Posts Tagged ‘Toy Story 3’
4 items.
What do you guys think of Tom and Cami’s totally 70s kitchen wallpaper? Pimpin’, right?
If you’ve been following me at all on Facebook the last couple of days, you’ll know that I’ve been wrestling with a creative decision regarding the production of comics related to Toy Story 3. It seems no matter what I do, I keep thinking up jokes for this movie. Good jokes, too (or so I tell myself.) Jokes that I don’t want to let go to waste. It’s times like these that I lament making the decision to go to one comic a week.
Certainly nothing is iron-clad, though. I’m not purposefully restricting myself to one comic a week. If I have the time and the inclination, I have no problems throwing in a bonus comic or two.
The problem is that I don’t have the time at the moment. I’m wrapping up one of my summer night classes and I’m going two times a week. I’m reading case studies, writing essays and putting the finishing touches on a group project. I pretty much have time for work, school and sleep right now. It sucks, but after next Tuesday, I will have completed this latest gauntlet.
A few people have stepped up and volunteered themselves to illustrate my scripts – which is very generous. But I’ve never collaborated like that before and I’m very protective of my ideas. It’s hard to turn people down without sounding like a selfish jerk.
Some readers have told me to spread the comics out over the next three weeks. By their estimation. Toy Story 3 will still be the most popular movie in the country, so the jokes will still be timely. Looking ahead at the release schedule, maybe they’re right. Knight and Day? Grown Ups? The Twilight Saga: Eclipse? The Last Airbender? None of these movies inspire me like Toy Story 3 does.
So let’s talk about Toy Story 3 for a little bit, shall we?
Cami and I took Henry to the movie on Saturday and all of us had a blast. All three of us have been talking about it all weekend. Henry’s investment in the film has been exacerbated by a toy purchase reflecting on of the characters in the film. But, by in large, all of us have remained captivated by the film.
It’s been 11 years since Toy Story 2 and 15 years since the groundbreaking, original Toy Story. Despite a span of nearly two decades, the legacy and strength of Andy’s band of misfit toys remains in tact.
Pixar shows great care and concern for their flagship characters by maintaining the time line of the original films. Andy is now 17 years-old and heading off to college and he doesn’t have time for childish things. In a demonstration of both profound love and profound futility, his toys make a last-ditch effort to reconnect with their distant owner by hiding his cellphone in a dog pile beneath them in his toy chest. His disinterest signals the coming of their obsolescence.
The anxiety of these characters has always been something Pixar scribes have captured well on screen. The essence of the Toy Story movies have always been about the fear of abandonment and irrelevancy. In many ways, these toys reflect more about the human condition than any movie “aimed” at children has a right to. But it is because of these profound themes that audiences relate so well to Buzz, Woody and the rest of the gang. It’s the same reason we are so sad to see them go. Many of us have grown up with these characters. Like Andy, we’re being forced to say goodbye. But at the same time, we know we have to.
I won’t bore you with the plot details of the movie. How, in a series of misunderstandings, the toys end up donated at a daycare center whose toy population is run with a benevolent-on-the-surface strawberry-scented teddy bear. I won’t complicate my review by rehashing the Rube Goldberg-like escape plan hatched by Woody and his friends in the second act. I certainly won’t reveal where Andy’s toys finally end up. You need to experience all these things on your own because their staging and execution is absolutely brilliant. Especially the ending.
The ending of Toy Story 3 is note-perfect. It never talks down to us or makes us feel foolish for investing so much in these characters. It is a sublime love letter to fans of the Toy Story films that will leave you beaming while it breaks your heart.
Bring Kleenex.
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Remember a week ago when I said that I had three different comic ideas about Toy Story 3? I realized after uploading today’s comic that my idea for the third comic had completely evaporated from my mind. So unless I get kicked in the head by a mule or the idea comes to me again in some other random fashion, this might be it for Toy Story 3 comics for a while. I hope you enjoyed it!
Thinking about the Toy Story movies, I was always a little bit mystified by the absence of Andy’s father. Where is he? Did he move out? Did he and Andy’s Mom divorce? Is Andy’s Mom a widow? Maybe she went to a fertility clinic? The world may never know!
