Hey guys! Today I finished video 2 in my series on the Animated Oscars. It is 2002 and so I asked Did the Right Film Win?
For this video I rewatched Ice Age and wasn’t very impressed. I found the animation to look very amateurish and the story very predictable. I’ve always felt it was a bit of a Monsters Inc copycat (studios loved doing that to Pixar in those days). It’s harmless but I was surprised I didn’t enjoy it more on rewatch.
I also saw Spirit Stallion of the Cimarron for the first time and really enjoyed that. It’s got striking animation and I liked they didn’t have the horse talk like in Bambi or other films. The narration is all you need. It’s kind of like Black Beauty in the Old West and I liked it. Definitely one of the better Dreamworks films and great music by Hanz Zimmer.
The rest are less a surprise to my readers. Lilo and Stitch has really grown on me each time I see it. Treasure Planet is beautiful but for some reason puts me to sleep. And Spirited Away is a complete masterpeice.
I’d love for you to put your comments on the nominees and winner. If you watch the video and think it is good give me a thumbs up. Thanks!
I’m officially so jealous of anyone who got to go to Disney’s Comicon celebration D23. I got to experience some of the fun panels watching on periscope (thanks awesome periscopers!) and I can’t even imagine seeing them in person. Let me try and sum up all we learned from D23.
The biggest announcement was Star Wars Land!!! Disneyland and Disneyworld are going to expand to add whole new lands with an immersive Star Wars experience . I love Star Wars so this is so exciting. Evidently all the park personnel and everything you see at Star Wars land will be in character and part of the Star Wars world. The land will be “14 acres each. Guests will be able to ride the Millennium Falcon, sample blue milk and hang out at the cantina”. Sign me up!
We also found out that Space Mountain is going to be redesigned to Hyperspace Mountain Star Tours will be updated to include the Force Awakens characters. Sounds like a Disneyland trip will be in my future!
In other Disneyland news they announced a new Toy Story land with a slinky dog roller coaster. So far the Toy Story attractions have been amazing so this should be great.
Star Wars Movie News
Continuing on the Star Wars vein we got new information on the Rogue One movie which looks awesome. Director Gareth Edwards has started shooting and we should get the movie next year. It will be the first stand alone Star Wars movies and looks like it will take a darker tone about resistance fighters who are trying to steal the plans for the Death Star.
The cast looks great with Felicity Jones, Diego Luna, Ben Mendelsohn, Donnie Yen, Jiang Wen, Riz Ahmed, Mads Mikkelsen and Alan Tudyk. With some Chinese action stars it could provide a really visceral feel to the action of the movie and universe which they are trying to keep as real in feel as possible.
We also got this really cool cast photo
We also got to see the Force Awakens young cast and Harrison Ford introducing a new poster that looked amazing. I am so excited for that movie!!!
Marvel News
Marvel of course had some big announcements at D23 the biggest are lots of info about next years Captain America Civil War. If you don’t know this plots superheroes against each other and evidently they showed a new trailer with Black Widow and Hawkeye fighting. I can’t wait to see this new trailer!
Kevin Feige of Marvel also announced Doctor Strange and evidently Benedict Cumberbatch spoke to the crowd from London. I’m a huge Cumberbatch fan and don’t know anything about Dr Strange so the movie looks like a fun addition to the MCU.
Animation News
Now for the main star at D23- the animation panels and news.
From Pixar there was a panel on Finding Dory where Ed O’Neill, Ty Burrell, Kaitlin Olson and Ellen DeGeneres were all announced. We of course knew about DeGeneres and Albert Brooks but Ty Burrell who does great voice work and Ed O’Neill are wonderful additions to the cast.
We also learned a little more about Toy Story 4. We knew it was a love story but John Lasseter elaborated it was a romance between Woody and Bo Peep who was missing in the 3rd movie. Evidently Woody and Buzz go on an adventure to find Bo and it is very romantic. Lasseter said:
“Each of the stories is a different genre,” Lasseter said, “and Toy Story 4 is a love story. It’s a love story between Woody and Bo Peep. Bo’s returned for Toy Story 4. Woody and Buzz head out to find Bo. It’s a very, very emotional story, and it’s very fun doing a story about [those two characters].”
