After an eleven-year wait that seemed to stretch “beyond infinity”, the final instalment of the Toy Story franchise released worldwide in summer 2010 and undoubtedly created a “buzz” among children and adults alike. With the modern addition of a 3D viewing, it is no surprise that Toy Story 3 is currently the highest-grossing film of 2010 in USA and Canada.
The Plot
The original toys return for a third adventure when their beloved owner Andy (John Morris), now seventeen years old, prepares to leave home for College. As he bids farewell to his childhood, he packs all of the toys – with the exception of Woody (Tom Hanks) – and intends to store them in his family attic.
Their lives turn kaleidoscopic as Buzz (Tim Allen), Jessie (Joan Cusack) and the rest of the team find themselves on an epic journey to return home after Andy’s mother inadvertently leaves them on the kerb to be collected as waste. Woody, not content with being separated from his friends, slips out of his box and attempts to rescue them from their doom, only to end up altogether at a day-care centre as donations.
While the new surroundings appear colourful and welcoming at first, the group become increasingly homesick as the other toys at the centre headed by “Lotso” (Ned Beatty) – an enemy in a warm, huggable disguise – manipulate and entrap Andy’s toys as prisoners. A crestfallen Woody leaps to his greatest endeavours to outsmart the treacherous Lotso and thus successfully take the companions back home.
The Thoughts
Admittedly I am not an eager fan of animated films, however those bearing the ownership name of Walt Disney are certified exceptions. Throwing out the original VHS tapes of the classics from our household was indeed sorrowful, only until they were replaced with newly restored, updated DVD versions which I feel have still managed to capture the “magic” within the discs.
Although the Toy Story franchise may not be considered as one of the timeless Disney “classics”, it certainly attains the sheer entertainment factor along with convincing, relatable characters which audiences of all ages and backgrounds grow to admire. Working with Pixar, the CGI animation is as impressive as anticipated, yet effectively retains its “childlike” imagery with Disney’s typically exaggerated features, excellent voice-overs and a remarkable range of bold, vivid colours.
I chose to watch the film in 2D because I did not want the (sometimes irritating) visual effect of the new craze of 3D cinema to distract me from what I believed was going to be a superb storyline. I could not agree with the thought of a highly-anticipated Disney animation in 3D, so I listened to my own “Jiminy Cricket” and settled down to watch it in its original format.
The first five minutes were slightly confusing, nevertheless when the camera revealed it as a memoir of a young Andy playing with the toys, I considered it as an appreciative and very effective opening; particularly because that memory acts as the main motive of the toys’ characters throughout the film.
The personification of the toys was unquestionably the height of the film: from the start to the very end. This was a prime example of Disney’s clever manipulation of incorporating “real-life” themes and situations in to each of their motion pictures – one of the traits that makes them appealing to adults as well as children. Inside the theatre l I couldn’t help but notice the infants clapping and giggling on sight of the bright colours, dramatic sounds and inflated facial expressions; while the young adults and parents smirked, laughed out loud and even cried at the occasional innuendo and poignant human emotions portrayed throughout the whole 103 minutes.
Having heard that many adult viewers had wept, sobbed (including twenty-something-year-old males), or felt sincerely moved during Toy Story 3, before I had even watched it myself, I subconsciously remained on the edge of my seat, anticipating a battle with my sentiments but sneaked a few sheets of Kleenex in my pocket, should I surrender. Soon enough my eyes found themselves shamelessly competing with the Niagara Falls; particularly during the infamous ‘furnace’ scene, where the consistent notions of family, loyalty, courage and acceptance reached their breathtaking climax.
I was creeping towards the shocking realisation that it was the dramatic end of the lovable toys, but I owed my sigh of relief to director Lee Unkrich who saved me from such sadness. I felt my heart strings being “toyed” with as I struggled to convince myself it was no more than a tale of fiction and the characters were mere productions of CGI, yet the emotions that the story had stimulated were satisfyingly more potent than I had expected. The ending I felt was a suitable one – not quite a tale where everyone “lived happily ever after”, but it reflected the general message of progression and acceptance, almost as if it was a lesson. Reminiscing about it even now stirs many different emotions and thoughts, as I admit defeat to Disney who have yet again created a masterpiece.
The Film Buzz Rating: 
(8.5/10)
UK Release Date: 19th July 2010
Director: Lee Unkrich
Writer’s: Lee Unkrich, Andrew Stanton, John Lasseter (screenplay), Michael Arndt (story)
