Synopsis: The toys are mistakenly delivered to a day-care center instead of the attic right before Andy leaves for college, and it's up to Woody to convince the other toys that they weren't abandoned and to return home, because all isn't what it seems at the day-care.Going into this I really had no doubt I'd probably love this film, as a huge fan of the first 2 and about as big of a Pixar fan as you can find, which was a lot of expectations to live up to. They didn't let me down and brought this trilogy to a level that probably on a few of trilogies match on my list.
As usual, the story is usually the real star and the difference in most other animated movies. It's touching, hilarious and a timeless tale, but the beauty is in how it's told. It takes you back to your childhood often... all somehow within what amounts to just another prison break movie.
Most of the great toys are back from the first 2 movies, plus the addition of some memorable new ones... a mean old stuff bear named Lots-O'-Huggin' Bear (aka Lotso), a large creepy baby doll called Big Baby, Chuckles the clown and a hilarious Ken doll to name a few. The best new character though I thought is a new young girl named Bonnie, who is just a beautiful slice of our childhood. Her imagination and the way she is portrayed just somehow makes you forget how crappy the world can be just for a few hours. And while technically not a new character, there's a Spanish version of Buzz who steals quite a few scenes and is laugh-out-loud funny.
The film as a whole is just very imaginative, clever, comical and just cute as it can be. I honestly think it's a masterpiece and one of my favorite films in a long time.
I don't normally quote other sources, but this is just perfect from the excellent Scotsman review site... "It's a sign of Pixar's ongoing brilliance that even when there would appear to be no real need for another Toy Story sequel the studio delivers one that feels utterly essential." That hits the slinky dog right on the head.
9.5/10