It’s really true about the Toy Story movies. Each one has a different feel and is in a different genre.
The much talked about Coco project was officially announced by Director Lee Unkrich. This is going to be a day of the dead story where they ask the question What if you could meet your long dead family members? (Pixar loves those what if questions!). The only thing about it which makes me a tiny bit sad is I am sure nobody will remember Book of Life after this which was so artistically beautiful but lacked Pixar’s great storytelling.
Disney Animation News
The biggest news from Disney is their new film Gigantic which will take on the Jack and the Beanstalk story. I believe this will be the first time Disney has retold a fairy tale they have previously animated? Fun and Fancy Free is okay but the new take on it seems very inventive.
In this version the giant is an 11 year old girl which I think could be really interesting and I love the concept art. I think it could work really well with the current WDAS CG animation style. Also Robert Lopez and Kristen Anderson-Lopez from Frozen are doing the music (Yay!). Evidently they sang one of the songs and it was a huge hit.
Disney had a presentation on their upcoming film Moana and Dwayne Johnson proved his charisma once again. They also announced all the music talent behind the film, which I am super pumped about- Lin-Manuel Miranda who wrote the The Heights and is incredible, composer Mark Mancina (“Tarzan” “The Lion King”), and Opetaia Foa’i who is in a Polynesian band called Te Vaka. John Musker and Ron Clements are directing and so there is every reason to be excited about this movie (I love anything Polynesian!). And it is so cool to see how important the project is for Johnson.
The last animated film they talked about is Zootopia. We learned some interesting things about it. First of all, that it is going to be a musical or at least have original songs which I didn’t know about. They announced a character named Gazelle who will be played by Shakira which honestly I doesn’t do much for me but should be a good outreach to the Latino Disney fans. I’m not a fan of her outfit which seems very slinky. I’m still a little nervous about this project but the team they’ve got is great and it’s cool to see Disney doing something different. I’m sure it will be great.
The last thing I thought was cool in the footage was the response to The Jungle Book trailer. Director Jon Favreau introduced it and I guess everyone loved it! And then the entire cast was on stage which looked really cool. Ben Kingsley, who voices Bagheera, said “There is a saying among actors: Never work with a child or animals. I work with a child, and I play an animal.” I just hope they change the ending. Fingers crossed. It sounds like they are using some inspiration from the book and the movie so that sounds great. I was glad to hear that it will be a musical and they will be singing Bear Necessities!
And evidently they watched a trailer for Jungle Book which I can’t wait to see.
So I know that was an insane amount of information but if you are a movie fan and especially a Disney fan you are probably eating it all up like I did. (And there is even more but I had to stop somewhere).
What excites you the most? I think Star Wars Land may be the biggest news because I had no idea that was coming but it is all great. Let me know your thoughts about any of it in comments.
It’s a great time to be a movie fan and especially a Disney fan!
The Emmy nominations were announced today and like always there were a bunch of shows I don’t watch. Pretty much the only live action shows I watch that got nominated was Mad Men and Downton Abbey. I was hoping The Goldbergs would get recognized but no love once again.
The one live action nom I was excited about was Disney’s Girl Meets World. I have been meaning to blog about it but haven’t found the time. I love it! I loved Boy Meets World and I think it is one of the few reboots that has worked great. A wonderful mixture of nostalgia for us grown-ups and lots of good stuff for kids. It’s a show the entire family can watch together and enjoy.
Other than that I was interested in the animation categories (of course!) and for the most part I was pleased.
For Outstanding Animated Program we had:
Outstanding Animated Program – 2015
Archer
Bob’s Burgers
Over the Garden Wall
South Park
The Simpsons
Of these 5 the one I am most excited for is Over the Garden Wall which I think is a true masterpiece. I would love to see it get some recognition and perhaps more people to see it. It is bold in its storytelling and the animation is stunning. You can read my review of Over the Garden Wall here.
The Simpsons I also think is worthy. I know people criticize it but they had an artistically ambitious season for 26 and the Treehouse of Horror that was nominated was brilliant with Simpsons 26 meeting Simpsons 1.
