I liked Toy Story 3 but....... not as much as the first two films.

Rating: 7/10 (23 June 2010)

Pixar is back at it again, with a film that fans have been waiting for over 11 years, Toy Story 3. All of the great toys are back, Buzz Lightyear, Woody, and so fourth.
(There are serious spoilers in this review so beware!)
The first and ending parts are the best, but I felt that the middle story was really weak, and this series is really starting to show it's age.
The first film, which was released back in the mid 1990s, was the first CGI animated film in history was was another great milestone in Disney animation, and Toy Story 2 was released four years later, and is considered by many, including myself, to be the best film of the series.
Now 11 years later, Disney and Pixar are back with Toy Story 3. This time, Andy, the owner of the toys is now 17 years old and about to depart for college. He hasn't played with his toys for a long time, and they are starting to miss their interactions with him. After a very imaginative opening, which takes the opening of the first film to a new level, the very long mid-section begins, which takes the characters from Andy's house to a daycare center called Sunnyside, to a landfill, and this section is very long and prodding. Aside from a few humorous moments such as Buzz speaking in Spanish, the story lags in this section. Woody finds a young girl named Bonnie who is a child who attends Sunnyside, and goes to her home. I also seriously missed BoBeep's interactions with Woody from the first two films.
Some of the middle sections are extremely cheesy to watch, such as Ken and Barbie, and a bad fashion show set to the tune of 70's disco hit "Le Freak", which has got to be the low point of the series. After the high note of Toy Story 2, which doesn't have a weak moment in it at all, I found quite a few low notes in Toy Story 3. Sure, many will disagree with my points here, but as a fan of this series, I felt that the middle section needed a lot of work.
The end brings it all home as Andy is reunited with Buzz and Woody and the last time he plays with them and says goodbye to his beloved toys is easily the best part of the film. With that being said, when Pixar makes a fourth Toy Story, I say that they start from scratch and focus on the central characters as the third film had far too many characters interacting in a very weak mid section which was nothing more than an animated prison escape film. I loved the first two Toy Story films, as well as other Pixar classics like Up, Monsters Inc, and The Incredibles, but I didn't enjoy Toy Story 3 as much as the first two Toy Story films. It's great seeing Buzz Lightyear and Woody back on the big screen, but next time, hopefully Pixar will focus on the central characters rather than adding too many characters next time around in the inevitable fourth Toy Story movie. I would give this three stars or a 7 rating. However these characters are timeless so we'll see them on the big screen again guaranteed.