Pixar is my favourite movie production company. Producing continuously
successful films year by year proves that Pixar is truly one of the greats.
Before they created their first feature-length film, they were making a strand
of shorts, which were purely designed to test out their full potential. Studying
how things work before implementing them into their animation via newly created
specialised software, they are steadily increasing the bar’s height with each new
film, sometimes beating the limit that they set themselves.
In 1995, Pixar did something that no one thought was possible.
They created the very first computer animated feature-length film. The moment that
Toy Story hit the cinema, it was met with universal critical acclaim, winning
many awards over the years, including a BAFTA (British Academy Film Awards) for
“best achievement in Special Visual Effects in 1997. In 2009, the film was
re-released in 3D along with Toy Story 2, just before Toy Story 3 hit cinemas.
In 1999, Toy Story 2 came out, again being met with widespread
critical acclaim. Both Tom Hanks, who plays Woody, and Tom Allen, who plays
Buzz, reprised their roles. Some critics were saying that it wasn’t as great as
the first, but I have to disagree and say that it was just as awesome. In the
four years since the first was released, Pixar had learnt so many more skills
and Toy Story 2 certainly shows just how many they have learnt.
It wouldn’t be until 2010 when Toy Story 3 hit cinemas. In between
films, the studio have released a number of incredible films, including Finding
Nemo, The Incredibles, Ratatouille, WALL-E, and UP, among others. Every single
film was met with praise and admiration for the level of detail each film had.
Pixar hit the ground running and were able to stay balanced to keep going. When
Toy Story 3 came out, a whole new generation was going to see it, along with
those that had grown up and fell in love with the characters. Across the world,
people were getting teary eyed as the Toys went on what was their biggest
adventure yet, and to finish it with them moving on.
Today, I would like to explore my top 6 moments from the
franchise. I combed through the films, carefully picking out the moments that
stuck with me the most. I’m choosing six because I felt those are the moments
that leapt into the list naturally, and I felt that by thinking about whether putting
a moment in might be forcing its inclusion, so I left it at six. The hardest
part was trying to organise the six moments into a descending list from the
least to the best moment.
Here are my six favourite moments from the Toy Story franchise. If
you feel have a moment that sticks with you but wasn’t on the list, I would
love to know what they are.
Number 6:
Woody saves Jessie from the plane
(Toy Story 2)
When Toy Story came out, I was only five years old at the time –
which means when I was only one year old when Toy Story 1 came out, but that’s
not the point right now – so when I saw it, I was just watching it because I
found it was something I wanted to watch at the time, but one of the moments
that stood out the most for me was when Woody was riding on the back of
Bullseye along the runway to save Jessie from the cargo hold of a plane that
was heading to a faraway place.
It was a dramatic conclusion, filled with tension throughout to
keep you nailed to your chair, but also with small touches of comedy and
emotion to keep the scene moving perfectly. Now that I am all grown up, I can
full appreciate that scene for all it’s worth, and it is worth every bit of my
attention every single time.
Number 5:
Woody gets cleaned up
(Toy Story 2)
Another scene from the second movie. As I grew up, this scene
started to overtake the previous scene in quality, because it was so satisfying
to watch. When Andy is playing, Woody’s arm accidentally gets torn. This leads
him to be put on the shelf where all the broken toys are put in the hope that
they will get fixed, but he meets another toy who tells him that he has been broken
for a long time now and he hasn’t yet gotten fixed. One day, Andy’s mum enters
his room to search for anything suitable for the garage sale that the family
was having, and she picks the penguin that Woody had befriended whilst on the
shelf. Woody immediately snaps into action to rescue his friend, which unfortunately
for him, winds him up in the hands of a collector who has been searching for
Woody for some time. The collector notices that Woody is damaged, and so hires
a professional to fix him.
I really don’t have anything else to say other than that it is incredibly
satisfying to watch.