The rest of the nominees are too crass and vulgar for my taste but I see the appeal.
And for Outstanding Short-Format Animated Program we had:
Adventure Time
Disney’s Mickey Mouse
Regular Show
Robot Chicken
Steven Universe
Wander over Yonder
A few of these I haven’t heard of. I would have loved to see Gravity Falls nominated which is so clever. Robot Chicken I’ve heard of but never seen. Wander over Yonder, Steven Universe, and Regular Show are new to me. Have any of you seen them? Are they good?
Adventure Time is a lot of fun but I would have put Rick and Morty in its place (not sure if that is short format or not?).
I am very happy to see Disney’s Mickey Mouse get a nomination. It’s a vintage style 2D show in the spirit of the old Mickey Mouse animated shorts and I love it! If you haven’t seen it, it’s really quite brilliant. Artist Paul Rudish and his team capture the feel of old school Disney perfectly. I reviewed it on my channel.
What about you? What do you think of the nominations? I’d love to know your thoughts especially if you’ve seen some of these shows I haven’t. It’s just a silly awards show but it is nice when something like Over the Garden Wall gets nominated when it sorely deserves it.
30. American Tail- The recent death of James Horner had me revisiting American Tail a few weeks ago, and I really do love it. Much like the great early Disney movies it has scares, laughter and a lot of tears. Horner’s music is iconic in my childhood. I like the voice performances and the ending is so satisfying. I even like the sequel. It’s really cool to have the first Jewish animated character that I am aware of and a lot of good educational opportunities for parents and kids with the immigrant story.
29. Nightmare Before Christmas- A groundbreaking stop motion movie with amazing Danny Elfman songs. I love the clever story of the man who swaps out Christmas for Halloween. Jack is a character we really root for because he has such pure intentions. I also love the romance with Sally and their bond throughout the film. It looks seamless and different and is scary in moments without being over-the-top. Great vocal performances and music. The rare movie which is great for Halloween and Christmas.
28. The Wind Rises- the final film from Hayao Miyazaki and perhaps his most grown-up . The story of Jiro who designs the airplane for the Japanese army in WWII. It is his dream to help people fly but then it is used for war, which is an interesting dynamic. He also falls in love with a girl who isn’t well and that is moving. It is layered, moving film and subtle in how it portrays war, romance, life, and dreams. It also looks stunning and will make you cry but for all the right reasons. You almost forget you are watching animation for stretches but then the artistry will take your breath away. It makes me want to seek out my dreams.
27. Alice in Wonderland– the movie that embraces nonsense and I love it for it. It has a non-linear plot with eccentricities that are different and surprising. Basically its Alice meeting a bunch of colorful characters one after another and I like going on that journey with her. The music is so much fun with great voice performances throughout. Only part that doesn’t work for me is when it throws in a narrative with the walrus and oysters which feels completely out of place.
26. Toy Story 3- Takes all the strengths of 1 and 2 and combines them into an extremely satisfying ending to the Andy part of the Toy Story chapter. Andy has grown up and the toys are given to a daycare which is full of peril, humor and real heart. The incinerator scene is shocking, gut-wrenching and extremely tense. My nieces hate it for those reasons but I was engrossed. The ending is perfect reminding us all of when we had to say goodbye to childhood and pass our memories on to others.
25. Lego Movie- One of the most inventive movies I’ve ever seen. It is for me what Wreck-it Ralph should have been. I love all the different worlds and how they capture a child’s randomness in play. I love the journey Emmit goes on from following all the rules to trusting in his own ingenuity. I love the visual appeal and how every scene moves and feels like legos coming together. I love the voice performances and all the jokes. I love the live action scene which makes me tear up every time. It’s a child trying to explain his world to his parents and that is beautiful. I was so skeptical going in but to me it is about perfect.
