Sheriff Woody (Tom Hanks) has always been devoted to his child – first Andy and now Bonnie (Madeleine McGraw). Even when the girl notoriously skips him at play, he guards her happy childhood. Before Bonnie, the first days of school are extremely stressful for a little girl. Skinny decides to accompany her to a new place and make a difficult start. A lonely and depressed girl creates Cutlery (Tony Hale), a toy made of rubbish dug out of the class trash by Skinny. The toy does not know, however, that it is not garbage, but the girl’s new companion. The cowboy is faced with the difficult task of convincing Cutter that the basket is not the best place for him. Soon after, Bonnie’s parents take their daughter on a trip. There, Chudy meets his old love, given years ago by Andy’s mother to a new owner – Bo Peep (Annie Potts). Meanwhile, The Trick is kidnapped by Gabby Gabby (Christina Hendricks), who is in charge of a local antique store.
The starting point is therefore similar to the previous parts of the series. Skinny will learn more about the toy life, and before he accepts the new possibilities, he will have to save another toy, bringing it back to its owner at the last minute. Toy Story 4 remains a story about the power of friendship, loyalty, the struggle to exist in someone’s life, and at the same time leaving your own comfort zone and opening up to new perspectives. All of this has already happened in the previous parts, and the plot scheme itself will not surprise fans of the series either. But Pixar managed to breathe old magic into the fourth installment of the toy world, adding new energy to it, while maintaining universal values. Therefore, Josh Cooley’s film charms with exactly the same unique and unrepeatable atmosphere as the previous three parts.
If you can fault anything, it’s not using old toys that made their debut in the first two installments of the series. There is definitely not enough on screen for Thin, Rex, Mr. and Mrs. Tubers, and also Jessie. Even Buzz has little to do without even getting a plot of his own. Instead, we get to know a few new characters, such as the great Sztuka, Buniek and Kwak, a pair of inseparable stuffed animals with crazy ideas, as well as a small but with a big heart policewoman Giggle McDimples and traumatized, narcissistic Duke Kaboom. Bo Peep, absent in the third installment, also returns, becoming the most important ****** of the toy universe. This character has gone through an interesting path: from the narrow role of Skinny kissing in the first part, to a strong, brave and independent woman with a high social status. Her story has also been shown in an interesting way, so her transformation is not surprising.
No “Toy Story” can do without the ambiguous, intrinsically complex main “evil”. This time it is Gabby Gabby, whose motivations are known from the very beginning. Before she tries to achieve her goal, however, we learn about her sad fate and a child’s strong desire to love so strong that she will go to any trick to achieve her goal. At the end of her story, the classic Pixar enters, which does not spare anyone in emotion. Maybe it is not the same level as in the “three”, but many people will have tears in their eyes. Even more so than in the last scene, which turns out to be the finale of the story for one of the toys.
Nobody can compete with Pixar in terms of quality, but also the artistic vision of the visual setting. Together with the toy heroes, we go to an amusement park that is breathtaking with colors and attention to the smallest details. The Disney-owned studio pushes the boundaries of photorealistic graphics in computer animation. Each of their films is getting better in this respect, and so much so that it seems that it can’t get any better. After which Pixar releases its next production to theaters and you have to pick it up again from the floor with your jaws. This time the level of the graphic design is at such a level that I had problems following the plot, because I was focusing on the details of the surroundings (dust!), Textures and materials of various objects, and above all, perfect lighting and reflections on the surfaces. This is definitely a movie for visual purists.
I do not know if this is the last part of “Toy Story”, but if it is, then “four” closes the series in a great way. It may not be as complete as the ending of the third installment, but it is satisfying on many levels. Toy Story 4 is therefore worthy of its great predecessors, even if we treat it only as an epilogue of the adventures of Skinny and the rest of the toys. Regardless of age, it is worth letting yourself be carried away by the adventure in the toy world once again, even if you will have to go to the cinema to the end of the world and even further.
