The wizards at Pixar understand toys better than just about anyone on the planet, which means they can craft jokes that are told from the skewed point of view of a toy but that are also instantly accessible to the rest of us because it’s so obvious this is how you’d behave if you were a Slinky or a Mr. It’s a soulful movie, but it’s also very nearly as funny as the earlier “Toy” movies are. The decision to up the ante is a good one, and it pays off big in the satisfying finale, which had me bawling at least as much as “2” did when Jessie sang about the child who deserted her. As they are painted, pummeled and tossed, their very lives are at stake. Some earlier themes continue in “3”: What is the job of a toy? What loyalty does its owner owe? But there’s even more at stake in “Toy Story 3” than in the previous films because it’s not just a matter of whether the toys will get to hang out with Andy. Meanwhile, a trio of new characters, who have a unique approach to being played with, are so side-splittingly funny in their brief scene I don’t want to wreck the joke by telling you what they do. And cowgirl Jessie’s impulsiveness takes her in a brand new direction. Woody’s steadfastness becomes even stronger in “3.” He, alone among the residents of the toy chest, is positive Andy did not mean to ship them off to Attica Preschool (or whatever it’s called). Our familiarity with classic toys means we understand new characters almost instantly (would it surprise you to know that Ken’s vanity is easily exploited?), which also leaves time for the returning characters to deepen and grow. In fact, the genius of the “Toy Story” movies is their ability to keep finding new dimensions of the characters.
Woody resolves to bust them out in a series of thrilling action sequences that feature narrow escapes, a dastardly villain, unexpected heroism and a hitherto uninvestigated setting for spaceman toy Buzz Lightyear.
It’s a prison escape movie, essentially, except that the prison is a day care center where the toddler inmates are ripping the toys - sent there by mistake - limb from limb. The new “Toy Story” is more of a straight-ahead adventure than its predecessors.
I’ve spent the past month trying to tamp down my expectations because, really, how could Pixar continue its never-make-a-bad-movie streak? And how can it possibly follow up the fantastic “Toy Story” and the even better “Toy Story 2”? Turns out the answer to both of those questions is: Brilliantly. “Toy Story 3” is not just playing around.