Pixar makes another movie

Rating: 6/10 (24 June 2019)

There's nothing inherently wrong with making sequels. If you've got a great idea and a story to tell that feels natural, good on you. Make your sequel. Some of my favorite movies are sequels. Terminator 2 and The Dark Knight are two big ones that influence me even today. You know why? Because those films are awesome! They expand on the universe set up from the previous film, they add new creative elements, and they don't retread the same things they've already done.
Conversely, some of my least favorite movies are sequels. Movies I think have ruined the original in some way, or not done enough to make the series better. Or sequels that didn't need to exist. This was always my fear with Toy Story 4, the feeling that it didn't need to exist, especially with the powerful ending of Toy Story 3, plus the mini side stories in the form of TV specials.
I did still like this movie, which is a testament to the quality of Pixar. They know how to make something pretty regardless of actual quality. However Toy Story 4 does some pretty good stuff that I wasn't expecting. We'll work through positives first.

Fantastic animation. Pixar has really mastered their craft with this movie. The designs of the characters are great and even the sets the movie runs around in are fantastic. From the rainy outside to the dusty corners of an antique shop to a vibrant fairground, the movie vigorously sweats to keep itself looking visually stunning.

Great editing. Editing and cinematography are usually pretty easy to do in animated films, however Toy Story 4 surprised me in visual style beyond just animation. The film is very well edited, with scenes smoothly flowing from one shot to the next. The opening credits sequence is the prime example.

I loved Forky. The fact that the film made me care for a sentient spork with googly eyes is a victory. His growth and how he interacts with Woody is great. It's also a win for Woody's character, how he passes down all of his knowledge as the veteran favorite toy down to Forky. My absolute favorite scene by far is just the simple exchange of information on the walk on the road between the two.

Gabby Gabby was great as well. You at first find the whole premise of her character creepy and you grow to care for her over time (Shining music was a nice touch). A reverse Lotso, and a way better one at that.

Bo was alright. Definitely was fine with how her character was treated, felt like something she would do. A lot more spunk than she previously had however, felt a little jarring but I adjusted.

Bunny and Ducky are great sometimes and not great others. At least they're funny. Keanu Reaves was also very funny. I know his character's name is Rex Kaboom but if we're being honest it's Keanu Reaves's action figure, let's stop kidding ourselves.

I was definitely fine with the ending. Nothing ground breaking and definitely not as good as Toy Story 3's ending, nor is it more definitive. I do like how it ended however, it felt natural enough.

Time for the negatives.

My biggest fear for this movie was confirmed after I sat back for a couple days and thought about it. The movie has almost nothing new to offer audiences. The majority of plot points and core themes/ideas this movie has have been recycled from the previous films. Lost toys, growing up, leaving the past behind, toys without owners, the joys of being played with, and the nobility of toys. All have been thoroughly explored in each movie before. I would be fine if the movie felt pointless but had something new to offer. Instead it just felt utterly pointless.

Buzz was absolutely butchered in this movie. Buzz has never been as dumb and as illogical as he is in this movie. One of the most powerful moments in this series for me at least was between Buzz and Woody in Al's Apartment in the second movie. It conveyed how he had grown since the first film, and what he knows now is right for toys. In this movie he just presses a button on his chest to figure out what to do next. He went from arguably a better character than Woody at times to a complete doofus.

In addition, the rest of the gang was barely in the movie. The fact that Jesse has barely anything to do is a dang shame. You could have cut her and even everyone else and barely anything would have changed.

I don't understand why Pixar sequels feel the need to reuse their old score. I had this issue with Cars 3, I had this issue with Incredibles 2 (lesser however, not as often), and I have an issue with it here. The amount of times this movie reuses the old tunes from the previous films is almost comical.

The "oh no I forgot something" thing Bonnie did got really annoying after a while. Felt like a lazy way to keep the plot moving. Also the "where's (insert toy name here)" got irritating, as it'd usually disappear for a second, get thrown back into view the next, they just turn back and see it. It got lazy.

TL;DR: It is absolutely a testament to the talent behind Pixar that they managed to make a movie that is utterly pointless to existing still be a good movie. I will have my faults with it, and you will never catch me saying "oh yeah, this series didn't really end at 3". 3 ended the series. 4 is a nice idea to end the series, but the definitive ending will always be 3. It's simply too perfect an ending.