AFI 99 - Toy Story

After viewing Ben Hur at number 100 and not really liking it, number ninety-nine, Toy Story, was a breath of fresh air.  Whereas Ben Hur was overlong, mediocre, and took itself waaay too seriously, Toy Story is a briskly paced, fun and, well, good movie.

I had forgotten how much Toy Story was a game changer for animated films.  Up until its release probably the most talked about computer animation scene was the ballroom dance scene from Disney's Beauty and the Beast.

And to be quite honest, upon re-watching this for the first time in a bazillion years, I could barely care about the dancing/computer animation part, but Angela Lansbury's voice gave me goosebumps.  I love that woman so very much.

So I watched Toy Story for the first time in ages and it holds up quite well.  Still really enjoyed it after all these years.  Except for one thing, but we'll get to that later.

This film is a delight.  Groundbreaking?  Sure.  Clever?  Absolutely.  But what resonates the most is just how much fun it is.  I'm a bitter cynic and I still can appreciate how much love and enjoyment this movie brings.  The toys are a family to each other and to Andy, their owner.  They've got each other's backs.  They take care of each other.  All is well.

But suddenly, during Andy's birthday party, a new toy arrives to upset the balance of the house and the toys.  Buzz Lightyear (probably Tim Allen's best role outside of Galaxy Quest) arrives and captivates Andy and the masses.  Except for Woody (Tom Hanks' best role since Bosom Buddies.  I mean seriously, has this guy ever made anything good?) who is displaced as the leader of the toys and as Andy's favorite toy.  So Woody gets bitter, Buzz is  a falsely entitled dick, and hilarity ensues.  The toys ultimately thwart the film's villain, next door neighbor Sid, a toy maimer.  Maimist?  Guy who maims toys?  Yeah, he maims toys.

Along the way Woody and Buzz take a journey of self-discovery and become friends which is good because there are two sequels that are quite good.  This isn't just an excellent cartoon, it's an excellent film.  Honestly I would put it higher on the AFI list, but that's just me.

Okay.  Now the thing that nearly ruins this movie for me.  When humans are around, the toys are passive.  They let the kids/dog/baby/whomever do as they please and they don't react because they're toys and the humans aren't to know that they are sentient creatures.  When the humans are not around the toys are active and have lives chock full of feelings and desires (looking at you skanky Bo Peep) and dreams.  So when Buzz shows up and doesn't believe he's a toy because he believes he's THE Buzz Lightyear and he's crash landed on this planet and doesn't find out until later that he is, in fact, a toy, changing him from entitled dick to self destructive suicide contemplater (I mean, this guys mood swings are violent and lightning fast) it changes the dynamic of the movie.  There are some excellent storytelling mechanisms in play here and they are well crafted and well executed...except.  *sigh*  So Buzz shows up and he believes he's not a toy, right?  So why does he do the passive toy thing when the humans are around?  Why does he behave like a toy when he doesn't think he is one?  Gaping flaw in the logic of this particular world.  It is what, to me, keeps this movie from being a complete classic.  It's what makes this a four-stars instead of five kind of movie.  It's what makes it a B+ instead of an A.  Am I being too harsh?  Dunno.  It's just how I feel.

To sum up.  If, unlike me, you can ignore the Buzz doesn't think he's a toy but he's going to behave like one problem, this is a classic film.  If, like me, you cannot ignore that flaw, then it is a great film.  Either way, it's worth watching.  So there.