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Toy Story 3 (Four-Disc Blu-ray/DVD Combo + Digital Copy) Review

"Toy Story" was about sibling rivalry. "Toy Story 2" was about loving others, even if it means you might get hurt someday.

So what is "Toy Story 3" about? It takes the whole "kids + loyal toys" theme to its natural conclusion, by showing us what happens when the kids grow up and leave. While the first two-thirds of the movie are fairly pedestrian (for a Pixar movie!), the last part is both action-packed and emotionally wrenching.

Ten years have passed, and Andy is now a college-bound teenager. His toys are anxious about what's going to happen, so Woody keeps assuring them that they'll be put safely in the attic. But a misunderstanding leads to a date with the garbage truck. Since the toys believe they have been abandoned, they jump into the box of donated toys bound for Sunnyside Daycare.

They're greeted by the genial Lots-o'-Hugging Bear (aka Lotso) and the friendly daycare toys, and all seems to be well. But Andy's toys soon discover that Sunnyside is a nighmare -- they've been assigned the "Caterpillar Room" for wild abusive toddlers, and Lotso is the Godfatheresque overlord of the daycare. Once Woody learns the true horrors of Sunnyside, he must infiltrate the daycare and somehow get his friends out.

You know that the movie industry is officially in a slump when the cleverest, funniest and most touching movie of the summer... is a CGI sequel about toys. "Toy Story 3" starts off rather lightweight at first, with the toys being brought into Sunnyside and Woody setting off in another direction.

But once Lotso is revealed as the villain, the movie takes a sharp turn -- it becomes a clever, complex "Great Escape"-style caper, with some moments of G-rated horror (THE MONKEY!) and hilarity (resetting Buzz ends up turning him into a flamenco-dancing suave Spaniard). And while the toys' attempted escape from Sunnyside is taut and genuinely thrilling, it's only the START of the climax -- a harrowing, genuinely scary chase scene that brings the toys together.

And there's a bittersweet core to "Toy Story 3": kids grow up, leave home and the people/toys they leave behind are both proud and sad. In the final scenes of the movie,we're quietly ushered through the emotional goodbyes and hellos of growing up.

And the adorable little cast of toys still remind us that what matters most is love and loyalty, particularly during a deadly crisis where they all fearfully join hands (it sounds sappy, but it isn't). There's also some endearing additions to the cast -- the foppish clotheshorse Ken, Big Baby, a Totoro, a giggly tricerotops, and the Shakespearean stuffed hedgehog Mr. Pricklepants.

Anyway, this blu-ray/DVD combo has a wealth of extras -- trailers teasers, theatrical shorts (oh look, Night and Day are scuffling!), "Cine-emplore," commentary, lots of making-ofs, behind the scenes stuff like "A Toy's Eye View: Creating A Whole New Land," a music video, and just lots of endearing odds and ends like Ken's dating tips. Er...

It hurts to say goodbye to Woody, Buzz and their friends, but "Toy Story 3" is a fitting farewell that brings the trilogy full circle. Best movie of the summer, hands down.

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Customer Reviews

TOY STORY 3!! - Josh Belford - Lakewood, OH USA
Toy Story was my all-time favorite movie when it first came out, and Im 22 now and it still is to this day, it still blows my mind that they made a 3rd one!! Toy Story 3 was such an incredibly awesome movie (no doubts that it would be any different), and I lit up like I was a kid again when Woody (my favorite character) first walked on the screen. TS3 is an amazing and perfect ending to an unbelievably awesome franchise, and I cannot wait to own it! Itll be my first ever Blu-Ray purchase, and who could ask for a better first!

Pixar does it Again!!! No Toy Gets Left Behind!!! - Don Vito Corleone - Sleeping with the Fishes
Watching TS3 the day it premiered, I realized that Pixar has become the greatest movie studio of all time. Don't get me wrong, I always considered it one of the best but I want it to see how they will manage a second sequel of a beloved franchise. Well, they manage it brilliantly and TS3 has become a crowning achievement in Pixar's great catalogue. So far has been 11/11. Perfect in every way.

TS3 reunites us with our favorites toys and they haven't age one day. But in reality Andy has and now they face a grim prospect of being neglected or worse, destroyed. I won't give any plot detalis but let me tell you that this movie make me cry. And I never cry in a picture. Never!! Not even in Up in that wonderful beginning, but TS3 did it. The ending is bittersweet and beautiful at the same time. Needless to say the animation is superb, the cast is awesome and the story is excellent. I feel sorry for How to Train Your Dragon because it is a terrific film but can't compare to TS3. It's the year's best and I think no film this year will top it. Thank you Pixar and thank you Woody, Buzz and the others for once again making us live a wonderful experience. Congratulations.

*** Product Information and Prices Stored: Aug 24, 2010 23:38:04

Animation

Tuesday, August 24, 2010