Movie Review: Toy Story 4 (2019)

The fourth chapter in the animated saga of toys who come to life when kids are not looking, Toy Story 4 explores the courage to embrace life's ever-changing phases.

Nine years ago, Woody (voice of Tom Hanks) decided to remain loyal to his owner Andy and forgo the companionship of Bo Peep (Annie Potts), who was boxed up and shipped out. Now Woody finds himself falling out of favour with his new owner Bonnie. He nevertheless helps her through the first day at preschool, where she creates a new toy Forky (Tony Hale) made from craft material briefly dumped in the trash.

Bonnie's family embark on a road trip, and Woody tries to educate Forky on his new role as Bonnie's favourite toy. But the confused Forky escapes the family RV, and Woody goes after him. The two end up at an antique store where Forky is grabbed by the bitter doll Gabby Gabby (Christina Hendricks), who has a broken voice box. Woody re-connects with Bo Peep, and with the help of Buzz Lightyear (Tim Allen) and motorcycle stunt toy Duke Caboom (Keanu Reeves), they have to rescue Forky and reunite with Bonnie.

The first trilogy arrived at a near-perfect ending, so re-launching the franchise nine years later was a calculated risk. Thanks to a clever and multi-layered script by Stephany Folsom and Andrew Stanton, Toy Story 4 is a worthy addition to the adventures of Woody, Buzz Lightyear and their pals. The film contains perfect doses of madcap adventures, sharp humour, new toys, as well as lessons in friendship and loyalty. And this time Woody's strong value system is challenged in new and unexpected ways as his emotional landscape changes again.

The main new theme arrive courtesy of Bo Peep, who has embarked on a life of freedom and independence away from serving a child's happiness. She is exploring the world on her own terms and having plenty of fun doing it. In addition to the forceful message of female strength and empowerment, her unapologetic stance is completely at odds with everything Woody knows and stands for. But gradually, combined with Bonnie confining Woody more frequently to the dark closet and playing with other toys, Bo Peep's lifestyle starts to make a lot more sense.

Director Josh Cooley also has another interesting narrative thread to pursue. Gabby Gabby is introduced as the villain of the piece, her entourage of ventriloquist doll goons prime candidates for inducing nightmares among young viewers. But the film's commitment to delving beneath superficialities is laudable, and Gabby Gabby has her own backstory and quest to fulfil. Woody is again faced with an exceptionally difficult decision to make, and once again his current status relative to Bonnie will influence his actions.

Visually Toy Story 4 continues to achieve new levels of excellence in computer animation, and the screen is often rich with crisp content and stunning details. Various intriguing settings afford the animators opportunities to flex their muscles, from the RV's interior to expansive carnival grounds teaming with activity. The ramshackle antique store emerges as the film's most memorable locale.

While all the old favourites are here and Bo Peep's promotion to a strong female central role is a welcome boost, the series refreshes the toy line-up with some new arrivees. Most prominent and marketable is the insecure Duke Caboom, a Canadian stunt rider rejected by his first owner because Duke could not live up to his extravagant television advertising exploits.

An excellent use of nostalgia to push into brave new territory, Toy Story 4 builds upon tradition to thoughtfully challenge the status quo.

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Movie Review: Big Trouble (2002)

A madcap comedy, Big Trouble overloads the screen with wild characters and ridiculous events hurtling at an insane pace. A lot of it does generate big laughs, but the entertainment remains breathlessly shallow.

In Miami, former journalist Eliot Arnold (Tim Allen) runs a one-man advertising business. Eliot's teenaged son Matt (Ben Foster) attempts to drench classmate Jenny Herk (Zooey Deschanel) with a water gun, but instead interferes with the real attempted assassination of Jenny's father Arthur (Stanley Tucci) by hitmen Henry (Dennis Farina) and Leonard (Jack Kehler). Miami cops Monica (Janeane Garofalo) and Walter (Patrick Warburton) try to sort out the mess, while Eliot is immediately attracted to Anna (Rene Russo), Arthur's long suffering wife.

The events of the night result in wandering free spirit Puggy (Jason Lee), who likes to live in trees, meeting Arthur's housekeeper Nina (Sofia Vergara), and the two develop an immediate attraction.

