Evan D. After the surprise of Toy Story 4, I am out of the business of doubting whether Woody, Buzz, Jessie and the gang have any juice left in their batteries. To do so would run counter to what’s always been at the core of this franchise; the existential worry that a parent will eventually be outgrown by their kids, that they’ll become obsolete. Each chapter of this particular story deals with this to some extent — Will new age Buzz replace old school Woody? Is there some utopia out there where you’ll never be outgrown? What purpose do you serve when a kid no longer needs you? Toy Story 5 tackles obsolescence more directly than any film since the first one by finally bringing screens into the picture. It isn’t that tech has never existed in the Toy Story universe. Andy had a spelling machine in the original Toy Story and video games in the second installment. But until now, the long running Pixar series had not addressed where so many kids are right now: glued to an iPad. Now 8 years old, Bonnie is still as imaginative and playful as ever. Jessie (Joan Cusack) has taken over as the favorite toy — Forky and Dolly take a decidedly backseat role — with a mission to help to her shy girl make friends with the kids across the street. Bonnie’s human parents, as in over their heads as ever, do see their daughter’s loneliness and diagnose it as her lack of tech. Reluctantly they allow Bonnie to join all the other neighborhood kids online by gifting her a Leap Frog-esque LilyPad (Greta Lee) device. Much like Buzz (Tim Allen) and the space age ushering in the extinction of Woody’s (Tom Hanks) old west, LilyPad represents a massive turning point in the life of her new kid. Instantly Bonnie is glued to the screen but finding that her new online friends still aren’t so friendly towards her. In typical Toy Story fashion, the gang has to grapple with where they fit into this new order and what it means to see their kid outgrow them right before their eyes. Although Toy Story 5 is reminiscent of the franchise’s origins thematically, directors Andrew Stanton and Kenna Harris inject some freshness into it stylistically. Sequences of play now take on a new animation designs that paints the scenes and characters in a dreamlike whimsy. As Pixar reaches the limits of realism in their house style, the change injects a delightful bit of wonder into the proceedings. For whatever message the film has to relay, it does so with a beautiful flair. What Toy Story 5 has to say is where things get more contentious. Certainly there is no talking about modern childhood without exploring the ways in which technology has absolutely obliterated any previous understanding of play for those kids growing up online. Here Stanton and Harris take a refreshingly nuanced look at the role devices play in development. LilyPad isn’t purely villainous and as she comes to understand the ways in which she has brought pain to Bonnie, she is willing to change course and help. These kids glued to their screens are hooked into an ecosystem designed for addiction. If Woody thought he couldn’t compete with a posable action figure, how could any toy contend with this. But without tech as the villain, the film struggles somewhat with where to point the finger. There is a clear problem as all these kids are visibly frying their brains while their parents are too caught up on screens themselves. What to do about this is less of an open question Toy Story 5 ponders than a can it kicks down the road. Bonnie is only 8, tech as part of a balanced play diet is only tenable for so long. Of course, nobody expects the film to have all the answers about reducing dependence on screens, but the stasis our hero’s are left in feels regressive after Toy Story 4’s broadening of what a toy can even be. Some of the more general problems with the franchise do emerge here as well. Toy Story creatives have never really had a great grasp of what to do with Buzz after the first installment. Usually that means some sort of factory reset or mindless clone. In Toy Story 5 there is a significant subplot involving a horde of internet connected Lightyear toys, a thread that often derails the emotional underpinnings of the story to help create an easy plot device toward the end of the film. Our main Buzz gets a bit more agency this time around but still feels like the sidekick endlessly trying to become the hero. Age is another sticking point. Woody being something of an antique has been a recurring theme all along and there isn’t much in this new installment that grapples with that in a deeper way than the last couple films. Aside from voice actors being replaced and the returning cast sounding much older, there’s little new in the text of the movie. The sort of existential crisis that Jessie encounters this time around is indistinguishable from that of the cowboy she shared a television show with, except her realization is somewhat more defeatist. On the other hand, as the franchise has spread out with Woody and Bo Peep (Annie Potts) rescuing lost toys and the rest of the gang with Bonnie, it has been nice to see different characters get their moment in the sun. Jessie is an inspired lead built off of the history we get in Toy Story 2. The lingering self-doubt makes for a great contrast with the all-knowing smugness of LilyPad. And it’s a good time at the movies. For as uneven as much of the message can be, there are some truly great Toy Story moments here. Mostly in the later parts of the film — I wont spoil them here — we get at least two tear jerking sequences. And then there’s the set pieces. Toy Story has often used the scale of its characters to great comedic effect and they do so again here. It’s a big part of why even the least essential of these movies still wind up incredibly enjoyable. Among the big ideas Toy Story 5 wants to leave us with is that the people (and toys) that left a mark on your life, no matter for how short a time, will stay with you forever. That’s got to be the reason that this franchise has been so enduring and why I have no doubt it will continue on. There isn’t truly obsolescence for any of us. The way we interact with the world will always change but we will keep adapting and growing… and Toy Story will continue to be there. 7/10
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