24. Jungle Book– I hate the ending but love the songs and characters. Baloo is one of my favorites in all of Disney and Shere Khan is a menacing villain. I also like Kaa with his creepy hypnosis. It doesn’t leave any space to be bored but goes from one delightful scene to the next. All the voice performances are top notch and it’s one of my favorites to rewatch and smile. I’m also a sucker for any film about friendship and how yes family is key but friends are pretty darn great too. 🙂
23. Ratatouille– I just reviewed Ratatouille a few weeks ago and it is such a lovely film. It looks gorgeous. I love how it captures Paris as the City of Lights. It makes me want to go there every time I see it. I love Remy and how he feels uncomfortable in his skin. He doesn’t belong in the world he was born into and food is his way of leaving that world. He meets Linguini and finds a purpose. It is funny and Ego is one of my favorite characters ever in animation. His speech at the end is perfection. Ratatouille is also very funny particularly the interactions between Remy and his imaginary mentor Gusteau.
22. Sleeping Beauty– The lyrical look to this animated version of the Sleeping Beauty ballet is so unique and special. I love the faeries and how smart yet funny they are. I love Maleficent and her seemingly petty spat with Stephan leading to the curse of Aurora. She’s such a great villain. Phillip is my favorite Disney prince because he is brave and shows a lot of spunk when dealing with Maleficent. My only flaw of it is Aurora is pretty bland. But look at this image and see how deep the trees are layered on to each other. It’s amazing. The story is equally special.
21. Frozen– The opposite of Aurora is our two princesses in Frozen and I love both of them. Much like Ariel Elsa has this thing that makes her different than the world she is born into. She doesn’t belong and is taught to fear her gifts and hide them. I was really moved by that. Meanwhile Anna is left to wonder what happened to her sister. I related to that as well because I have 3 sisters and sometimes it can feel impossible to get through to them- especially one that is particularly private and introverted. I love the relationship of the sisters as it grows and I love the ending. I think Olaf is in it for just enough comic relief (and one sweet moment). I love the songs and the vocal performances are some of the best ever in Disney. The way the villain was handled definitely surprised me and I thought the take on the traditional Disney romance was fun. I know the haters are out there but make your own list! This is mine.
40. Aladdin- I know for some people Aladdin would make their top 10 but I’ve never been as big a fan as most people even though I do like it (hey it made this list!). It’s a ton of fun with one of the most iconic performances in all of Disney. The Menken/Ashman/Rice songs are wonderful.39. Batman Mask of the Phantasm- vastly underrated superhero movie with terrific vocal performances. Actually my favorite batman movie. I think the animation is also underrated. Get it on blu-ray studio!
38. Persepolis- One of most unique animated films I’ve ever seen. About a girl growing up in the Iranian Revolution. It looks striking, with an extremely likable lead character and a story with a lot of layers of family, personal and political drama.37. Big Hero 6- I was really moved by the relationship of Hiro and Tadashi. A lovely film about grief and remembering those who have past on while also being a superhero movie with a diverse, funny group unlike any I’ve seen before. I love Baymax so much and SanFransokyo was so creative and beautiful.36. Snow White and 7 Dwarves- I realize this is a little out of sync with my Disney rankings but this where I felt it fit in this list. Snow White is not just great because it was first but it holds up remarkably well. It’s funny, sweet, scary and has great songs. I love how the Queen is the queen but it isn’t enough for her. She also has to be prettiest in the land.35. Iron Giant- A lovely animated story by Brad Bird about a boy in 1950s who finds a giant and has to keep it from the government. Love the animation, story, everything. 34. Mulan- Underrated Disney movie with a strong female heroine, good laughs, strong ensemble of characters, sweeping battle animation, great score and fun songs. Only weakness is lame boring villain. 33. Corpse Bride- a beautiful ghost story with haunting music and a visual style that I actually like even better than Nightmare Before Christmas. The story isn’t quite as layered or interesting and the characters not as good as Nightmare but I still love it. There is enough story of the unlikely match thrown together for me to love it. 32. Lion King- Another one I’m sure people will be upset having so low but I love Lion King. That’s why it beat out 18 other films. It’s epic, beautiful, heartfelt and has an amazing villain. Some of the pop elements, juvenile humor and way they handle Can You Feel Love Tonight I could do without. Still hugely satisfying engaging film about whether we take the easy way out or the tough one that we are destined for. It’s also some of Disney’s most glorious animation they ever did. 31. Dumbo- It depresses me that so many outside the animation community see Dumbo as a racist Disney movie. That or it is ‘too sad’. It has its perhaps questionable segments but at its core is a message about acceptance of people and their differences. The relationship between Timothy Q Mouse and Dumbo is sweet. The watercolor artwork is lovely capturing the bright colors of the circus. The elephants dream is weird and a delight. I love it! Here’s my video on this list:
Now we get our next entry in the Disneynature Canon and it is all about those bugs you swat away or are afraid might sting you. It is called Wings of Life and it is mostly focused on butterflies and bees.