Arthur is embezzling funds from a mobster-linked organization, and to seek revenge on his would-be killers he attempts to purchase a mysterious weapon in a steel case from Russian criminals. But his plans are foiled by Snake (Tom Sizemore) and Eddie (Johnny Knoxville), two sleazeball incompetent petty thieves. FBI agents Pat Greer (Heavy D) and Alan Seitz (Omar Epps) are trying to recover the missing weapon, resulting in a frenzied chase across Miami.

There is no doubt that Big Trouble contains some big laughs. Director Barry Sonnenfeld adapts the Dave Barry book of the same name with an eye to achieving a nutty spectacle at a breakneck pace, and often hits his targets within a compact 85 minutes of pure insanity.

Despite the numerous characters and events, Sonnenfeld manages to keep a hold of the material and generates a steady stream of laughs, quickly moving away from any sense of normal and into the realm of the absurd where anything goes. The scenes involving the Russian arms traders pretending to be seedy bar operators tend to work best, and the hitman character of Henry gets the sharpest lines and some funny gems.

The hapless duo of Snake and Eddie are effective as victims of Darwinian certainty surely awaiting their hour of extinction. Meanwhile a herd of goats makes a late appearance and gets right into the action, as does a mall cop, Eliot's cigar-chomping client and the Herk family dog.

Less effective is the airy subplot involving the ethereal Puggy being lifted along with events, while Nina is the most notable victim of the overstuffed script. Tim Allen is supposed to be in the middle of the mess but only achieves middling success, his suburban doofus Dad persona not quite finding a home in the edgy material. Stanley Tucci goes the other way with his over-the-top bagman, cussing up a storm.

Ultimately what Big Trouble lacks is any sense of genuine soul or caring. The film is about a large number of people running around engaged in cartoon-like behaviour and stirring up crazy funny antics; none of them come close to being real characters worth knowing or caring about. Big Trouble is really funny while it lasts, but has big trouble leaving a lasting impression.

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Movie Review: Toy Story 3 (2010)

A full fifteen years after the original Toy Story was released, and eleven years after the first sequel, Pixar and Disney release the third episode in the animated story of the toys Woody, Buzz, and their friends. It's a worthy installment, mixing humour with honest sentiment, and a message of friendship, trust, and eternal hope for a better future.

Andy, the owner of Woody (voiced by Tom Hanks), Buzz Lightyear (Tim Allen) and other favourite toys like Mr.and Mrs. Potato Head, Jessie the cowgirl, Rex the dinosaur, Hamm the Pig and Slinky Dog, is now 17 years old and on his way to college. The toys know that the old days of Andy playing with them are long gone; they are worried that they might be thrown out, and the best that they can hope for is retirement in the attic. Through a series of unfortunate events the toys find themselves donated to a daycare, where a toy bear (Ned Beatty) and his goons have established rigid rules, insisting that the newcomers play with toddlers too young to treat them with care. Woody has to help his friends escape from the abuse at the daycare, and in the course of the madcap adventure he also stumbles upon a solution to their long-term future.

Toy Story 3 is made more poignant since the core child audience of the original 1995 movie, who purchased the Woody and Buzz merchandise at the time, have grown up and outgrown the toys just as Andy has. The film poses questions about loyalty, kindness and friendship in terms simple enough for a new generation of young kids to ponder, within the framework of a story enjoyable by the teenagers of today and the parents of both generations.

The animation technology gets ever better, and now the toys look rigid only because they are toys, and not through the limits of technology. The fluid motion, light and shadows, and background details are perfected to the point where the animation is almost forgotten, a scary yet brilliant achievement.

Lee Unkrich, who co-directed Toy Story 2 with John Lasseter, takes over full directing duties this time while Lasseter keeps an eye on things as Executive Producer. Unkrich finds all the interesting angles to film the misadventures of the toys, and he is helped by the appropriately over the top voice acting performances of Tom Hanks and Tim Allen.

Toy Story 3 is a visit from old friends for one more round of laughs and tears, and a realization that while times may change, true friendships are forever.

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