossy and more stylish animation that is among us today. But shows like Beavis and Butthead and The Simpsons are just as good.
Enough with the animation history, lets talk about the film. I doubt anyone will disagree with me, that this is one of the greatest animated films of all time. It combines clever antics with loving characters you become attached to. It's funny to think toys have a mind of their own. Plus all the trouble they would experience if they were alive.
Andy (Morris) is a typical child. He has a number of toys of different varieties and enjoys making up little adventures the figures can go on. All ranging from a Mr. Potato Head, a cowboy doll, a toy piggy bank, and others. Woody (Hanks), a cowboy doll, who now feels threatened when a flashy, gadget filled toy named Buzz Lightyear (Allen) is given to Andy for his birthday. Buzz impresses the entire gang of toys much to the dismay and fear of Woody that he will become another forgotten toy.
Simple premise. Giant execution. It's everything and more. In the nineties, this animation was simply groundbreaking. Because this was the first film made by Pixar, the standard hadn't been set yet. But it was clear after Toy Story that animation would be forever changed for more than one reason.
Starring: Tom Hanks, Tim Allen, Don Rickles, Jim Varney, Wallace Shawn, John Ratzenberger, Annie Potts, John Morris, Laurie Metcalf, and Erik von Detten. Directed by: John Lasseter.