Terrific capper to the trilogy, but strangely unmoving

Rating: 8/10 (6 May 2015)

Like many films, prior to watching it, I was well aware of the fact that an incredible amount of people had already boarded the hype train for Toy Story 3. It was one of those occasions where there was always someone regaling you with their oh-so emotional experience watching Toy Story 3. The fact that it was nominated for Best Picture at the Oscars only added to the hype for me, because that had only happened two times earlier, with Beauty and the Beast and Up. What this told me was that if it didn't make me cry big, manly tears, then this film would be somewhat of a disappointment. Unfortunately, this is what happened. The film was for me somewhat of an emotional letdown, but it's saved by its superb comedy writing.
The story deals with Andy heading off to college and having to decide what to do with his toys. After a series of accidents (what else), our familiar gang of toys find themselves in a children's daycare. It all seems like heaven, but there's the question of whether they should stay or return to Andy. Woody is the only one who decides to try to return, but is taken home by a little girl. The other toys discover that the children play way too rough with them and decide to leave. However, the daycare hides a gang of toys led by a large purple teddy bear called Lotso, who rules the daycare with an iron fist and our pack of toys find out leaving won't be so easy. The film thus devolves into Woody returning to Buzz and the rest and trying to break out of the daycare and return to Andy.
As I previously stated, my main grievance with the film is that the drama failed to connect with me somewhat. I am of course referring to the two big emotional scenes toward the end: the scene where the toys' lives are at stake and the ending itself. I found myself in the undesirable position of realizing on an intellectual level what the filmmakers were trying to achieve (Maximum Emotional Impact), but not really caring on an emotional level. The furnace scene was however very tense and I found myself reflecting on all I've experienced with these toys as it was happening: they may be toys, but dammit, I've known them since I was young and they shouldn't be harmed. I still feel though that entire scene was a tad emotionally exploitative: to make the audience experience the death of Woody and co without actually killing them, a cliché often found in films. (But then again, entering a theater is implicitly allowing yourself to be exploited and it's what entertainment is made of.) As for the ending, I knew the ending tried to make people reminisce about their childhoods and all the toys they used to own and I highly appreciate the sentiment itself, but the scene itself is done with all the subtlety of a brick to the face: the scene where Andy give his toys away, gets in his car, turns toward his toys across the street and says, and I quote, "Thanks guys", is enough to send someone like me screaming for the hills.
The true star of the film however is its humor. Unsurprisingly, it was written by Pixar newcomer Michael Arndt who had previously found success with Little Miss Sunshine which is the film that found a way to make a family smuggling the corpse of one of their deceased family members (the grandpa) out of a hospital not only plausible, but funny at the same time. As with that film, the humor in Toy Story 3 is outstanding. When I think back to Toy Story 3, I don't think of the supposedly sad ending, I think of Spanish Buzz, Barbie and Ken, etc. Easily my favorite moment is the introduction of Chuckles the clown, who is actually (of course) a cynical, world-weary clown. From the way the camera pans to him sitting in the window opening as a melancholy harmonica plays, to his wonderfully clichéd dialogue and gravelly voice, this is parody done completely right.
It's not like I'm saying Toy Story 3 is bad. It's not. As far as trilogies go, this is quite honestly a great success. It's really funny, it's tense (the 'prison break') and despite any qualms, it's a film easily watched and enjoyed from beginning to end. It's just that besides the excellent comedy, I didn't really connect emotionally with the ending which was made all the more surprising by the fact that pretty much everyone else practically had to renew their supply of Kleenexes from both blowing their loads over this film and wiping their collective tears.