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Anomalous MaterialToy Story 3 picks up with a grown-up Andy getting ready to leave for college. His mother has him empty his room by forcing him to either take his possession with him, storing them in the attic, or tossing them in the garbage. Andy, faithful to his companion of 17 years, decides to take Woody with him but puts all the other toys in a garbage bag for storage in the attic. Through a series of mishaps and misunderstandings, Woody and his companion soon find themselves being “donated” to Sunnyside Daycare with most of the toys now believing that Andy abandoned them for garbage disposal. Welcomed by a grandfatherly teddy bear named Lotso, the daycare initially appears to be a heaven for toys. That is until our friends meet the youngest children –not the most delicate beings after all– and discover the truth about the inner-workings of the place. It is up to Woody to free his friends from the authoritarian group of toys which reigns with an iron fist over Sunnyside.
As we have come to expect from Pixar, the film is visually pleasing and technically masterful. The story-telling albeit unoriginal is still highly effective and engaging throughout. What is surprising to me is that this movie is clearly oriented to children and yet, it takes the turn for the dark, the grim and even the creepy. One of the main antagonist is Big Baby, a semi-nightmarish baby doll with one broken eye and a creepy laugh. Needless to say, Big Baby would have no problem fitting in some horror movies so I would strongly think before taking the youngest children to see this film. The young-ins may also be distressed to find that when our protagonists fall into a fatal trap with no way out, they silently resolve themselves for their imminent ending, holding hands and staring death in the face. This is also what makes
Toy Story 3 a good animation: For once, it doesn’t only cater to children and finds way to unleash torrents of emotions in the most simple of ways.
The comedy albeit mostly funny is somewhat disappointingly cheap with humor about farts, effeminacy (a.k.a. gay jokes) and latino culture peppered throughout. Despite that, the underlying themes of the franchise such as friendship, loyalty and fear of rejection remain as strong as ever. The meaning behind the metaphors are rather vague and this may well be why this movie is so mass-appealing and affecting. For many, it may be about those beloved toys of our childhood. For parents, it may be about watching their kids grow up and leave for college and adulthood. For others, it may be about aging and death. Director Lee Unkrich manages to punctuate the franchise with an happy albeit bittersweet ending which is sure to pull on the heartstrings. Who would have thought a bunch of inanimate objects can leave you with a little lump in the throat as you leave the movie theater?
A loving and resonant farewell to the franchise,
Toy Story 3 will satisfy children and adults alike.
