'Toy Story' Reaches for Infinity...And Beyond
 
Old toys never die. They just become more loved.
And so, apparently, do movie franchises about toys. “Toy Story 3” may start out slowly, but it builds to a powerhouse ending that is bound to leave you emotionally fulfilled. Don’t be surprised to hear discreet sniffles throughout the audience.
It has been 11 years since the last “Toy Story” movie, and 15 since the first one, so presumably the clever folks at Pixar have been patiently waiting until they found the right script for “Toy Story 3.” Either that, or they felt no compelling need to make another sequel after the second movie, which very well may be the case.
But for the sake of this review, let’s go with the looking-for-the-right-script scenario. Because they sure found one in the screenplay written by Michael Arndt. Arndt, whose previous movie was the superlative “Little Miss Sunshine,” has crafted a remarkably complex story, for a children’s movie. Using the well-established and frankly marvelous characters, he builds from a drama to an all-out action film and back again to a heart-grabbing drama.
How effective is the action? In one screening, a man in the next row let out a loud naughty word when a villain unexpectedly appeared, blocking the way of the brave heroes. That’s a grown man upset enough to use an adult word in a movie for children — about toys. The villain in question is pink and plush and kind of cuddly.
The story isn’t exactly new, but Arndt tells it (eventually) with a ton of heart. Andy, the animated boy from the first two movies, has finally aged and is ready to go to college. Now that he is almost a man, he has put away childish things, including his once-beloved toys. After an uninteresting mix-up, most of the toys wind up at a daycare center. There they find plenty of children to play with them, which in this film’s universe is a toy’s fondest desire, but they still generally feel that they have been abandoned by Andy.
After a sluggish first act, it is at the daycare center that the movie kicks into high gear. Arndt has created a wonderfully unexpected (but completely logical) situations for the toys. He is nimbly assisted by director Lee Unkrich, whose creative handling of the story never ceases to enliven the film. Frankly, the picture could stand a little less creativity — there are times when Unkrich’s direction is a bit too pleased with itself, such as when it switches needlessly to slow motion for a little unnecessary cinematic oomph.
And honestly, the trick of ending a happy fantasy sequence with the sound of a record needle sliding across grooves really needs to end now. Not only have the children in the audience never heard a record needle in their lives, neither have some of their parents.
All the old voice actors are back with their excellent work, from Tom Hanks as Sheriff Woody and Tim Allen as the slightly dim Buzz Lightyear to Joan Cusack as the cowgirl Jessie and Wallace Shawn as the eternally optimistic dinosaur Rex. A few new actors join the mix this time, most notably Ned Beatty as a kindly, avuncular bear. Fans of animation will also be pleased to note that the voice of Barbie, Jodi Benson, was once the voice of Ariel, the Little Mermaid.
The jokes aren’t nearly as funny in this movie as before, and the story may scare smaller children. Then again, the smaller children probably also won’t be able to read the ill-advised subtitles — they’re part of a joke that is amusing once and then goes on too long.
But “Toy Story 3” ends on such a stellar high note that its minor flaws are immediately forgotten. Like a dutiful and favored old toy, this film is impossible not to love.
-- Dan Neman, former movie critic for the Richmond Times-Dispatch, reviews movies every week here at www.TheBoomerMagazine.com. He also writes the “Silver Screen with Dan Neman” column in each issue of Boomer magazine.
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