Hello everyone, and welcome to a new review, one that I’m sure many of you are curious about. That’s right I am talking Pixar’s latest film, and last sequel for awhile, Toy Story 4. Now I’ve said before in the past that I am a huge fan of the studio, and I am always excited to see what they do next. But when it came to this film, I was unusually unsure on how to feel about it. I mean Toy Story 3 ended things off perfectly, and didn’t really leave anything that could be continued in another installment. Also Making a fourth one would risk the hate of not being as perfect as the other three, and add in all of the production troubles, and script rewrites going on behind the scenes, and well its safe to say the skepticism for this film was not fully unwarranted. But as release kept getting closer, and more marketing for the film appeared, I became a little more optimistic that this would be a worthy continuation of the series, and after seeing the film I can say that there is a very good reason why the story continues after three.
After a prologue that shows what happened to Bo Peep in between the events of Toy Story 2 and Toy Story 3, we are reacquainted with old friends 5 years after that third installment. Woody has been enjoying being Bonnie’s favorite toy, until she starts leaving him in the closet more, and more every week as he struggles to accept the fact that he may not be Bonnie’s favorite toy anymore. Things start to change for Bonnie when she is nervous about her first day of Kindergarden, and so hearing this Woody decides he has to be there for her, and sneaks into her backpack to come along. When there he gets Bonnie some things to make her happy which results in her literally making a friend, named Forky, a spork with a bunch of arts, and crafts on it, who comes to life. Seeing that this new friend of Bonnie’s is what means the most to her at the moment, Woody sees it as his duty to protect Forky, and teach him a thing or two on how important it is to be a toy. That is easier said than done though, as Forky refuses to believe he is anything but trash meant to be thrown away which makes Woody’s job even harder than it already is. But during a road trip Bonnie, and her parents decide to take, Woody, and Forky end up getting lost, and find themselves having to catch up with the RV at a nearby carnival. When they finally get there however Woody notices that his long lost love Bo, may be in the antique shop, but instead they run into a seemingly friendly doll named Gabby Gabby, who eventually reveals that she wants Woody for her own reasons. He manages to escape, but ends up leaving Forky in the process meaning he has to rescue him. While on this mission he does run into Bo Peep who agrees to help him, while also teach him a few things on being a lost toy, which then leads him to wonder what other ways could toys live a happy life. Meanwhile Buzz also goes off on his adventure to find Woody and runs into carnival toys Ducky, and Bunny who agree to help out. But can the gang get back Forky, and get back to Bonnie on time, and as Woody starts to think more, and more about his purpose in life, will he decide what will be the best path for him to take?
You’re probably wondering, how the heck are they going to continue this story in a meaningful way after how three ended? Well it does that by asking a simple question, what would happen if not everyone go their happy ending? This movie really takes the time to focus on Woody’s existential dilemma, and whether or not he has really found his place in life, and is really a Woody solo movie as most of the other franchise favorites are comparatively sidelined, but that’s just because they already are satisfied with their lives. Its this type of character development that justifies this movie, and gives the franchise a reason to continue, while also making Woody into even more of a complex character than he already was. His journey of deciding whether he wants to live life as a toy to make a child happy, or as a lost toy being free with not an individual child, but still making kids happy, is what really makes this movie much more than just some shameless cash grab, and is executed beautifully. These films have always had little messages like this, so its nice to see Pixar still incorporating that here. Now for those of you worried that it negates Toy Story 3’s ending, don’t worry because this feels like a natural extension of the story, and I feel that both of these films work as satisfying end points, although this one does leave the door for any future installments with some new friends. Yes the movie does contain all of the emotion you would expect from a Pixar movie, and yes there are many moments that do hit hard, with some of them being quite surprising. The way in which this movie explores new concepts to this universe like how do carnival toys, or antique toys live in this universe, or what happens if something inanimate becomes a toy like Forky is really interesting, and presents a lot of cool ideas. I would also say that this is probably the funniest Toy Story movie yet, since there are so many clever, and hilarious jokes both that children, and adults will enjoy (my personal favorites are plush rush, and Buttercup’s vendetta against Bonnie’s dad though there are plenty more that I loved). Another thing that shocked me was the use of horror movie imagery used in certain locations like the antique shop since not only is it legitimately creepy, but also unsettingly claustrophobic, and I loved the heck out of it.
