Wonderful

Rating: Null/10 (25 November 2004)

TOY STORY 2 can now proudly join the ranks of films that made me cry. This is a proud collective of films, and very exclusive, including only LADDER 49, SIMON BIRCH, and OLD YELLER. The element that sets this one apart from the other tearjerkers on my list is that TOY STORY 2 isn't trying to be manipulative, while the others, well-crafted and heartfelt as they may be, were. This film pulled some genuine tears out of me because its characters were so endearing, and their pain so palpable, that I could easily identify with them. This feat is all the more impressive considering that the characters are computer animated dolls.
Also enhancing the experience is that the rest of the film is a joyous, funny and surprisingly insightful joy ride. It may well be the best of the Pixar films (the recent THE INCREDIBLES being a close second). The story involves the characters from the original hit TOY STORY. Favorites like Woody the Cowboy (Tom Hanks), Buzz Lightyear (Tim Allen), Rex (Wallace Shawn), Hamm (John Ratzenberger), Mr. Potato Head (Don Rickles), and Slinky Dog (Jim Varney, may he rest in peace) are all back, and in a completely original, genre-defining story. Woody has long been the favorite toy of young Andy, but a small rip on his arm gets him shelved and left behind while the boy goes to cowboy camp. One thing leads to another, and Woody is accidentally sold off in a yard sale to Al (the invaluable Wayne Knight), a slovenly toy collector who owns a local toy store. While Buzz and company plan a dangerous rescue mission, Woody is placed in a Lucite case and discovers more about himself than he ever knew. It turns out, he was the star of his own marionette children's show in the fifties, Woody's Round-Up, and that the round-up also included Jessie (Joan Cusack), Stinky Pete the Prospector (Kelsey Grammar, in Sideshow Bob mode), and Bullseye the horse. His arrival to Al's apartment signals the completion of the set, and now the four toys are going to be sold to a toy museum in Japan. Now Woody has to face a dilemma: go back to Andy and wait for the kid to grow up and forget him, or spend eternity behind glass to be admired by children forever.
This conundrum represents some of the most adult thinking in a children's cartoon ever written. Cusack is responsible for the tear-jerking moment, as she reminisces about her life with her previous owner, Emily, before the girl grew up and abandoned her under the bed. There's a lovely song, 'When She Loved Me,' playing over the background, and beautiful computer-animated shots of sunlight pouring through autumn leaves while Jessie and Emily go for car rides through the country. I finally lost it at the sight of Jessie peering forlornly though a slot in a box marked 'donations,' while the car they shared so many rides in drives down the dirt road. It's rare that a film with real people can have that effect on me, so all the more credit to director John Lasseter and his crew.
The film concludes with a frantic, ten-minute chase/escape, and Buzz, Rex, Slinky, Hamm and Potato Head try to save Woody and friends from the case headed for Japan. They commandeer a truck, battle villainous toys on the conveyor belt, chase the luggage transport on horseback and finally leap out of a moving jet liner to safety. It's all quite un reasonably thrilling. There are also several laugh-out-loud moments, such as the identity of Buzz's father, the Barbie go-go party, and the implementation of a Buzz Lightyear video game strategy guide as an essential plot device.
Pixar's record seems to be untouchable, as they churn out quality animated films like they were minting money. TOY STORY 2 stands as their crowning achievement, one that should be mimicked but likely never will be.