More likely than not, the animators of the original Toy Story didn’t want to design, model and animate ancillary characters that didn’t advance the plot. For example, I don’t think we ever see the face of the Pizza Planet delivery guy. It makes sense, if you think about it. Why go to the trouble of creating a “Dad” character when there isn’t much he can say that wouldn’t be mirrored by the “Mom” character.
That, and it’s a story about toys. So who really cares about the Dad?
Although, now that I think about it, didn’t Sid – the kid next door that tortured toys in the original movie – have both a Mom AND Dad?
Granted, we only hear the Mom off camera. But I think we see the Dad (or at least the Dad’s arm) when Buzz sees his television commercial for the first time and realizes he’s a toy.
As I recall, the Dad was also fast asleep in his armchair and it was fairly early in the morning. From that, I think you can infer that he maybe fell asleep in front of the television the night before. But I prefer to imagine that he was a raging alcoholic that passed out in front of the television. He’s an absentee father and that’s why Sid tortures toys – because no one is their to guide him.
Clearly I think about these things far too much.
Of course, you’re also dealing with a guy who tried to unravel the existential meaning of being a sentient toy. What does the passage of time mean in this context? Does consciousness come and go? Also, how and when do the toys officially become self-aware? When they’re manufactured? Or only after they’ve been packaged and “brought to life” by imaginative play.
Clearly these are questions for the ages.
Something else I’ll say, I don’t want people to assume that I am promoting the idea that a single mother can’t raise two well-adjusted, college-bound children with today’s comic. I’m just saying it would be challenging. I have two kids barely out of diapers and I feel like I’m screwing them up all the time. Thank goodness I have Cami to bounce things off of. If you’re a single mom, you have to have serious stones to keep kids on the right track.
So, in other words, hooray for single moms!
Did that sound creepy? Maybe a little forced… No. Definitely creepy.
I’ll stop talking now. You pick up the slack. Toy Story 3 comments? Leave ’em below!
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Apologies for the comic being a day late. The July 4th holiday threw a monkey wrench into things for me. At what point did July 4th change from being a holiday I looked forward to and into a holiday I can only hope to survive.
Oh, yeah. When I had kids. Now I remember.
This is the last of the Toy Story 3 comics I had rattling around in my brain. Next week I plan on moving onto greener pastures. Specifically, Predators. I’m looking forward to this movie so much, it’s ridiculous. So be on the look out for that one.
Before anyone says anything about my depiction of Sid in today’s comic, let me come right out and says that – yes – I’ve heard the rumors that Sid makes a cameo in Toy Story 3 as a garbage man.
Here’s the thing, though. I’m not sure I believe it.
Pixar is known for throwing Easter eggs into their films, referencing their past and future films. But Pixar is also kind of known for promoting these Easter eggs as a way to entice and reward the hard core fans.
I’ve read a few articles that have suggested Sid’s cameo, but there aren’t any images from the movie floating around online.
Fortunately, I snagged a shot from a book that my Mother-In-Law gave Henry over the weekend. I’ve scanned it and am posting it here. Is this Sid? You be the judge.
I can see how people can think it might be Sid because, in the movie, he’s wearing headphones, banging on trash can lids and generally acting like the destructive little Ritalin money we’re familiar with from the first film.
They say he’s wearing a black shirt with a skull on it like he does in the first movie, but this shot makes it kind of hard to tell. I guess until I see the movie a second time, I feel like the jury is still out. Maybe I’m just in denial because I wanted Pixar to make a bigger deal about Sid’s return or at least be a little more obvious about it. I dunno. Maybe that would take all the fun out of guessing?
What do you guys think? I this Sid? Had you already heard the rumors or is the first you’ve been told about it? Will you see Toy Story 3 a second time to confirm?
And – real quick – what about The Last Airbender? I mentioned it on Facebook last week because it seemed like no one was talking about it. Then, there was an avalanche of bad reviews. But lo and behold, the film made over $70 million at the box office this weekend! Will terrible word of mouth kill this film in the second week or are the Airbender faithful going to keep it aloft?
