June 25: Toy Story 3

This post contains major plot spoilers. If you haven't seen the film, I strongly suggest waiting to read this until you have.


For Brandon Roesler, summer brings two things. If you've been reading any of these posts within the past two weeks, you know the first: baseball. I live and breathe Padres' baseball from Opening Day to the final pitch of the season. I watch and/or listen to as many games as I can and (this season especially) I'm constantly watching the standings and how the other teams in the National League West are performing.

The other thing I look forward to all year is Pixar's latest summer release. Perhaps you've heard of the studio. Wall-E, Up!, The Incredibles, Finding Nemo, Cars, etc. I love every Pixar film. I own every Pixar film. I can tell you who directed each one and in what order they were released. I love everything about them from the traditional short before the show starts to the emotional plots and deep character development.

This summer was no different than any other. It took eleven years for it to happen, but this was the year that toys would rule again. Toy Story 3 hit theatres last Friday and I have now seen it twice and cannot wait to see it again.

I was a little skeptical about this one. I felt like waiting this long to release a sequel was like scraping the bottom of the barrel for ideas and characters. Not only that, but the third film wasn't directed by the Pixar guru, John Lasseter like the previous two were. It was directed by Lee Unkrich who co-directed Toy Story 2, but hadn't actually directed any of the other studio films. On top of that, Jim Varney (you might remember him from the Ernest films) passed away shortly after the release of the second Toy Story. Varney was the voice of one of the main characters and I always hate it when a character is played by someone other than the original in a sequel.

The reviews started coming out the week of the release and I didn't read any of them. I wanted to go into the movie with as little knowledge about the film as possible. I knew it was about the toys going to a day care, but that was about it. I saw an A here and a four-star rating there, but that was typical of the Pixar films. I would be the judge of this one.

Toy Story 3 blew me away! Blake Clark (known mostly for his roles in various Adam Sandler productions) replaces Varney and it is virtually impossible to tell the difference. Unkrich filled Lasseter's shoes like a champ. I love how Pixar doesn't abuse the 3-D format with cheesy gimmicks that fly out of the screen at the audience. They didn't do it in Up! and they didn't do it here. They use the format to enrich the overall feel and and environment of the film. Within minutes of the lights dimming, I completely forgot I was wearing those obtrusive glasses and I was able to enjoy the world of toys without any discomfort.

The film is rated G which would lead one to believe that it's a kid movie. It's not. Sure, kids love it and it entertains everyone on the surface, but the overall theme is that of moving from one stage in life to the next and what it's like to let go of the past. I don't know if it was because of my deep love and admiration for the characters or the pure excitement of a new Pixar movie, but I had tears welling up within the first five minutes of the picture upon both viewings. The real waterworks came (again, both times) toward the end of the film.

I'm a grown man and I never had a connection to a toy the way Andy did, but watching the toys hold hands as they're about to face their demise is gut-wrenching. Two minutes later, and just as my eyes have dried, the audience is taken to the heartwarming handing down of toys from one generation to another. More tears. Lots of them. Are they tears of joy or tears of sadness? I don't even know. I was just thankful for the glasses I was wearing to hide my emotion.

One of the reasons I hate going to the movies is kids. I hate their impatience and lack of consideration for other movie goers, but upon both viewings, Toy Story 3 captured the attention of the smallest child throughout the duration of the film. Watching the kid in the row in front of me throw his clenched fists in the air when the toys were rescued even added a few tears of joy. I wish I was that young again to be able to experience this awesome movie from that perspective.

I've seen the movie twice now; one of which was in the IMAX form. I definitely recommend the latter. It's more expensive, but the experience is so much greater and so much more enjoyable that I feel it's well worth it. Even after seeing it twice, I can't get enough. I love reading the reviews and articles on various websites. I love searching for lists of hidden "easter eggs" throughout the film. I love learning that the trash man is Sid, the vicious neighbor from the first film. I love learning that the voice of Andy was the same in all three films. I think it's great that the actor that provides the voice for Barbie is non other than Ariel from Disney's The Little Mermaid.

Summer brings two things for me: Baseball and Pixar. The Padres are in first place and I can't wait to add Toy Story 3 to my collection. So far, it's been a pretty good summer.