Toy Story

Produced by
Bonnie Arnold
Ed Catmull (executive)
 Written by
Pete Docter (story)
Andrew Stanton (story and screenplay)
Joe Ranft (story)
Joss Whedon (screenplay)
Joel Cohen (screenplay)
Alec Sokolow (screenplay)
 Starring
Tim Allen
Don Rickles
Jim Varney
Wallace Shawn
John Ratzenberger
Annie Potts
John Morris
Erik Von Detten
 Music by
 Editors
Lee Unkrich
 Cinematography
 Studios
Pixar Animation Studios
 Distributors
 Release date (s)
December 7, 1995 (AUS)
March 22, 1996 (UK)
 Language
 Preceded by
 Followed by
*Toy Story 2* (1999)

***Toy Story*** is a 1995 American computer-animated buddy-adventure film directed by John Lasseter and features the voices of Tom Hanks and Tim Allen. The film was co-produced by Ralph Guggenheim and Bonnie Arnold and was distributed by Walt Disney Pictures. It was written by Joss Whedon, Andrew Stanton, Joel Cohen, and Alec Sokolow, and featured music by Randy Newman. It was the very first feature film released to use only computer-generated imagery and the first film released by Pixar Animation Studios. Toy Story follows a group of toys who come to life whenever their owner is not present, focusing on Sheriff Woody, a toy cowboy (Tom Hanks), and Buzz Lightyear, an astronaut action figure (Tim Allen). The movie was released in theatres November 22, 1995.

The top-grossing film on its opening weekend, *Toy Story* went on to earn over $191 million in the United States and Canada during its initial theatrical release and took in more than $361 million worldwide. Reviews were overwhelmingly positive, praising both the technical innovation of the animation and the wit and sophistication of the screenplay.

In addition to DVD releases, *Toy Story*-inspired material has run the gamut from toys, video games, spin-offs, and merchandise. The film was so successful it prompted two sequels, *Toy Story 2*, which was released November 24, 1999 and became an even bigger hit than the original (*Toy Story* was re-released on a double feature with *Toy Story 2* in 3D on October 2, 2009) and *Toy Story 3*, which was released June 18, 2010. It was selected into the National Film Registry as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant" on its first year of eligibility.

A third sequel, *Toy Story 4* is currently in the works as of November 2014 and will be released in theatres June 16, 2017.

## Plot

The film begins with a young boy named Andy Davis playing with his toys, such as a Mr. Potato Head toy, Slinky Dog, a plastic dinosaur named Rex and his favorite toy, Woody, a cowboy doll. He takes Woody into the living room and plays with him some more, with a short interruption talking to his mom about his birthday party later that day and the upcoming move to a new house. After playing with Woody, Andy starts helping his mother by carrying his baby sister Molly to her. While he's away, all of the toys come to life.

The party makes all the toys extremely nervous, wondering if Andy will get a toy that will replace them. Woody sends the small green soldiers led by Sarge downstairs to spy on the party. At the end of the party, Ms. Davis pulls out a surprise gift from behind her, which turns out to be a Buzz Lightyear action figure in spaceship packaging. Andy and his friends run upstairs to open him and in his hurry Andy knocks Woody off the bed. They quickly leave, and the other toys welcome the newcomer. Buzz however doesn't seem to be aware that he is a piece of plastic, believing himself to be the actual Buzz Lightyear on a mission to save the universe from Evil Emperor Zurg. The other toys take to him immediately, being impressed by his many features. Only Woody is unconvinced, showing jealousy towards Buzz, who might replace him as Andy's favorite toy. As time passes, Andy replaces many of his cowboy themed room decorations with space ones causing Woody's resentment to rise while Buzz attempts to fix his 'damaged spaceship' (in reality, a piece of the packaging had been torn).

Sometime later, Mrs. Davis takes Andy and Molly on a trip to the space-themed Pizza Planet restaurant. Andy asks if he can bring any toys, and she agrees to let him take one. Woody, knowing Andy will choose Buzz, plans to trap him in a gap behind Andy's desk by using RC so Andy won't find him. However the plan goes badly wrong and instead knocks him out the window by accident. When the other toys learn of Woody's actions, most of them think Woody tried to kill Buzz out of jealousy. They then try to attack him, but Woody is rescued when Andy, unable to find Buzz, takes Woody on the trip instead. At a stop at a Dinoco gas station to refuel the car, Woody (after pondering how he's going to convince the toys that the whole thing was an accident) finds that Buzz grabbed ahold of the family's minivan and is with them. After a conversation, the two toys begin to fight, knocking each other out of the minivan, and are left behind when it drives away. Woody convinces Buzz to hitch a lift on a Pizza Planet truck in order to return to Andy.

Woody finds Andy there, but Buzz, still thinking he's a real space ranger, climbs into a toy crane game, thinking that it's a spaceship that will take him to Emperor Zurg's location. Woody goes in after him, but the two eventually are found by Sid Phillips, who lives next door to Andy and is known to torture and destroy toys just for fun.

