As I said when I looked at another belated Pixar instalment,
that company’s not exactly the guarantee of pedigree it used to be. The
aforementioned Incredibles II was decent, but definitely not as memorable as the first
one, despite a fifteen year gap—and while there have been successes here and
there, I did raise an eyebrow when, nearly a decade after the conclusion of its
trilogy, Pixar returned to the series that put it on the map.
1995’s Toy Story was a landmark—propelling CG animation into
the forefront, while wisely using the medium to its strength by making it about
things that actually look plastic, and telling a simple but well-written story
of action figures, psychotic kids, and high explosives. 1999’s Toy Story 2 was
arguably even better, touching on all the questions of obsolescence that come with
these plastic products, and it all paid off with 2010’s Toy Story 3. Here, it
actually dealt with the animated playthings seeing their owner move away, and
for those that grew up on the original, the climax was an absolute emotional maelstrom that left many nineties kids insisting something was in their eyes.
And so, with story and themes so neatly tied up, I must admit, I
was kind of cynical and skeptical when they came back to it with a fourth part--what the hell more was there to do, besides grab some extra box office cash? And you know what? This turns
out to be Pixar’s best film that they’ve made in recent times, that I’ve
seen anyway.
Tom Hanks returns as Woody, the fifties cowboy figure—who
here hasn’t adjusted well to his new life with Bonnie, the little girl that
inherited the toys at the end of the last film. Not the happiest of outcomes given
the value he had to his last one, but considering the attention span of six
year olds, all too realistic. Nevertheless, he does his best to perform the
same ‘duties’ of being around for her, down to picking up a toy of her own
creation—a sentient spork (er, as you do), voiced by Tony Hale. Forky, as he
becomes known, has a bit of an existential confusion, and after throwing
himself out of a moving RV truck, sets off what seems like another whimsical
little adventure, like what you might see on a TV special.
It gets deeper than that, fortunately. Before long, Woody’s
meeting old shepherdess figurine friend Bo (Annie Potts), not seen since the second film, who
has a hell of a makeover as a protector of toys in a moving carnival. The
original cast besides Woody and Tim Allen’s Buzz Lightyear are somewhat
sidelined (and Buzz is back to being a bit of a blockhead again for some
reason), but the new additions are surprisingly enjoyable. Jordan Peele and Keegan-Michael Key appear as a pair of manic plushies, and hell, even Keanu Reeves appears
playing a klutz for once—an eighties Canadian action figure, Duke
Caboom. These new characters all get decent characterization and their own
little arcs, and fit in nicely. Forky isn’t as developed as the teasers may
have suggested, but he plays his part better than I was expecting from those.
There’s a ‘villain’ of sorts, but fortunately, it doesn’t
fall into the same setup as the last two, which did sort of repetitively mimic
the other in that regard. I guess one drawback is that for most of the film,
the stakes and the drama definitely don’t feel as high or poignant as in the
previous trilogy—it’s somewhat lighter, for good and for ill. Don’t expect the
same punch as 2 or 3…until the climax there is, which becomes a hell of an rollercoaster of feelings. I must admit, I started maybe getting just a few
onions stuck near my eyes.
The ending might not sit right with everyone, but it gives
the movie purpose as an epilogue to the series as a whole, and drives all the
overarching themes of purpose and past to a solid, defining conclusion. That
sort of thing is what made Pixar so damn great back in the day, and I’m glad to see
they’ve still got it. There’s humor, there’s charm—I might not put this movie
alongside the first three, but those are very tough pedestals to reach, and it
still proves a worthy companion to them all.
That being said, let’s just say this better be the proper
ending, no kidding around, for realsies this time. Otherwise, I wouldn’t envy
the writing room for scratching their scalps off in desperation next time.
Ultimately, Toy Story 4 is a pleasant surprise that overcame
my eyerolls at the very idea, and if you were as skeptical as I was, give it a
chance. Other animated series may run themselves into the ground, but this
time, Pixar managed to cap off an already solid trilogy the best they could—where
others keeled over, they fall, with style.
See you, polyester cowboy.
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