I must admit to being a little disappointed in this film. I went into it with high hopes because I find the subject of bees and the bee crisis to be very interesting. I don’t know if this just is too old (released in 2011 so not that long ago…) or they didn’t think kids would like that kind of discussion but it is sorely missed.
The movie is narrated by Merly Streep and she is good but it is told from the point of view of the flowers which is a little ridiculous and there just isn’t that much personality in a flower or a bee. Animals from the ocean, monkeys, or flamingos have way more expression in their faces and you can get more of a narrative.
In Wings of Life you get a lot of time lapse photography showing the flowers opening up and its ok but I grew a little tired of it after a while. The cinematography is beautiful and I did learn a little bit but it could have been a lot more informative. Maybe part is the problem is it is only insects where the other documentaries I’ve seen on the bee crisis has had experts talking about the problem. That would have been more interesting to me. It’s also too long. Insects don’t have a 77 minute draw, at least for me. An insects life is pretty simple- pollinate, mate, protect and die. It’s not that compelling for 77 minutes. Plus, insects up close and personal are kind of gross looking. Not all cute and adorable like a monkey or a baby flamingo.
The two best segments are about the bats in the dessert which get nectar from cactus blossoms and the Monarch butterflies and their migration. I wish the whole movie had been about the journey of the butterflies. That might have been interesting.
As it is, it is kind of slow and I lost interest. It’s the first of these Disneynature that felt like an old school dry nature documentary. No personality. No pizazz. No real narrative It has some pretty images but I would just look at those online and watch Flamingos instead. That one is still the best of the best.
Plus, I thought the narration from the point of view of the flowers was a little strange and I couldn’t get into it.
Wings of Life tries to send a message about gardening and planting flowers but it is a little too late. I think kids will have already disengage by then and it isn’t any new information for adults so they will be bored.
It’s very interesting that I would post about boring movies just last weekend and today I would see a movie that belonged on that list. I’m sorry friends I keep it real but I fell asleep for about a minute in Tomorrowland. As a movie on my ‘So excited!!!- I’m on board and anxiously awaiting these films’ list for 2015 it was a big disappointment. Before I vent a little of my problems with the movie I’ll say a few positives. The world building is beautiful and I admire Brad Bird in trying to tell an original story. I also liked the little winks at the Disney park and original attractions like the Carousel of Progress song. Raffedy Cassidy is very good as an AI recruiter of geniuses for Tomorrowland named Athena. She is the only complex character in the movie. (My mind started to wander and I wondered if she is the child version of Ava in Ex-Machina 😉 ) That said- there are a lot of problems. First it starts out too episodic, like an episode of a TV show and not a movie. We get a long segment with George Clooney as a kid and his introduction into Tomorrowland. We get all the awe and wonder of the land and learn it is a place for the brightest. The problem is when we get introduced to Casey played by Brit Robertson she goes through the same introductions which makes it again feel episodic and slow. Plus, with Clooney’s child character we see his invention. It’s clear he is smart. With Casey we see her tell her father where to put an electrical wire and she can run a helicopter from her phone. That’s about it. People keep saying she’s a unique genius but I never saw it. The whole Savior trope is twaddled out and I had no idea why. Why was she so special? Most of the time she was either asking questions (seriously you’d think a genius could figure out a few things on her own) or shrieking at some shock. I normally don’t use gifs but this one was so perfect. She’s like this the entire movie. With a movie like this you have to feel emotionally connected to the characters and I didn’t. Clooney is miscast as a reclusive genius trying to keep tabs on the world after being exiled from Tomorrowland. He’s just not nerdy enough. He’s also missing for long chunks of the movie so we can’t feel that attached to him. Kathryn Hahn and Keegan-Michael Key are fun as novelty store owners but they are in the film far too briefly. There are two long battle sequences I guess you’d call them with Casey and Frank dodging the robots and both are boring. Even a long scene at the Eiffel Tower with a rocket which is supposed to be exciting was so repetitive of other scenes that it is where I fell asleep. And then the ending is extremely trite and corny. It just doesn’t work. Hugh Laurie is okay as the bad guy but we don’t get to know him well and isn’t given much to do. That might sound like a spoiler but it is so obvious he is the bad guy. I am probably one of the few people who will give Tomorrowland a lower score than Jupiter Ascending. Cry foul all you want but I was more entertained by JA. It made me laugh. It’s in on the joke. It’s campy and ridiculous. This is just blah. JA even has stronger world building than this. I was really let down by Tomorrowland.
