Toy Story 3 (2010)
The first film broke the mold, with its tale of living toys and unshakeable friendship, until the second one came out and surprised us all, with its new characters and darkly disturbing backstories. Nothing prepared us for number 3, though. Number 3 reminded us that childhood doesn’t last forever, then it took us to the edge of the dark abyss, had us take a good long look over the precipice, and yanked us back – only to leave us behind and drive off into the sunset. The biggest, scariest roller-coaster on earth has nothing on Toy Story 3.
After a heart-rending montage of Andy growing up while playing with his beloved toys – Woody, Buzz, Jessie, Bullseye, and the gang – we find that he is soon heading off to college. The question then becomes, what will he do with his toy collection that has remained in the chest in his bedroom? It is this turn of events that lead to the group of toys trying to make a new life for themselves at a day-care facility – and quickly realizing that they are trapped under an oppressive and corrupt dictatorship. Their attempts to escape see them face greater peril than ever before, as years of petty squabbles and disagreements are stripped away until the whole thing boils down to just love and survival. And then, Andy is gone.
Because it contains far more emotional depth than any of its predecessors, the stakes are inevitably higher in Toy Story 3. As Andy has grown up, so has the franchise – cramming its finale with the need to cope with unavoidable change, and the importance of letting go. It’s beautiful, and devastating – and absolutely the better sequel in the series.