Number 4:
Falling with Style
(Toy Story 1)
Nearing the end of the first film, when Woody and Buzz had escaped
from Sid’s house, they must rush to meet up with all the other toys in the
moving truck. By this time, Woody and Buzz had become friends and were working
together. They try desperately to reunite with the other toys, which includes
them racing on the toy car, only for it to run out of battery. All hope seems
lost, but not for long when Woody remembers that he has a match stashed in his
pocket, which he uses to light Buzz’s rocket which was attached to the back of Buzz
by Sid in the hope to launch him into the air for his own entertainment. The
rocket ignites, sending them soaring faster than ever towards the moving truck.
Throughout the film, Buzz thought he was a real space ranger who
believes he can actually fly. Just before Woody and Buzz team up to beat Sid,
Buzz finds out via an emotional scene that he is just a toy that isn’t meant to
be flown. However, when the rocket’s power launches Woody and Buzz into the air
and lets them go, Buzz does fly. Or rather, he’s falling with style.
The entire event of them trying to reunite with the toys is pretty
awesome in on itself, but the best part with at the very end when Woody and Buzz
do make it back to Andy who believes he has lost his two favourite toys for
good. It is truly a happy moment. I remember when I lost my toys, and the joy
when I found them again. That moment was perfectly replicated when Andy got his
toy back.
Number 3:
Jessie’s song
(Toy Story 2)
No one saw this moment coming. Through the power of song, Jessie
tells Woody and the audience how she came to be abandoned. The raw power of her
voice, soft music, and the story within that song hits us so hard.
Jessie’s owner growing up and therefore not wanting to play with
her anymore is one of the most heart-breaking moments throughout the franchise,
this one certainly standing tall on top, weeping.
Number 2:
The toys think this is the end
(Toy Story 3)
It is their biggest adventure yet. The toys are trapped on a
conveyor belt leading to an incinerator. They try hard to escape, but are
unable to. All of them are scared. Jessie asks Buzz what they are going to do,
but Buzz looks at her with helplessness, silently telling her that there is nothing
they can do. Buzz reaches over and takes Jessie’s hand for support. All the
toys accept that there is nothing they can do, and for their final moments,
bond together.
This is one of the most emotional scenes throughout the entire
franchise. All the toys accept that it is their end. They have come so far, but
now it’s all over. Woody knows this and takes Buzz’s hand. They then stare at
the incinerator as they wait. Mr Potato Head and his Wife, Ms Potato Head hug
each other for support, Hamm closes his eyes unable to watch what’s about to
happen, so does Jessie as she rests he head on Buzz’s shoulder.
The tense music score over the top added to the tension of the
situation. I truly believed that it was going to be the end, even though I
already knew beforehand that they were going to be OK. I was awash with so many
emotions, the impact that scene had on me and the rest of the audience was
incredible. It was hard not to get teary eyed in this scene.
I breathed a very large sigh of relief when the aliens saved them
with the claw.
In that scene, Pixar showed once more just how great they are when
it comes to making films. I don’t know how many objects there are in that incinerator,
but having each and every single on having solidity and moving realistically,
that is another reason why this scene makes this list.
Number 1:
Andy moves on
(Toy Story 3)
Don’t get me wrong, the incinerator scene is incredibly emotional,
but nothing compares to the moment when Andy says goodbye to Woody and the
gang.
Our generation has grown up with Andy and so to say goodbye to him
is of course going to be difficult to digest properly. I think everyone in the
cinema was crying. It was the end of an era. He has all grown up and is moving
to university. But he doesn’t throw them away, he gives them to someone who he
believes will look after them properly, just like he did.
His words also relayed what we all were thinking. His toys meant a
lot to him, as they did to us. Woody has been our pal for as long as we can
remember.
It was the perfect ending to a perfect story.
I say was, because in 2018, Pixar will be releasing Toy Story 4.
This announcement has been met with mixed reviews because how number 3 ended,
but I believe that Pixar will do a good job in creating a good story that will
keep us hooked to the screen. It would be the start of a brand new era, and
that paths the way for new adventures. So, Toy Story 3 did end perfectly, all
we can hope is the next adventure is going to be just as great as all the
others.
Thanks for reading
Antony Hudson
(TonyHadNouns)
My book, Sector 22: Zoey, is now available on Amazon, eBay, and SkyCat Publications' website:
Amazon:
eBay:
SkyCat Publications:
Ask me anything at:
ahudsonpresents@live.co.uk
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