Toy Story 3 (2010)

Toy Story 3 opens with cowboy Woody (voiced by Tom Hanks) riding up to save the day from the villainous Potato Heads (Don Rickles and Estelle Harris) who have hijacked a train full of orphan Treasure Trolls. Just when it seems the tubers, a slinky dog (Blake Clarke), and a diabolical piggy bank (John Ratzenberger) have outsmarted Woody, cowgirl Jessie (Joan Cusack), spaceman Buzz Lightyear (Tim Allen), and Rex the dinosaur (Wallace Shawn) come to his aid. Complete with lasers, force fields and a barrel of monkeys, it’s a scene worthy of any summer action blockbuster, and it’s all created by the imagination of a young Andy (John Morris).

Andy is all grown up now and headed off to college in a few days. The toys haven’t been played with in years and are uncertain if their fate is to be thrown away, donated, or put up in the attic (the best option of the three). A mistake in Andy’s packing technique gets them carted off in a donation box to Sunnyside Day Care Center, along with Andy’s sister’s Barbie (Jodi Benson). Ruled over by a cuddly strawberry-scented bear named Lotso Huggin (Ned Beatty), day care seems like a wonderland where all toys are played with and they never have to worry about their kids outgrowing them because there’s always a new bunch waiting in the wings. Barbie even meets her match in Ken (Michael Keaton) and moves into a dream house. But things, especially Lotso, aren’t what they seem, and the dream quickly becomes a nightmare from which Andy’s toys are hell-bent on escaping.

The cartoon action-adventure, as written by Michael Arndt and directed by Lee Unkrich, is alternately thrilling and touching. It’s executed with such aplomb that throughout Toy Story 3, I had to keep reminding myself that I was watching animated toys. But it’s not just because the animation was so detailed. It absolutely was–from the well edited and carefully lit action sequences to the care tag on Lotso’s bum and Barbie’s stiff bent-arm stance. The forget-yourself magic was in the truly moving story.

Sure, our main characters are made of plastic and stuffing but they’ve also got genuine heart. The toys’ plight to be played with and loved is one that anyone can relate to, regardless of age. As in this summer’s other final installment of a groundbreaking animated film, these characters are dealing with what happens when they’ve outlived their original usefulness.

Toy Story 3 succeeds where Shrek Forever After fails by staying true to the spirit of its original characters. Instead of growing listless in middle age, Woody, Buzz and the gang are as adventurous, loyal, and loveable as ever. Likewise, Pixar’s animation seems as fresh and innovative as it did when the studio released its first film, the original Toy Story, in 1995. The toys and the technical team at Pixar are proof positive that imagination can never die.

The film knows it’s a kid’s movie and sticks with that formula. There are plenty of moments of hilarity that will entertain parents as much as their kids (I enjoyed many a hearty belly laugh), but it never feels like pandering or audience chasing. That’s thanks, in part, to the voice actors who all do a terrific job. From Hanks with his plucky, tireless optimism to Beatty and his evil-but-vulnerable duplicity, it all feels more real than you’d expect. Keaton has an especially good time playing the 1970s groovy, airheaded Ken, and he’s one of the elements adults will especially appreciate.

I also appreciate that the film doesn’t rely too heavily on your knowledge of things past. Even if you (or your kids) have never seen the first two installments of the series, Toy Story 3 will still make an enchanting first impression.

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