Review of Toy Story (1995) by Kyle20Ellis — 12 Sep 2020

This review contains spoilers. Beautifully captures the endearing blissfulness of childhood. As a child, the smallest and most meaningless problems in the world are sometimes magnified - In the case of Andy, the loss of his favourite toy results in heartbreak, whereas for his mother (an adult), this simple mishappening proves to be insignificant ("Honey, I'm sure he's around. You'll find him"), but through the eyes of a child: it can mean the end of the world.

Furthermore, I was also fortunate enough to have parents that cloaked me in bliss regarding the problems around me. This is best demonstrated when Andy's mother announces that they are moving, Andy is ecstatic - however, as an audience we can see that moving house can be an exciting experience, but it also comes with a headache of stress and logistics. However, these banal matters are never brought to Andy's attention; Andy's Mom takes this responsibility upon her shoulders without her son noticing a single thing. This kind of bliss between a child and parent figure is depicted seamlessly in the film.

Moreover, The writing of Buzz and Woody are phenomenal. Both characters start in similar places - Woody believes himself to be special, but for the wrong reasons. He has a self-centered view of himself, believing himself to be special because he is Andy's favourite toy. Likewise, Buzz (naively) believes himself to be special because he thinks he is a genuine space ranger. Both characters then embark on a journey of self-discovery. Along this adventure, both characters must accept their true purpose and what makes them special - they are not special for the reasons above, they are special because they are Andy's Toys.

You often hear the phrase "It made me feel like a kid again". However, in this case it is most apt. In fact, I didn't just "feel" like a kid for the 81-minute runtime. I was a kid, bewildered and in awe of the moments exuberantly brought to life on-screen.