This film also marks the directorial debut of Josh Cooley who has worked on a number of Pixar films in the past, and what a hell of a debut this is. They way scenes are shot, staged, and lit is absolutely stunning, and probably some of the best directing I’ve seen for a Pixar film, its that good, and I cannot wait to see what Cooley has up his sleeve if he ever gets to do an original project. Animation wise of course the film is absolutely beautiful to look at, and does show that we have come a long way from the original Toy Story in 1995 (still a classic, but some certain visual aspects don’t hold up that well). Yes I do have problems when it comes to animation trying to mimic reality too much as really animation is supposed to do things that cannot be done in live action (take Spider-Verse for example), but somehow it works for Pixar mainly because they have enough fantastical elements in their films to warrant using animation, and that applies here as well. Still this movie almost looked real at times, like in the opening prologue in the rain, you could could almost believe it was done in live action. This especially applies to the backgrounds which are extremely detailed like the antique shop (Look out for many Pixar easter eggs in there), or the woods where Woody, and Forky get lost. The character designs, movements are also a lot of fun as the new ones capture what type of toy they are extremely well like Ducky, and Bunny as carnival plushies, Duke Caboom as one of those classic action figures, or Gabby Gabby as an old antique doll. There are also some really fun, and even intense actions scenes that take advantage of the small scale carnival/antique shop setting. Randy Newman also returns to write the scores, and songs of the film like old favorites like “You’ve Got A Friend in Me”, and even a new one called “I Can’t Let You Throw Yourself Away” which plays during one of the film’s funniest sequences.
Tom Hanks returns to voice Woody, and since its Tom Hanks, I’m sure he gave a pretty great performance. He has always nailed this character who has been where the heart of the series has been, capturing both Woody’s comedic, over the top moments, and his more quietly dramatic, and heartfelt moments with a great ease. In fact he delivers some of his best dramatic performances with these films, as does Tim Allen who also does an exceptional job at voicing Buzz Lightyear. While its mainly Woody’s story being told, Buzz still gets some nice moments with Woody, and has an amusing recurring joke concerning his “inner voice”. Annie Potts also does a fantastic job as Bo-Peep, who is actually a character in this film and is a lot more active this time around as someone who knows a thing or two about knowing how to survive without a child. She also has a very nice relationship with Woody, and her sheep were amusing as well. Like I said before, the rest of the gang like Joan Cusack as Jessie don’t get much to do but that mainly because they already got what they wanted in three, but they still fit their roles well (also rest in peace to Don Rickles who originally voiced Mr. Potato Head). As for the new characters well they all steal the show, and each get plenty of moments to shine. Forky was a character that easily could have been annoying, but thanks to Tony Hale’s performance, and the writing I really loved what was done with him as he was very funny, and sweet. Christina Hendricks as Gabby Gabby is probably the best Toy Story villain yet as her arc was both very compelling, and even surprising at times (Oh, and who can forget those very creepy ventriloquist dummies who work for her). Ally Maki as Bo’s Jiminy Cricket like partner, Officer Giggle McDimmples is very amusing, and Key & Peele as carnival prizes Ducky, and Bunny have what is probably the funniest long running joke in the film (of which there are a lot). Oh, and how could I forget Canadian daredevil action figure, Duke Caboom, voiced by the one, and only Keanu Reeves who is just as awesome as you would imagine by just reading that description.
Welp, I’m never doubting Pixar ever again. I cannot believe I’m saying this but Toy Story 4 is a terrific fourth installment in a terrific series, that absolutely justifies itself. It works on so many levels and continues the studio’s current streak of quality films that everyone can watch. This truly is the end of an era for them, and I cannot wait to see what brand new original ideas they come up with in this post-Lasseter era. What more can I say for this movie its hilarious, its smart, its touching, its clever, its sometimes creepy, and it soars to Infinity and Beyond!!
Rating: A+
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