Left alone in Sid's room, Woody and Buzz come upon a group of mis-matched toys, the results of Sid's many "experiments". Woody and Buzz react in fear, thinking that the mis-matched toys are cannibals. Meanwhile, at Andy's house, the toys continue to look for Buzz in the bushes. But when Andy and his mother come home, Andy notices that Woody's gone. The other toys wonder what has become of the two. Some are worried for both Buzz and Woody, while others express their hope that Woody has met a bad end. The next day, at Sid's house, Woody and Buzz, having been mistreated by Sid (Sid burned Woody's forehead with a magnifying glass), try to escape, only to run into Sid's crazy Bull Terrier Scud. Eventually getting out of Sid's room, Buzz comes upon a TV where he sees a commercial for the Buzz Lightyear line of toys. Watching it, he realizes that Woody was right about him: He was a toy this whole time, not a real space ranger. However, in denial (and one last desperate attempt to prove he's not a toy), Buzz tries to fly out of a window by jumping off the guardrail of the stairs on the second floor, only to fall to the floor, losing his arm in the process. He is found by Sid's little sister Hannah, who takes him away to put him in her tea party.

Woody finally finds Buzz in Hannah's room, dressed as "Mrs. Nesbit" and attending a tea party. While Woody formulates a plan of escape, Buzz is too depressed to care. When Woody throws a string of Christmas tree lights across the way to the toys in Andy's room, Buzz refuses to back him up; Woody tries to use Buzz's detached arm in a desperate attempt to convince Andy's toys that Buzz is with him, but when they see through this act, they take it as evidence that Woody truly did murder Buzz and leave him in disgust. The Mutant Toys then return and swarm over Buzz, and Woody finds that they have repaired him. However, before Woody can make friends with them, Sid returns with his new acquisition: A firework rocket. He decides to blow up Woody with it, but cannot find him as Woody hides in a milk crate. Sid then decides to blow up Buzz instead but is stymied by rainfall. He unknowingly traps Woody in the crate by putting a heavy toolbox on top, a plans to go ahead in the morning.

Overnight, Woody tries get Buzz to help him escape however is Buzz is still depressed that he's only a toy. Woody tries to convince him that being a toy and is much better than being a Space Ranger, and Andy still thinks he's the best thing in world. Buzz doesn't know why Andy would want him, and Woody explains while coming to terms with his own feelings of resentment:

*Why would Andy want you?! Look at you! You're a Buzz Lightyear. Any other toy would give up his moving parts just to be you. You've got wings, you glow in the dark, you talk, your helmet does that... that whoosh thing. You are a COOL toy... as a matter of fact you're too cool. I mean -- I mean what chance does a toy like me have against a Buzz Lightyear action figure?*

As Woody sadly states that he should be the one taped to Sid's rocket, Buzz looks at his boot where Andy has signed his name, helping his realize how much Andy loves him and how being a toy isn't too bad. The two try to escape (although Buzz accidentally knocks the toolbox on Woody when trying to get the milk crate off of him). Unfortunately, Sid wakes up and takes Buzz out to blow him up, leaving Woody alone in the room. Even worse, Andy and his family are getting ready to move, with Andy depressed over having seemingly lost Woody and Buzz having only been able to find Buzz's cardboard spaceship and his cowboy hat. Woody calls out to the Mutant Toys to tell them a plan to escape. After a daring escape through the house and past Scud, Woody and the mutants end up in the yard with Sid. They decide to break the rules and they allow Sid to see that they can move on their own. Woody even speaks to him through his voice box, telling him that his toys are sick of being tortured, then with his own voice tells him (in a sinister way) to play nice. This freaks Sid out and he runs into the house screaming, where his sister frightens him with her new doll Sally (a possible replacement for her original doll Janie, which was destroyed by Sid).

Now freed from Sid, Woody and Buzz try to catch Andy's moving van just as it is pulling away from the house. After saying farewell to the Mutant Toys, a harrowing chase follows, with Scud chasing them and Andy's toys not helping, since they still think that Woody intentionally got rid of Buzz. Luckily, Woody and Buzz get rid of Scud and the other toys, realizing their mistake, finally see that Woody was telling the truth and try to help them get in, but fail when RC's batteries run out (becoming depleted).

Eventually, with the help of RC, Andy's remote control car, and strategic use of Sid's rocket, Woody and Buzz return to Andy, whose mom assumes they were in the car all along.

At Christmas, we see a scene similar to the birthday party, with the toys less worried about the new ones. Mr. Potato Head is pleased to find out that Molly has been given a new Mrs. Potato Head. When discussing being replaced by a new toy (like Woody was almost replaced by Buzz), Woody poses the question to Buzz, "What could Andy possibly get that is worse than you?" The answer comes in the form of Andy's first present, a puppy (which makes Woody and Buzz feel quite uneasy).

## Cast

* Tom Hanks as Woody
* Tim Allen as Buzz Lightyear
* Don Rickles as Mr. Potato Head
* Jim Varney as Slinky Dog
* Wallace Shawn as Rex
* John Ratzenberger as Hamm
* Annie Potts as Bo Peep
* John Morris as Andy Davis
* Erik von Detten as Sid Phillips
* R. Lee Ermey as Sarge
* Laurie Metcalf as Andy's Mom
* Sarah Freeman as Hannah Phillips
* Penn Jillette as TV announcer