Toy Story

Pixar’s first feature, Toy Story follows Tom Hanks’ Woody as he and a gaggle of playthings must cope with an impending move and the sudden appearance of a new, futuristic action figure named Buzz Lightyear (Tim Allen) within their ranks. It’s ultimately rather remarkable just how effective and engrossing Toy Story remains for the duration of its 81 minutes, as filmmaker John Lasseter, working from a script by Joss Whedon, Andrew Stanton, Joel Cohen, and Alec Sokolow, has packed the proceedings with a whole host of irresistibly appealing elements – with, especially, the movie benefiting substantially from its bright, vibrant animation and uniformly entertaining performances. (Hanks and Allen’s justifiably iconic efforts as Woody and Buzz, respectively, remains a high-water-mark in the world of voiceover work.) And although certain aspects of the visuals don’t entirely hold up all these years later – the human characters look artificial, to put it mildly – Toy Story‘s propulsive storyline makes it easy enough to overlook any minor speedbumps along the way (and it doesn’t hurt, certainly, that the picture’s been packed with indelible supporting characters and enthralling action set-pieces). The end result is a near-perfect animated endeavor that’s deservedly become one of the genre’s most celebrated titles, and it’s not difficult to see why Pixar became a force to be reckoned with right out of the gate.

**** out of ****