You've Got a Friend in Me...

"The toys are back in town."

Disney definitely knows how to promote a new film. Especially a Disney/Pixar collaboration and frankly, why shouldn't they? All seven of Disney/Pixar films have been a commercial success to this point, why should Toy Story 3 be any different? Well, it isn't. It was everything I imagined and more after an eleven year absence.

Andy is all grown-up and he moves past his toys. The movie opens with all of them (even Woody and Buzz) tossed in a toy box, forgotten for who knows how long. Desperate just to be held, the toys try to get Andy's attention by hiding his cell phone in the toy box and calling it. Unfortunately it doesn't entirely work.

Andy's mom strolls in and pops the statement most college students hate to hear: "It's time to pack up your room!" Faced with a box full of toys and his younger sister's eagerness to takeover his room, he's left with the options of: attic, trash/donations, college. To keep Molly occupied, their mom tells her to donate some more of her toys to the ironically named Sunnyside Daycare Center, and pop! in goes Barbie as Molly is now more focused on MP3 players.
Simply put, a mix-up happens and the toys all wind-up at the daycare center where they are forced to be with the crazy toddlers who abuse toys. Many great and (some) evil toys and new characters are introduced at this point in the film - most of which are just as charming as the usual suspects. As a devoted fan of Hamm, I was excited that he was still around and to see a sequence featuring Evil Dr. Porkchop. However, it's Mrs. Potatohead that COMPLETELY steals the movie, missing her eye for the majority of the film.


The end of the movie is absolutely heartbreaking. I won't give anything away, but be prepared for some tissues. Almost everyone I know, myself included and college-aged boys, cried for the last twenty minutes or so of the movie.

This movie is Disney/Pixar at its finest. Was this my favorite movie in the franchise? No. However, they did fall as follows:

1. Toy Story
2. Toy Story 3
3. Toy Story 2

I can't believe that this trilogy was almost the first for all three films to have a 100% Fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes. I also fully support petitions against the three (just THREE) critics that gave the film less than positive reviews, mostly because I don't feel that the second installment was nearly as good as the third. I would definitely flip flop these scores - however, Toy Story 3 is still boasting a 98% Fresh rating, which is outstanding for a film on the site.

This movie was everything that I wanted and even more after waiting eleven years, which was great. The time off and away from Andy's toys really seemed to go a long way and it shows in the quality of the film. I laughed, I cried and I loved. This wasn't as sad as a three-minute montage of "when somebody loved me," but in a new way. Buzz has some glitches and it's hilarious. Hamm and Mr. Potatohead are sarcastic. The humor in this movie (as in the previous two) was very smart; something you can only appreciate once you get older as my mom told me when I was little and as I see now. On that note, it was great to see the wide range of people in the theater. There were little kids there that were introduced to these characters on the big screen for the very first time and then there were people my age, in their early twenties, that were introduced to these characters eleven years ago, catching up with old friends on-screen and off.

That's what the movie felt like. It felt like I was catching up with old friends again. It was familiar and it didn't disappoint. The commercials are not lying when they say, "you want all movies to be this good." I saw the film in 3D, but I don't think that you HAVE to see the film in 3D to appreciate it (as the best of movies seem to work).

It had been so long since I'd seen a Disney/Pixar film in theaters that I forgot about the Pixar shorts in the beginning. There was a very beautiful one called Day & Night before Toy Story 3 and it was just as charming as the feature film. It was visually stunning and really told a story without using any words. I really hope it's released with the DVD because I'd like to own it.

Overall, I give Toy Story 3 an A rating. It's not an A+ like the first installment (that was so original and unique), but it was a great film that I would pay $9 to see again in theaters. Definitely go check it out if you're on the fence. At the very least you'll get some laughs and some "awwe" moments out of it. :)

"You've Got a Friend in Me" by Randy Newman; 1995