Toy Story 4 was just shy of a monumental let down. Being of the generation who grew up watching the Toy Story films as they were being created, the first Toy Story movie was as much of a monument to my childhood as it was to Pixar itself, being their first animated feature film. The sequel was a good exploration of Woody's character background (and a nod to all the avid collectors out there) and the third was a beautiful tear jerker that saw our beloved toys both nearly destroyed and wonderfully saved by a new future with a new owner to love and treasure them just like we all do.
Toy Story 4 did NOT fit this beloved story arc much at all. To begin, the marketing for the film was clearly doing their best to scrounge up whatever bits they could from what was believed to be these new and hilarious characters that were now the focus of this final chapter (especially Sporky). Wrong! Sporky, Bunny, and Ducky were hilarious absolutely hilarious, but their shortcomings simply fall to poor writing (and no fault of the actors themselves, I am a big Key and Peele fan). Their minute roles made them out to simply be humorous extras who appear every now and then for a quick one-liner then promptly exit the scene until the next appointed moment of comic relief. What a waste of some great characters that could've potentially brought some fresh new perspectives to the table of what life is like for toys.
The separation of Bo Peep and Woody gave so much heartbreaking life to their simple romance from the previous films that her return was expected to be nothing less of a glorious and romantic reunion. Wrong! Instead Woody's feelings for her slowly fizzle as she chooses a life of strong independence over love. Strong women who can fend for themselves are certainly honorable and deserve great respect, but being in love with someone doesn't make them weak. In fact, love actually strengthens people more often than not. It was simply a shame to see a great love relationship be friend-zoned simply because Bo Peep jumped on the "I don't need no man!" train.
Take those things, throw in some of Buzz listening to his own pre-recorded toy playtime sayings as if they were his conscience, a lot more direct involvement between the living toys and the humans, the fact that 90% of the film takes place in literally two settings (a carnival and an antique store that they return to at least 4 times), and then add a unicorn infatuated with the idea of sending Molly's dad to jail just to top it all off.
Truly, the one good story in this movie is that of the new character Gabby Gabby. Gabby's character arc was indeed one to be enjoyed, from the outwardly evil appearance stemming from her genuinely selfish intent that leads you to believe she is the antagonist, to how her story suddenly takes not one but two unexpected turns and ends up reminding us once again how toys can make such an immense impact on the imagination, emotion, and comfort of children. It's a shame that such a moving chain of events was embodied within one minor character instead of the whole film.
Bottom line, if you're a big fan of the previous three movies and are expecting this to give you that same fun-loving and heartwarming feel, dont, this movie is not for you. The film is certainly entertaining, funny, and interesting, but it by no means feels like a Toy Story movie, and especially not the conclusion of it all. By the end of it, we see our once beloved characters choosing paths that just don't seem to fit who we know and love them to be. It would've been wise for Pixar to leave it at a beautiful trilogy that starts well, ends well, and leaves us feeling like we all miss the days of when our daytime hours were spent with toys and imagination. It's just very sad that such a feature film would come from the team that managed to make a hilarious Toy Story short film about a support group of rejected kids meal toys (It's on Disney Plus, called "Small Fry", check it out). Where was that clever creative genius? Unfortunately, Pixar's current creative team clearly ran out of ideas and decided to try and further milk a story that had already been finished, thus leaving the audience with the taste of old, sour milk in its mouth.
