Toy Story 1 & 2

Reviewer: Alyice Edrich

The Cartoon

The Plot

A little boy’s toys come alive when he leaves the room. The toys have entire identities and experience everyday emotions, just like you and I.

Starring

Tom Hanks, Tim Allen, Don Rickles, Jim Varney, R. Lee Rmay, John Morris, Wallace Shawn, John Ratzeneberger, Erik von Detten, Wayne Knight, Joan Cusack, Kelsey Grammer, and more.

The Review

When I was a little girl, I had a vivid imagination. An imagination that had me believing that inanimate objects, such as my toys, had feelings. I was always so careful to treat everything with respect because I believed doing otherwise would cause them great discomfort. And yes, I often wondered if my toys came alive while I was sleeping or went away.

If I had seen Toy Story when I was a little girl, it would have only confirmed my suspicions and probably changed the course of my imagination—forever. After all, if the great Walt Disney believed toys could come alive, who was I to argue?

Needless to say, when Toy Story came to film, I just had to take my children. I wondered if they, too, thought their toys came alive when they left the room and I wondered what they’d think of a film that said they did.

Of course my son was “too smart” to believe in such things, and my daughter was still “too young” to really understand, but they both absolutely loved Toy Story. In fact, there was a time when Disney had a big thing over at Disneyland and it became my children’s first—and favorite—stop.

Years later, as my children grew into tweens and teens, I could still catch them putting in the VHS and laughing. “It never gets old,” they’d say. Of course, I never sat down to watch it again so I had to take their words for it.

Then Disney offered me the chance to review the new Blu-Rays versions and I fell in love with the films all over again.

In Toy Story 1, a young boy named Andy is given a new toy for his birthday, a spaceman by the name of Buzz Lightyear which makes Andy’s favorite toy, a cowboy named Woody very jealous.

Buzz is shiny and new and has fun gadgets to play with. Woody is old and worn and the only cool gadget he has is a pull string. Tension builds as Woody’s jealousy takes over his better judgment and Buzz’s inability to understand he’s a toy and not an actual spaceman drives everyone a little crazy. But things change when the two must work together to escape the clutches of young Frakenstein. It’s then that the two realize there is room in Andy’s life for both of them.

In Toy Story 2, one of Andy’s toys is being sold in a yard sale. During a rescue mission to save that toy, Woody is stolen by a rare toy collector. As Buzz and a few of Woody’s friends risk life and death to get to the toy collector’s home and rescue Woody, Woody is contemplates leaving his friends to become the star attraction of a Japanese museum collection.

What I like about Toy Story 1 & 2 is the fact that both films entertain two audiences: children and adults—and they do it without throwing in comedic lines or antics that are not suitable for small children.

And both films teach valuable life lessons. In Toy Story 1, children learn that while jealousy is destructive and hurtful, it’s a normal part of being a living, breathing thing. And they learn that when we let go of our insecurities, we not only see things more clearly, but we have the opportunity to forge great friendships.

In Toy Story 2, children are once again reminded that we all face times of insecurity. Times when we feel forgotten or abandoned; especially when it comes to being replaced with new friends. But it is how we see and deal with those insecurities that have a profound effect on who we are and how we live our lives.

Having gone from a VHS to a Blu-Ray copy, I can tell you that there is a vast difference in video quality. The colors are more brilliant and vibrant. And the soundtrack sounds crisper, clearer.

I also enjoyed seeing all the bonus features—most of which were already on the DVD release, but I had yet to see. You’ll get to see Buzz’s mission logs, studio stories, deleted scenes, a tribute to Joe Ranft, and Black Friday: a version of Toy Story that never made it to film.

Your Task

Have a Toy Story play date with your children. Visit your local toy store and pick up a few action figures or doll (or pull them from your older children’s toy boxes), create a buffet with snacks that a spaceman and a cowboy would eat, invite your children’s friends over, and plop in the films. After the film, allow the children to use their imaginations by creating their own Toy Story films. Ask them to create a little play, then video tape it, and play it back to them.