The Toy Story trilogy (1995-2010)

Yesterday, I finally had the chance to witness the third, and hopefully final act of Pixar's epic masterwork, the Toy Story trilogy. I say finally, because I cannot believe that I wasn't there on opening day. My first memory of a film was Toy Story. My first memory of a movie theater was Toy Story 2. The series is one of the films, along with Rashomon, Seven Samurai, Wild Strawberries, Vertigo, The Wizard of Oz, The Maltese Falcon, Pulp Fiction, and 8 1/2 that I hold responsible for my love of cinema. These are not my absolute favorite films of all time, nor would it be my ballot for the sight and sound poll, but they are the ones that made me grow as a cinephile. I would like to offer up my spoiler-ridden thoughts on the three films.

Toy Story: Toy Story is about people growing up, and coming to terms with who they are. The two leads have an idea of who they are, and are heartbroken when they come to be mistaken. The first is Woody, the favorite toy and their leader. As the favorite toy of owner Andy, he commands the respect and admiration of the other toys. Then, Andy gets Buzz, an electronic toy with wings and a laser-light. He immediately impresses the group of toys, taking attention from Woody. What follows is a montage of Buzz Lightyear memorabilia replace the space formerly held by Woody-based decor. It is symbolic, of the shift in the early '60s, from a fascination with our history, the western to our future, space exploration. Woody's jealousy over his apparent aging leads to an attempt to hurt Buzz, which turns the crowd against him. He is no longer the favorite toy, and he thinks he can change that. Buzz, the new favorite toy, is not happy about his status in the toy world. In fact, he is not even aware of it. It is his firm beief that he is a space ranger from Star Command, who's job it is to battle and defeat the Evil Emporer Zurg, sworn enemy of the galactic alliance. Then, he happens upon a commercial for the Buzz Lightyear action figure. His revelation represents the intellectual journey of a child. He is not a space ranger, just as there is no Santa Claus. At this point, the two bond over their inferiority complexes and learn to help each other. In Woody's abscence, Andy renews his love for Woody who becomes equal to Buzz in power. It could be seen by some as a cop-out on the part of the creators. They would be incorrect. In the movie world, characters should be rewarded for their emotional growth. Woody goes through hell, the inferno of Sid Phillips' playtime, not to mention the temporary loss of his friends and his world of favoritism coming to an end. He deserves a break.

Toy Story 2: In the beginning of the first installment, Buzz only knew of his mythology, but had no knowledge of being a toy. Woody, on the other hand, knew that he was a toy, but had no familiarity with his back-story. Here, he gets acquainted with the story of Sherrif Woody. But first, we get to see how the relationship of Buzz and Woody has changed. In the beginning, Woody was an elderly statesman going through a mid-life crisis, and Buzz was practically a child, ignorant of who he really was. Now, they have become equals, friends, brothers. Which brings me to to the main theme of the story, family. Woody is kidnapped by Al, proprieter of Al's Toy Barn, and ripped away from his family of Andy, Buzz, Hamm, Mr. Potatoe Head, Hamm, and Rex, among others. There, at Al's home, he meets another family, the family created for him of Jessie, Bullseye, and of course, Stinky Pete the Prospector. The end of the union of these two as Andy's toys (with the exception of Stinky Pete) represents a marriage of the two families.

Toy Story 3: This fable could only have come after 11 years. It is aware of the nostalgia of the audience and it preys upon it. As Andy prepares for college, he comes across his long-forgotten toys. It is safe to say that many of the people in the seats in the theaters have not watched either Toy Story or Toy Story 2 in a long while with the recent Pixar "renaissance" of sorts in the last three films (not to say that they are better, but definately stranger and more acclaimed). The passionate hand of John Lasseter was replaced by younger Lee Unkrich, needed for a film that recognizes nostalgia and tells us all to move on. Tropes and traditions from the first two (i.e. moving between places under cones or soda bottles, and references to classic blockbusters) and instead shows that Pixar and the toys have grown along with the audience. Despite a more blockbuster-esque opening sequence, the frequent Lucas/Spielberg references are replaced by references to films we all watch when we get older. Pixar's themes have grown, and their characters have grown much more. They are not just adults, but they are old. Many of them have been thrown out (death?). Those who remain are accidentally put in their retirement home, the Sunnyside Daycare Center. Lots-O'-Huggin' Bear and Ken, two of the villains are Kaspar Gutman and Joel Cairo straight out of The Maltese Falcon, the evil, charismatic fat man, and is extremely effeminate inferior. Lots-O'-Huggin' Bear is also a very Steinbeckian character in his history with Daisy, Big Baby and Chuckles the clown; a back-story full of lies and familial betrayal. They need to escape from the day care run by the fat man and his evil strwberry scent. Like the first installment, we go through hell. All we want is a little security for these toys, and Mr. Unkrich and the Pixar gang grant us that in the form of young Bonnie. Just like Lasseter to Unkrich, Andy has passed on the baton.

Final Thoughts: As a three-part epic, I would argue for Toy Story as the great magnum opus of feature-length animated storytelling.