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Written by Stephen Bowron
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29 07 2010 |
.jpg "Image") Directed by: Lee Unrich
Written by: Michael Arndt
It's extremely rare for anyone to be excited about sequels these days. We're sick and tired of the same old formulas playing out through tedious and repetitive films; watching the unchanging characters going through the same motions; and weak narratives being somewhat of a chore to sit through let alone enjoy. But once in a blue moon there is the odd exception for a brilliant continuation of a franchise, an odd exception like ‘Toy Story 3' that excels at character development and exciting narratives.
But just in case there is a single person on this Earth who could ever
think that another ‘Toy Story' film is a bad thing, let me persuade you
otherwise.
In this final chapter of the saga our favourite band of toys confront
their greatest fear, as their beloved owner Andy is all grown up and
heading for University. So now our group face the awful truth that they
have to move on from their home and family as they are taken to the
supposed toy haven: Sunnyside Day-care.
Considering the nature of the ‘Toy Story' franchise being primarily
aimed at children, this final instalment displays fantastic adult
themes and powerful development, creating the most relatable storyline
for parents' enjoyment to-date with a Pixar film. Inspired by the
film-maker's own children going to university, our favourite toys take
the place of parents, who go through the loss of their loved one
leaving to start their own life without them. With such a carefully
tender, yet intricate script by Michael Arndt (‘Little Miss Sunshine')
the blend between childish antics and a passionate plot is balanced in
a no-less-than-perfect fashion, allowing for all 98 minutes of the film
to receive every audience member's undivided attention.
Whilst children's films typically present family strong and moralistic
themes, you cannot help but feel that ‘Toy Story 3' is giving its
viewers nothing short of the most dramatic portrayal of family themes
that cinema has seen, particularly for a children's film. From the
desperate attempts the toys make to simply get Andy to play with them
to epic sequences where our heroes come to terms with their loss of
family and even their very mortality, you can easily sense the colossal
stakes that are present that were not through the previous films as our
characters cross into their own proverbial adulthood.
The computer generated imagery of Pixar has also progressed so well,
that in the 15 year gap between the first and the most recent ‘Toy
Story', the entire design and very feel of the film's world has become
so unbelievably real that it sets the tone at a completely new level to
the others. Unlike its predecessors, you do not feel like you're
watching a cartoon - you are completely immersed in this intensely real
world, which convinces you even more into believing the utterly
lifelike nature of the diverse, engaging toys and the exploits they get
into.
With such beautiful imagery, it's almost forgettable that the voices
provided for our characters aren't actually physically attached to the
folks we see on-screen. The voice actors, every single one of them
deserve incredible praise for their off-screen talent. Whilst we never
see them, their voices provide the very soul that goes hand-in-hand
with their fantastic design that all combines to create the hardcore
emotion of the finished product.
When you take a step back and scrutinize all three films, you actually
realize that they all feature a subplot about a prison break. With
‘Toy Story' it was the escape from Sid's house, ‘Toy Story 2' saw the
escape from Al the toy collector and in this latest instalment, when
the seemingly perfect group at Sunnyside take a turn for the dark side,
the characters make a bid to escape again. But you simply cannot
complain, because each time they use this device the writers never go
through the same motions, so every time, we're witnessing a brand new
high-risk story that is more exciting than the last.
As intended, ‘Toy Story 3' certainly feels like it completes a more
than worthy narrative cycle from the first film to last, dealing with
such real ideas from the creation of friendships, to the importance of
companionship and family, to the inevitable but necessary loss and road
into adulthood that everyone deals with. The film never crosses the
border into being too adult or too unbearably childish. It is so
perfect in every way that not only will you constantly well up for much
of this closing chapter; its pure brilliance will instil a need to come
back and watch the film again and again. And now that we've reached
infinity, let's see what is beyond in Pixar's promising future.
Rating: 10/10
UK Release Date: 19 July 2010 |