This is going to sound like a nitpick but another thing that bothered me is the sound mixing is very badly done. Whenever there is a fight the sounds of a punch or kick was way too loud which had a jarring effect. All the sound effects were too loud. There is a segment that kids will like with the young Clooney but the blaring action will be too much for small children and older kids I think will be bored. Sad day. Very disappointed in Tomorrowland. 🙁 Overall Grade- C- Content Grade- B+
Everyone knows how much I love the ocean and being in the water. In fact, I just got home from my first open water swim of the season. Burr! It was cold! I wish I was close to ocean but I have to satisfy myself with lakes, reservoirs and rivers. But I dream of the ocean. I live for the ocean and miss it when I am far away. So naturally I enjoyed Disneynature’s film Oceans.
Oceans is similar to their Earth film and more of a traditional nature documentary. Unlike Monkey Kingdom there is no attempt to tell a story or give characters names. It isn’t even like the Crimson Wing which doesn’t have characters with names but refers to the flamingos and their hunters in fairytale terms (princess, witches, wizards etc). Oceans doesn’t do any of that. It is a pretty straight forward nature documentary that tries to teach children the value of nature and what we can do to care for the earth better.
The strength of Oceans is its amazing images. The beauty of nature is breathtaking and it has enough animals from different parts of the world that I never got bored.
We get to learn about”
Dolphins-
Whales-
Sea Otters-
Adorable Penguins (seriously who doesn’t find penguins cute and if you are out there- what’s wrong with you!).
Turtles-
Seals-
Jellyfish-
Other Fish
If those images don’t excite you than Oceans is probably not the movie for you. The gorgeous cinematography is most of the appeal and I enjoyed learning about all of these amazing creatures and the environmentalist message isn’t too heavy handed. Jaques Perrin and Jacquez Cluzaud direct and it covers 5 oceans beautifully in 50 different locations!.
Pierce Brosnan narrates but like I said it is minimal and he does a fine job. The music by Bruno Coulais is excellent. He scored the music for The Secret of the Kells which makes sense. Both scores have great drama and impact. Demi Lovato and Joe Jonas have a duet at the end which is about as good as you can imagine a duet by them would be.
The trailer will give you a feel for the movie.
There isn’t much else to say about Oceans. It is a standard style of nature documentary with gorgeous cinematography, music and a good message. Lovers of the ocean like myself will especially love it.
After the drama with Bug’s Life Pixar’s next release couldn’t have been more eagerly anticipated. A sequel to one of the most iconic animated movies ever released. How could it possibly measure up?
Then everyone saw it and Toy Story 1 and 2 are the only original and sequel I’m aware of that both have 100% on rottentomatoes- a rating that is near impossible to get. Toy Story 3 has an embarrassing 99% ;).
So I think folks liked Toy Story 2! And with good cause. It is a great movie!
There are so many things that are smart about Toy Story 2. First of all, they didn’t try and redo the first movie. It would have been so easy for them to introduce another new toy into the room and rehash the same story over again. But instead they go in an entirely new direction and make an adventure!