Another question; Considering the large box office this weekend, is a sequel inevitable? If so, will M. Night Shyamalan be asked to return?
More grist for the mill! Thanks for your patience and leave your comments below!
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As promised, here are the nominees for the 2011 Academy Awards.
Scroll down for knee-jerk, armchair analysis below.
| BEST PICTURE 127 Hours Black Swan The Fighter Inception The Kids Are All Right The King’s Speech The Social Network Toy Story 3 True Grit Winter’s Bone BEST ACTOR BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR BEST ACTRESS BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS BEST DIRECTOR BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY BEST SCORE BEST SONG BEST ANIMATED FILM BEST VISUAL EFFECTS |
BEST ART DIRECTION Alice in Wonderland, Robert Stromberg, Karen O’Hara Happy Potter and the Deathly Hallows — Part 1, Stuart Craig, Stephenie McMillan Inception, Guy Hendrix Dyas, Larry Dias, Doug Mowat The King’s Speech, Eve Stewart, Judy Farr True Grit, Jess Gonchor, Nancy Haigh BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY BEST COSTUME DESIGN BEST DOCUMENTARY BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT BEST EDITING BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM BEST MAKEUP BEST ANIMATED SHORT BEST LIVE-ACTION SHORT BEST SOUND EDITING BEST SOUND MIXING |
Okay… so looking at these nominations, what am I most struck by?
Well, I was certainly pleased to see Toy Story 3 among the Best Picture nominees. Are they trying to round out the category to meet the 10-nominee criteria the Academy set forth last year? Maybe, but I don’t care.
Up was similarly nominated last yet, but it wasn’t coming into the category from a position of strength like Toy Story 3 is.
Toy Story 3 was the best reviewed, highest grossing film last year. It’ll be interesting to me to see if that colors the opinion of Academy voters.
Also, I think this is the only “threequel” to be nominated for a Best Picture Oscar since The Lord of The Rings: The Return of the King. Will the Academy give Pixar a “gold watch” Oscar for their achievement in animation for the last 15 years? Hear’s hoping!
The King’s Speech leads the pack this year with 12 nominations, which kind of surprised me after The Social Network scooped up so many awards at the Golden Globes last week. I’m not upset about it because I happen to think The King’s Speech is the better film – stronger performances and more entertaining. I think The Social Network is very much a film of the moment and notable for that reason. But The King’s Speech is more old-school Hollywood entertainment and is much more satisfying.
I’m kicking myself now that I didn’t write a review of the film after seeing it. If you haven’t checked it out yet, do yourself a favor and get caught up!
Aside from that, my strongest reaction is reserved for the Best Director nominations. It is absolutely CRIMINAL that Christopher Nolan wasn’t nominated for Inception. A richly layered, technically complex and nuanced narrative WRITTEN BY Nolan… and he isn’t recognized. That’s a sin, man. The worst Oscar snub in years.
Apparently the Academy has some kind of axe to grind with Nolan because they locked Nolan out of Best Director a few years ago for The Dark Knight.
Both Inception and The Dark Knight have been nominated in several technical categories. But apparently the Academy thinks of Nolan like some kind of James Cameron figure – an effects hog that dresses up his direction with technology.
I can think of nothing further from the truth.
Here’s my reasoning behind why this was such an egregious snub: Among the directors nominated, David Fincher and MAYBE Darren Aronofsky have the chops to direct a film as complicated as Inception. But Nolan would have no problem directing films like Black Swan, True Grit, The Social Network, The King’s Speech or The Fighter – all films nominated for direction. Nolan could direct those films with one hand tied behind his back.
Nolan was nominated for Best Original Screenplay. If the Academy doesn’t give him AT LEAST that, it would be a damn shame.
The Academy is setting themselves up for another Scorsese-level bout of public humiliation for not recognizing Nolan’s talent sooner. It’s disgusting.
Alright, now that I got that out of my system, what’s your take on these nominations? Was there anything I left out that you wanted to discuss? Leave your comments below!
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