It had been two years since Andy donated his toys to Bonnie. Bonnie was very shy in her first day at kindergarten but because of Woody's interference, she was able to create her own little figurine from a plastic spork and called him Forky. When the family goes out on a road trip, Forky throws himself out of the vehicle, thinking he was only trash. Believing no toy should be left alone, Woody goes out after Forky to get him back for Bonnie.
I know am not alone in thinking that the Toy Story franchise already ended perfectly in "Toy Story 3" (2010). That was why when promo ads started coming out to promote a fourth installment this year, I was apprehensive about how it might affect the beloved series. Frankly, when I saw that Forky in that first trailer, I thought it was corny and shallow. I did not think it was a good story idea at all.
Watching the film did not improve my opinion of Forky at all, honestly. Ok, he was sort of funny in his quirky little way, I felt but did not prove himself to be worth the trouble everyone went through to get him back when he decided to jump out of the RV. Anyhow, Forky actually dropped out of the story line midway through, to be replaced by a story of Woody reuniting with his long-time crush, Bo-Peep, missing in action since "Toy Story 2" (1999).
This porcelain shepherdess doll was sold to an antique store, and had since escaped to be the leader for a group of Lost Toys. In order to rescue Forky, they had to fight off the scary "Goosebumps" Slappy lookalike puppet minions of the Gabby Gabby doll, who wanted to get her hands on Woody's voice box to replace her own damaged one. Woody's obsession about saving Forky felt needlessly dangerous for him and his friends.
So much about my dissatisfaction about the story, but the rest of technical aspects was flawless as we can expect from Pixar. The artwork and 3D renditions with all the different textures of various objects all so meticulously done. The voice work was excellent, led by Tom Hanks (as the over-heroic Woody), Tim Allen (as an underused Buzz Lightyear), Annie Potts (as the empowered Bo Peep) and Christina Hendricks (as the selfish Gabby Gabby).
My favorite new character in this installment would have to be Duke Caboom. He is an Evel Kneivel-inspired Canadian action figure with his stunt motorcycle. Unfortunately, he was discarded by his owner when he could not actually perform the crazy stunts promised in his TV commercial. Keanu Reeves has been lording it over various social media because of "John Wick 3" and "Always Be My Maybe," so add this funny character of his to that list.
Overall, I was disappointed with the way this new story unfolded like maybe it need not really have been done anymore. Thankfully, the colorful artwork, sense of humor and stellar voice work saved the day for this one, still making it an above-average animated film worthy of the Pixar brand it carried. However, I will rank it fourth among the four films of the "Toy Story" franchise. 7/10.
Very bad review
ReplyDeleteHe dont even know when did Bo left. It was season 3 not 2. Bad review.
ReplyDeleteWhen i rewatched 4 the first time this year, I was astonished by how jarring it was compared to the first three films. I don’t have any issue with the Bo Peep character concept, but it was so far beyond what we had previously seen from Bo’s calm demeanor that it didn’t feel like Bo Peep; she might as well have been a new character. Had they acknowledged that this was a departure from her characterization in Toy Story 1-2 and more thoroughly explored what experiences got her to this point, I wouldn’t have had a problem with this. But instead, they suggested that this was the character Bo has always been, as reflected in the flashback scene in the beginning of the film. When Woody climbs onto Molly’s desk to look out the window, she strikes an action pose with her cane and immediately springs into action for the rescue mission, something she never did besides asking Rocky Gibraltar to lower the van ramp in the first film. For a film so otherwise careful about honoring the legacy of its predecessors, this felt like a jarring retcon. Andy’s others toys don’t even do anything; I honestly could not tell you anything most of them contributed to the story. Jessie felt particularly underutilized - she did contribute to the arc of Woody feeling a lack of purpose, but this was when she was in toy mode, and so ultimately this was instigated by Bonnie. She also lacked any notable interactions with Buzz, a big disappointment given how much fun those previously proved to be. Mr. Potato Head’s involvement is excused due to the passing of Don Rickles, but the others really felt tossed aside. The aliens saved the lives of the entire main cast at the end of Toy Story 3. Did they even have a single line of dialogue here? Having Bonnie forget Woody and Woody leaving the gang, I cannot help but feel it detracts from the overarching story of the films as a series. In Toy Story 3, Andy never intends to give Woody away to Bonnie, and only does so when he sees that she is visibly attached to him. He’s reluctant, but ultimately decides that Bonnie is the right kid for Woody, and asks her to take extra special care of him. That entire interaction was so delicately crafted to make us feel comfortable with the toys moving on to a new owner. But in the small amount of time implied to have happened in between Toy Story 3 and 4, Bonnie becomes so disinterested in Woody that he feels comfortable leaving her. In setting up this new character arc for Woody, they effectively take away from the character arc with Andy and Bonnie, which feels dissatisfying when looking at the films as a series.
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