TOY STORY 2 RATING: 8 /10 --> Great Movie
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Listen, I am going to admit right up front that I am not a big fan of animation films, and wasn't a particularly over-enthused admirer of the first part of this Pixar duo of film, but gosh darned if I wasn't bowled over like the rest of those over and under grown kids in the theatre tonite!
PLOT: Woody the cowboy is stolen from Andy his owner, and it is up to Buzz Lightyear and the rest of those nutty toy friends of his to save his wooden ass. During his abduction, Woody meets a few of his older friends from his days as a TV star and is suddenly faced with the tough decision of remaining with them and preserving his legacy forever, or returning to his rightful owner, who is bound to get rid of him any year now.
CRITIQUE: A rollickin' great lil' fun adventure for newborns, children, kids, teenagers, young adults, parents, grandpas and grandmas alike. It doesn't take much for one to enjoy themselves with this movie. It's got fantastic effects, a fun story, likeable characters, an upbeat soundtrack, a decent runtime and toys, toys and more toys. And what an adventure they get into here. Indiana Jones could take lessons from some of these cartoon munchkins. >From its opening scene, which is one of the cooler action animated sequences that I have ever seen on film, to the last twenty minutes of the movie which just rattle from one humdingin' close call after another. This film has got everything that its original had and more, including one really cute new toy named Jessie. Va-va-voom! What an adorably cute doll! They even toss in a decent "touching" scene for effect. Pretty cool. Now folks, please don't get me wrong here.
This film is not a revolution of the medium of film. I mean, honestly speaking, the animation isn't a thousand times better than the original or anything, but does remain quite spectacular on the big screen. But if you happen to be reading this review a few years after the film's original release, you may just scoff at my enthusiasm since the leaps and bounds which continue to be made in this burgeoning industry seem to leave much of their own ancestry flying in the wind. Buuuuut, at this point in time, I can honestly say that this film was a positively enjoyable treat. In fact, the first film seems more like a "set-up" for this one, a sketchpad used to clarify the actual creation of this complete animated "movie". In fact, most of this film takes place on the "outside" of the room in which the human being characters have become eerily lifelike. I can't wait until they start creating computer-generated pictures starring human characters in extraordinary situations...wow, things are really gonna be nuts! All in all, kudos to everyone associated with this exciting new-age cartoon adventure sure to satisfy all lighthearted people looking for a good time.
Of course, the biggest handshake should be reserved for the genius who actually thought to come up with an idea for a cartoon film based on the actual merchandise of the film (i.e. the toys)!! Wow, now what kind of merchandising exposure do you think we could get with this one, boss?!? Yikes, laughing all the way to the toy bank, eh fellas?
Little Known Facts about this film and its stars: Various references to other films pepper this flick with at least three blatant homages including the one right off the top playing the theme to 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY. There is also a pretty cool photocopied shot of the dinosaur running after a jeep, as seen through the side-view mirror, a la JURASSIC PARK and one of the funniest moments of the film for me, which was a beautiful tip of the hat to the STAR WARS trilogy, involved Buzz' final confrontation with Zurg. I won't say any more. A couple of new celebrity voices have joined the fray in this film including the always adorable Joan Cusack as the ever adorable Jessie and Kelsey Grammer as Stinky Pete the Prospector. And let's not forget Newman! That's Wayne Knight as the voice of Al McWhiggin, the evil antique toy collector. Brrrrrr. Director John Lasseter was also the man behind Pixar's first original computer generated film called LUXO JR. in 1986. That film involved a smaller, younger lamp bouncing around after a ball, while the older lamp looked after it. That short "lamp" film was obviously very special to the people at Pixar, since they've made it part of their visual logo before each of their films. In 1996, Lasseter received a Special Achievement Award at the Academy Awards, for the development and inspired application of techniques that have made possible the first feature-length computer-animated film. He also directed TOY STORY and A BUG'S LIFE.
Review Date: November 30, 1999 Director: John Lasseter Co-Directors: Ash Brannon and Lee Unkrich Writers: Andrew Stanton, Rita Hsiao, Doug Chamberlain and Chris Webb Producer: Sarah McArthur Actors: Tom Hanks as Woody Tim Allen as Buzz Lightyear Genre: Animation Year of Release: 1999 --------------------------------------- JoBlo's Movie Emporium http://www.joblo.com --------------------------------------- (c) 1999 Berge Garabedian
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