Toy Story 2: that rare sequel that doesn't just surpass the original, but makes you appreciate it even more for starting such an incredible franchise. The common pitfall of many Disney sequels is following a very cookie cutter formula of reversing the original film's plot. The Little Mermaid? Mergirl wants to be girl, sans “mer” prefix. Its sequel? Normal girl wants the prefix back. Make up your mind, please. But not Toy Story 2. It's a story that completely cashes in on the richness established in the original and just builds. It throws in a few new characters while still letting the originals you fell in love with the first time through continue to shine. Pixar created something superb with Toy Story, and they made it superber with the sequel. Well done.
Toys don't last forever, and many outlive their owner's attentions for them. When that day comes they find themselves bound for some far-off dusty shelf or the dreaded two dollar table in a garage sale. Woody (Tom Hanks) knows Andy loves him, but a somewhat scary concept is introduced when Woody's stitching rips causing Andy to utter the most terrifying sentence Woody will ever hear “I don't want to play with you anymore.” Placed on the top shelf in Andy's room by the faceless mother, Woody discovers long lost squeaky toy, the penguin named Wheezy. The reunion is short-lived as the defunct squeaker gets thrown into the garage sale box – a fate the other toys just won't allow. Woody stages a rescue operation, riding atop the home's Dachsund, and braves the great outdoors. Unfortunately, after the successful recovery, Woody gets knocked off his steed and falls into the grubby, greedy hands of Al, a toy store owner and die-hard fan of Woody's Round-up, the TV series from whence Woody came. Al steals Woody away to his home, repairs him, and gets ready to ship the cowboy off to Tokyo where he'll live in a museum, never to be played with again. While kidnapped, he discovers the legacy he's a part of along with the other toys in his series: cowgirl Jessie (Joan Cusack), his steed Bullseye, and the old prospector (Kelsey Grammer). His accompanying trio has lived a variety of experiences; the prospector has lived a mint-condition life in his box, whereas Jessie used to be where Woody wants to go back to, in the heart of a child. Woody must choose whether he wants to return to Andy, where he'll eventually be forgotten as the boy ages, or go to Tokyo and be admired for the legacy he never knew he had. Meanwhile Buzz (Tim Allen) and the gang mount a rescue to save Buzz from Al's Toy Barn.
The additions to the cast are simply sublime with both Cusack and Grammer shining as conversely affected toys with differing ideas of what it means to really be loved. Is it better to have something pure and inevitably finite in time, or to be locked away in a case and admired from a distance. The choice is made clear by the film's development, bu Cusack and Grammer both add something special to the roles, much like Hanks and Allen continue to do as the headlining duo.
While there can be a little bit of nitpicking expected over the somewhat dated animation of the first Toy Story, Toy Story 2 has no such faults. It's as seamless and visually perfect today as it was on its opening night. If you want a shining example of stupendous high-definition animation, this is a safe bet. It's a movie kids and adults will love, and it looks great every step of the way.
Blu-ray Bonus Features
The second chapter for both the NASA series “Buzz Lightyear Mission Logs”, with an onboard look at the international space staton, and the “Paths to Pixar” (this time for technical artists) can be found on the disc. Similarly, like with Toy Story's Blu-ray, three more Pixar staff stories, told through animated storyboards, are on the disc. “Pixar's Zoetrope” explains how animation works, and chronicles Pixar's efforts to help people understand the secret of animation by constructing a zoetrope, a large moving structure that works the same way: by posing models in slightly different poses in a series that revolves in a circle, giving the illusion of life when scene frame by frame. Despite being so short, it's one of the coolest on the disc. The final new piece is a tribute piece to Joe Ranft, a recently deceased member of the Pixar team; in a respectful way, it's the longest featurette on the disc. Just as with the previous Toy Story Blu-ray, Toy Story 2 includes both a Blu-ray and DVD copy with the original DVD extras preserved beyond the new ones for this new release.
"Toy Story 2" is on sale March 23, 2010 and is rated G. Adventure, Animation, Children & Family, Comedy. Directed by John Lasseter, Lee Unkrich, Ash Brannon. Written by John Lasseter & Pete Docter & Ash Brannon and Andrew Stanton. Starring Don Rickles, Jim Varney, Joan Cusack, John Ratzenberger, Kelsey Grammer, Tim Allen, Tom Hanks, Wayne Knight.
