‘Toy Story 4’ Review

This review contains SPOILERS for Toy Story 4

I guess this is the weekend for new additions to franchises about living toys that I have a personal relationship with.

So like most kids my age, I grew up with the Toy Story series. I’ve seen the original two countless times, and Toy Story 3 still makes me cry. I lived happily for years knowing that Buzz, Woody, and the whole gang lived happily ever after with Bonnie. I didn’t need or want Toy Story 4. I’m not im charge of Pixar though, and there’s no way I wasn’t going to see this. If I saw Dark Phoenix opening weekend, I was definitely going to see this.

I uh…kind of love this movie? A lot? I was literally crying in the first 10 minutes of the movie, and the ending left me an emotional wreck. We didn’t need this movie, but it’s a damn good epilogue to what might be the most consistently great film series ever.

The movie opens with a flashback to how Bo Peep went away between the second and third movies. Basically, she was sold to some guy who wanted the lamp she was part of. Then it’s followed by a montage that goes from then to the end of the third movie. I got emotional seeing Andy hand off the gang to Bonnie again, ESPECIALLY because it was set to “You Got a Friend in Me.” Those bastards at Pixar knew exactly what they were doing. It was so obviosu but so fucking effective.

Anyways, we then cut to not long after 3, and we see that Woody is not Bonnie’s favorite toy. As a matter of fact, Woody’s left in the closet while everyone else gets played with. He doesn’t get to be the leader either, since Dolly already fills that role in Bonnie’s room. Aside from his old friends, Woody has nothing. He’s not the favorite anymore, he doesn’t have any say in things, and he doesn’t even have Andy. In a desperate attempt to be helpful, he sneaks into Bonnie’s backpack and secretly helps her make a friend at school.

Literally make a friend.

Enter Forky, the greatest character ever made. Forky is an art & crafts Frankenstein’s monster whose primarily made out of a plastic spork. He somehow comes to life, and immediately wants to kill himself.

…

Okay, he wants to go in the trash, but close enough. Bonnie fucking loves Forky, so Woody has to constantly make sure he’s not in the trash can or dead. At one point, while on a road trip, Forky jumps out the fucking window and Woody goes after him. He finds him, and they have a long walk to the RV. Along the way, Woody tells Forky what it means to be a toy, and tells him his life story. After this, Forky understands that he has to be there for Bonnie. When they eventually catch up, Woody sees that the antique store nearby has Bo’s lamp and goes in. There they meet Gabby Gabby and her gang of creepy ventriloquist dummies. You see, Gabby Gabby is an old toy with a talking gimmick. However, her voice box is broken, and she believes if it’s fixed she can get a kid. Woody happens to be a toy from the same era, and he has a perfectly functioning voice box. Boom, conflict.

Woody is able to escape, but Gabby holds Forky hostage. Eventually, Woody runs into Bo Peep, who’s now a badass lost toy who doesn’t want a kid. The basic story for the rest of the movie is everyone trying to get Forky back to Bonnie. Along the way, Woody is confronted with the idea that he hasn’t gotten over Andy, and that Bonnie doesn’t need him. By the end of the movie he…

He….

Fuck I’m gonna cry.

He *sniff* learns that he can move on, and um…Woody and the rest of the gang have split up…and they all say goodbye and hug each other. Woody and Buzz hug and say goodbye…

Woody *sniff* stays with Bo and the fucking…the fucking last line of the movie is Buzz saying “to infinity…” and then Woody says “…and beyond.”

So uh, that shit hurted. It’s a beautifully bittersweet ending to a series that’s been with me since I was a baby. Seeing Buzz and Woody split felt like saying goodbye to old friends. No matter what happened in life, I knew Buzz and Woody were together and having adventures with the other classic toys. Now they’re not, and it genuinely hurts. But I’m also glad to see Woody truly move on. He deserves to live his own life and be happy.

I could talk about other things in this movie. I could talk about how great Keanu Reeves is as Duke Kaboom. I could elaborate on how great it was to see Key and Peele reunite as Ducky and Bunny. Hell, I can touch on the weird running gag about Buzz’s inner voice. But right now, none of that’s not important to me. What’s important to me is that Woody got a happy ending, and even though it hurts, I’m happy he got it.

So yeah, I’m glad Pixar made Toy Story 4.