One of the best films to come along in a decade

Rating: 10/10 (29 June 2010)

Toy Story 3 is one of those films that comes along once in a decade. It is truly one of the most clever, imaginative, special films I've seen in years.
It's been 11 years since the last Toy Story, and in this (ostensibly) final chapter of the trilogy, we find Andy all grown up and heading off to college. Why a high school senior would still have a toy box full of childhood relics anywhere in sight is puzzling, but for the sake of the story, I'll buy it.
The premise of the film lies in the fate of the toys now that they are no longer needed. Will they be shipped off to charity? Thrown away like trash? Or donated to the local daycare? The toys decide to take their fate into their own hands, and thus, our adventure begins.
They eventually find themselves in a magical daycare wonderland. They're surrounded by loving children who will give them what they've been missing for so long – the imagination of a child that makes any toy come alive. There's only one problem – they've been banished to the toddler room where childhood toys meet a fate worse than the attic. There, they're used, abused and misused. They're regularly manhandled and stripped of all dignity by these terrible two's. They soon realize they'd rather be hidden safely away at their former owner's home than left to the whims of this group of unruly barbarians.
Enter our faithful Woody to save the day. He is the only one Andy's chosen to bring to college with him, but he opts to risk being left at SunnySide with the rest of the toys to make sure his friends are freed from certain doom.
We all know 'certain doom' is not an option in a Disney/Pixar film, unless you're the villain, but they certainly had me going there for a moment. Director Lee Unkrich was able to keep me on the edge of my seat (literally) until the very end. Along the way, we're introduced to a new crop of daycare toys – among them, a strawberry-scented bear who isn't as pleasant as he first appears to be, a Ken and Barbie pair who find love at first sight – and a drone-like hench-baby who had me in stitches from it's first scene.
This is one of those films from which you'll come away preaching the gospel. Not once did I get the feeling the movie was condescending to children for the sake of cheap laughs or thrills. This was a film that proves you need not talk down to children to get their attention. It also proves that a film can be as entertaining for adults as it is for the under-ten set. I would imagine that since the first two films came out long ago, the majority of the children in the theater were much too young to have seen them – but they laughed and worried and winced and rejoiced in all the same places I did.
The only drawback from not having seen the first two films is that you will not be as emotionally attached to the characters, and may not appreciate the bittersweet ending like someone who has grown up with these films. That, however, should not detract one iota from the film's effectiveness as a stand-alone movie-going experience.
I tried very hard to come up with one solitary criticism for the film, and I honestly could not. It simply could not have been better-made. I rarely give a film I've just seen 5 out of 5 stars, but this film was as deserving of that extraordinary distinction as any great film I've seen – it's that good. I truly hate to over-sell a film, but with this one, honestly, I don't think that's possible. It had me from the word, 'go'.
Disney/Pixar have outdone themselves in terms of sheer cleverness, wit, charm, humor, ingenuity and fun. This wonderful masterpiece is a testament to the notion that one need not mindlessly insert fart jokes, crass humor, sexual situations and foul language into a film for it to appeal to today's cynical audiences. Toy Story is everything a great movie should be. It tugs at your heartstrings without pulling them completely from their mooring – it's cute without being syrupy – and it has that wonderful timeless quality that is entirely too rare given the massive budgets, and overflowing creative talent that most major studio releases tout.
At the risk of sounding like an old-fashioned prude, I'll say they just don't make them like this anymore. For my money, the entertainment world would be a much better place if they did.
Upsides: An engaging, engrossing, uplifting, funny, smart, entertaining, witty, polished, imaginative, hopeful, creative, optimistic, best $10.50 I've spent at the theater in years-movie going experience.
Downsides: Only that it spoils me to the inferior copy-cats that are surely in pre-production as I write.
Rating: ***** (Our of 5 *'s)