Toy Story 2

December 10, 2004

Rated: G Runtime: 92 min Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Ahh, finally a movie that lives up to its hype! Maybe it’s a stretch to rate Toy Story 2 as a guy movie, but since some of you have kids and will have to see this one anyway we decide to give it a look.

Turns out that Disney/Pixar has done it again, they’ve made a children’s movie that will also appeal to the kid in all of us. By keeping the animation bright and lively and the story simple it keeps the kids entertained. And by making sly references to other movies and darn funny one-liners they keep the adults laughing right along with the kids.

For those of you who are not familiar with Toy Story let me give you a brief rundown on the characters. First there’s Woody (Tom Hanks), a cowboy with a pull string that lets him say cryptic things like “there’s a snake in my boots” when humans are around. Woody is Andy’s favorite toy and as such is the quasi-leader of all the toys in Andy’s room. Andy as you have guessed right now is the child who owns all these toys. Buzz Lightyear (Tim Allen) is Galactic Superhero and is the latest addition to Andy’s collection.

The first movie dealt with the addition of Buzz to the mix and the ensuing feelings of uselessness that Woody felt. Buzz also didn’t realize he was a toy which made for some highly amusing scenes as he attempted to fly and use his spacesuits various gadgets. In the end Buzz got a clue and he and Woody became good friends.

The second installment in the Toy Story series starts with Woody frantically looking for his hat. See, it’s time for Cowboy camp and Woody is looking forward to going to camp with Andy so they can have some quality time together. After the hat is recovered, Andy arrives on the scene to play with his toys for a few minutes before heading off to camp. Unfortunately for Woody, Andy accidentally rips Woody’s arm at the seam and has to leave Woody behind.

YARD SALE! Seems that while Andy is gone to camp his mom takes the opportunity to get rid of old toys by way of a yard sale. She takes Weezy, a squeaking penguin with a broken squeaker, to be sold and of course Woody has to make a rescue attempt. Well, one thing leads to another and Woody is skirted away by a less than honest toy collector. Buzz can’t stand for this of course, so he puts together a rescue party and starts the search for Woody.

The animation is top notch as expected, and the story moves along at a pretty good pace. The only complaint is the one song they decided to put in. Sometimes songs in Disney movies are OK, most of the time they are used to just keep the kids entertained and while we do learn some useful information during this one, I would have preferred a regular narrative. At least there was only one song… Otherwise the movie is near perfect, and we get to learn the truth about Buzz Lightyear’s father in a classic scene!

My suggestion is to see it during a late night showing to minimize the number of small children in the theater, but it is definitely worth checking out.

Posted by John | Filed Under 4 Stars, Comedy, Don Rickles, G, Jim Varney, Theatrical, Tim Allen, Tom Hanks, Wallace Shawn