What i thought about Toy story 4- A review
Yesterday i finally made the venture out of the house, 6 miles on the bus and into my nearest cinema to see the latest installment in the popular Disney saga that is Toy Story. As an avid Disney fan this was a film i had really highly anticipated especially since being such a fan of Burton's take on 'Dumbo' earlier this year (despite it proving wildly unpopular with the majority of critics and Instagram self proclaimed critics). I have admired the Toy story franchise so much so that even now, as a twenty year old woman, you may find multiple soft toy versions of the Toy story characters on my bed and no, i'm not ashamed... or a psychopath, I just really liked evil Lotso huggin bear okay? he DOES smell of strawberries. Needless to say, i was looking forward to this viewing experience.
Admittedly, it did get off to a rocky start with discovering tango ice blasts are no longer available as well as a line longer than the great wall of China stood outside the cinema room as a garish yellow coloured rope forbade entry and announced that cleaning was still in progress. The film was due to start in ten minutes. My mood was instantly lifted when i walked into the screening room to see the seats had all been upgraded to soft reclining red chairs with cup holder that clearly stated which seat number they belonged to. It was very beneficial that they did recline as Toy story 4 turned out to be a very long film, the longest out of all of the previous movies i believe. I did think the film was due to end around thirty minutes before it did as there had been a highly anticipated high stakes action sequence for a lengthy amount of time and the characters were on the exit route out but Disney decided to avoid predictability and instead add density in the closing half an hour. This comes in the form of helping the 'villain' character, a sweet doll from the 1950'a named Gabby Gabby, Woody goes back into the villains nest and single handedly creates a new group of loveable toys in a fun and fresh dynamic, soothes, forgives and helps a manipulative villain, finishes his quest and stages a much needed reunion/ farewell. In many ways this fourth installment felt like Woody's own swansong to the gang of Andy's beloved toys and in taking this direction, allowed those who have grown up watching Woody's adventures to say goodbye to a part of our childhoods and he parts way from the other toys in order to begin a life not in the shadow of a kid, but one that is solely his own. If Woody can grow up then so can we. I like to think it was purposefully a bittersweet message of letting go to the older audiences.
One thing i admire in the film above all else was the ability of the film creators to stitch together a large ensemble cast of well known toys with a toybox full of completely new characters and yet somehow, the same whimsical yet adventurous tone of the first three movies remained perfectly intact. The care free, slightly narcissistic and humorous nature of newcomers Ducky and Bunny matched the personality of Allen's character Buzz Lightyear, Forky's anxiety and uncertainty managed to match Woody's distinct qualities and Duke Cabooms bravery mismatched with his self doubt was a quality audiences could recognize in our favourite dinosaur Rex. The new characters were all unique in their own ways whilst having elements previously mentioned that allowed them to fit in with the feel of the existing toys. Whilst watching i felt very content to watch the new characters embark of their adventures and wasn't mad at the other scenes featuring the original toys, my only complaint would be to see more interaction between the new and original characters as i believe that would make for some magical dialogue but hey, perhaps a Toy Story 5 will be on the cards?
The animated shots didn't lose focus in aesthetics as the carnival scenes in particular featured an array of high definition, richly colourful fair ground rides and fireworks which offered a severe contrast to the somewhat abandoned, neat and dull coloured antique shop. For me, the entire film worked so well preaching lessons in kindness, independence, responsibility and bravery. I seriously struggle to see what audiences would dislike about this movie.
Admittedly, it did get off to a rocky start with discovering tango ice blasts are no longer available as well as a line longer than the great wall of China stood outside the cinema room as a garish yellow coloured rope forbade entry and announced that cleaning was still in progress. The film was due to start in ten minutes. My mood was instantly lifted when i walked into the screening room to see the seats had all been upgraded to soft reclining red chairs with cup holder that clearly stated which seat number they belonged to. It was very beneficial that they did recline as Toy story 4 turned out to be a very long film, the longest out of all of the previous movies i believe. I did think the film was due to end around thirty minutes before it did as there had been a highly anticipated high stakes action sequence for a lengthy amount of time and the characters were on the exit route out but Disney decided to avoid predictability and instead add density in the closing half an hour. This comes in the form of helping the 'villain' character, a sweet doll from the 1950'a named Gabby Gabby, Woody goes back into the villains nest and single handedly creates a new group of loveable toys in a fun and fresh dynamic, soothes, forgives and helps a manipulative villain, finishes his quest and stages a much needed reunion/ farewell. In many ways this fourth installment felt like Woody's own swansong to the gang of Andy's beloved toys and in taking this direction, allowed those who have grown up watching Woody's adventures to say goodbye to a part of our childhoods and he parts way from the other toys in order to begin a life not in the shadow of a kid, but one that is solely his own. If Woody can grow up then so can we. I like to think it was purposefully a bittersweet message of letting go to the older audiences.
One thing i admire in the film above all else was the ability of the film creators to stitch together a large ensemble cast of well known toys with a toybox full of completely new characters and yet somehow, the same whimsical yet adventurous tone of the first three movies remained perfectly intact. The care free, slightly narcissistic and humorous nature of newcomers Ducky and Bunny matched the personality of Allen's character Buzz Lightyear, Forky's anxiety and uncertainty managed to match Woody's distinct qualities and Duke Cabooms bravery mismatched with his self doubt was a quality audiences could recognize in our favourite dinosaur Rex. The new characters were all unique in their own ways whilst having elements previously mentioned that allowed them to fit in with the feel of the existing toys. Whilst watching i felt very content to watch the new characters embark of their adventures and wasn't mad at the other scenes featuring the original toys, my only complaint would be to see more interaction between the new and original characters as i believe that would make for some magical dialogue but hey, perhaps a Toy Story 5 will be on the cards?
The animated shots didn't lose focus in aesthetics as the carnival scenes in particular featured an array of high definition, richly colourful fair ground rides and fireworks which offered a severe contrast to the somewhat abandoned, neat and dull coloured antique shop. For me, the entire film worked so well preaching lessons in kindness, independence, responsibility and bravery. I seriously struggle to see what audiences would dislike about this movie.
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