Review: Toy Story 3

Toy Story 3 / Disney-Pixar / Rated G / 103 min. / Dir. by Lee Unkrich

Trilogies are a tough thing. To the best of my recollection, there have only been three that I found wholly satisfying: "The Lord of the Rings" films, the original "Star Wars" trilogy and the "Bourne" movies. I find it interesting to note that two of these are based on book series and the other based on a pre-planned story arc. Other film trilogies that are born more out of monetary greed than solid story telling almost always slip up. Either the second veers way off course and the third is used as a type of apology ("Back to the Future", "Indiana Jones") or the 2nd is so fantastically successful that the makers nervously mishandle the third ("X-Men", "Spider-Man"). There are other trilogies that I enjoy, such as "Pirates of the Caribbean" or the "Ocean's 11" movies, but they're still inconsistent.

All of which makes Disney/Pixar's "Toy Story 3" all the greater a miracle. In interviews, director Lee Unkrich has stated that he used "The Lord of the Rings" as a template to how to handle a third film. Basically that, even though the original wasn't conceived as the beginning of a trilogy, the third film needed to feel as if it had been. As if the characters were destined to this conclusion of their character arc from the beginning. And darned if he didn't do it. "Toy Story 3" is everything the original films were: bright, funny, entertaining....but it adds a layer of depth to the proceedings. Where the first two films were largely parables about abandonment and displacement, this one deals with betrayal, death and the power of family, all in a hilariously vibrant story.

The film begins with a fantastically ridiculous adventure involving all of the toys from Andy's room. It is, naturally, another of Andy's playtime fantasies, only this time we're allowed to see the action the way Andy does, with explosions and train crashes and giant flying pigs.

Unfortunately, we find out quickly that this is a flashback. Andy is now a teenager getting ready for college and the toys haven't actually been played with for years. However, they're still fiercely loyal to their owner and desperately hoping to be taken with him when he leaves. When he decides to take Woody (Tom Hanks) and put the rest in the attic, the toys seem content with their fates. After all, the attic is better than the dump.

However, through a series of mishaps, all of the toys, including Woody and Buzz (Tim Allen) end up being donated to Sunnyside Day Care. Initially this seems to be a sort of toy Nirvana, a place where they'll always be cared for and never be left behind, because once the kids grow up, new ones take their place. They meet new friends such as Lotso Huggin' Bear (Ned Beatty), a kindly stuffed teddy bear who smells like strawberries and talks in a lazy drawl and Ken (Michael Keaton), Barbie's other half who's even more of a fashion plate than she is.

As time passes, however, the toys begin to see the daycare for what it is, a prison for toys, and what started as an adequately entertaining kids flick turns into a hilarious send up of every prison break movie ever made. I won't divulge the plot from this point on because the surprises come fast and furious and the final act is to be seen with fresh eyes.

The voice acting is uniformly excellent, but it's Keaton's Ken that steals the show. A fashion-obsessed, ascot-wearing doll who insists he's not a girl's toy even as he writes letters with sparkle gel pens and heart-laced margins, Ken is hilarious (make sure you stay through the first half of the credits to find out the ultimate fates of Ken and his best-girl, Barbie).

It's such a tribute to the director, the screenwriter ("Little Miss Sunshine" scribe Michael Arndt) and the magic-makers at Pixar that such thought went into every aspect of this film. In my opinion, the best films are ones that manage to entertain so fully that the depth of the story sort of sneaks up on you. This is definitely the case with "Toy Story 3". I knew that it was Pixar and the deep levels of story telling would be there, but there was a moment towards the end that was surprisingly emotional. Without giving anything away, it's the type of moment you would expect in a powerful war movie or disaster film, but not in a rollicking animated adventure. The audience laughed, cried and applauded enthusiastically as the credits rolled.

Final analysis - Pixar's track-record is still untarnished. "Toy Story 3" is supremely entertaining and an ideal final chapter for these beloved characters.

My final grade for "Toy Story 3" - A

One note: This is, without question, the darkest of the "Toy Story" films. I'm not talking inappropriate darkness, but there are moments in this film that are legitimately scary, particularly for very young children. In fact, if the same situations were portrayed with human characters instead of toys, I think it would have easily been rated PG. If you have toddlers, maybe wait for the home video, but if your kids are over 3 or 4, they should be fine.