Toy Story 1 introduced us to the characters and followed Woody as his leadership is threatened. He feels jealous, frustrated, frightened, and deals with insecurities he didn’t even know he had. That’s why people related so much to it. Haven’t we all been there where a rival threatened to displace us? Where we worried we would be forgotten or passed over? Where we felt jealous and envious of another who seemingly has it better? Toy Story 1 crafts a narrative around all those very human emotions.
Toy Story 2 has that emotional core but it is mainly an adventure story. It starts out with Woody getting stolen by a greedy toy collector voiced by Seinfeld’s Wayne Knight. (When you see that character don’t you expect him to sound like Newman?).
It turns out that Woody is a valuable collectible Al has been hunting for to complete his Woody’s Roundup collection to sell to a museum in Tokyo. The rest of the set includes Stinky Pete (Kelsey Grammar), Cowgirl Jesse (Joan Cusack) and Bullseye the horse.
They are thrilled to see Woody because it will mean they can get out of storage and be on display at the museum. Woody at first is dazzled by all the collectibles and can’t believe he is the star of a show. The Prospector is also very manipulative in the way he describes the museum leaving out the details that Woody will no longer be played with by children.
Meanwhile Buzz, Slinky, Ham, Potato Head, and Rex all head out to find Woody and bring him back to Andy’s Room. This includes an amazing sequence with them trying to cross the road in cones and a series of adventures in a large toy store.
All the scenes in the toy store are so funny. We get our first appearance of Barbie who moves in the stiff way a barbie moves and is bright and happy. I loved it.
There is also an entire row of Buzz Lightyear action figures and a Delusional Buzz that still thinks he’s a Space Ranger gets mixed up with the real Buzz. This gives so many great laughs and is very nostalgic to the original movie. Tim Allen is great as both versions of Buzz.
At first Woody is set on going back to Andy’s Room but Jesse and Prospector beg him not to go. They don’t want to go into storage and Jesse warns Woody what will happen when Andy is done being a kid. I defy you not to cry during this song (if you don’t then I don’t understand you!). A fabulous job by Randy Newman and Sarah McLachlan.
This puts Woody in a difficult spot, which is our new, different emotional core than we had in Toy Story 1. The original is all about overcoming personal demons where this film is about how much of our own dreams and life we are willing to sacrifice for others. Woody has to decide whether he is willing to give up his life with Andy in order to keep his new friends from a dark life in storage. It’s a very tough question.
But I don’t want to make it sound morose because it’s absolutely hilarious. The writing is so funny with superb vocal performances from the entire cast especially Don Rickles and Estelle Harris (another Seinfeld alum) as Mr and Mrs Potato Head.
And like I said everything with Delusional Buzz and the Barbies is funny. I also love Wallace Shawn as Rex who is preoccupied for most of the movie with defeating Evil Emperor Zurg who we get to meet in this movie (so funny).
The ending at an airport is stunning where the characters get mixed up in the various belts and mechanisms that deliver luggage around the airport. When you think of where they were in Toy Story 1 it is an especially amazing visual.
There is even a tense horse ride down the tarmac. It really has the feel of an old Western chase scene and I always get those butterflies wondering how they are going to get out of this mess (again like a good action adventure should do).
In the end, Woody realizes things may change but it doesn’t mean we can’t enjoy the moment while it is here. His purpose is to be played with not looked at under glass. It’s a sweet lesson for all of us. We all need to find our purpose and not let anyone manipulate us into giving that up.
Toy Story 2 is a total and complete delight. As I always do with these reviews I watched it 3 times over the last 2 weeks and it never felt old or tired. I smiled, laughed and was completely engrossed in the tense sections. Mostly I just love spending time with these characters.
Everything new they tried worked while still holding on to the emotional core and likability of the original characters. The addition of Jesse is the cherry on the sundae. Her journey from being a nervous, depressed character to full of life is wonderful. Her song is gorgeous and I love her spunk!
I would definitely recommend adding Toy Story 2 to your blu-ray library as it is enjoyable for the entire family. I love it!
(Also the audio commentary on Toy Story 2 is hilarious and very interesting. I highly recommend giving it a listen).
