I always thought that "Toy Story 3" was already a perfect ending, until I watched "Toy Story 4".
It's not too difficult to make a good movie, but to be able to make all four of a series into classics, such a difficulty coefficient is no less than four consecutive championships on the NBA stadium, and I'm glad that Toy Story has done it.
From 100% freshness on Rotten Tomatoes in the first and second films, to the third film that was nominated for the Oscar for Best Picture and won Best Animated Feature, toys took every step of the way to a height that most other cartoons could never reach in a lifetime.
The reason why it can be loved by family audiences for a long time, and at the same time gain super high word of mouth and box office, the toy series relies on it always puts the audience first, and always considers what the audience needs to see with the times. It tries to weave the most beautiful childhood dreams for each child as much as possible, and let them feel joy, tears, parting, and reunion there.
However, toys do not only belong to children, but also for adults, they can also harvest sincere friendship, hard love and never give up. It was Pixar that opened a window for the audience to have the privilege of seeing the adventures of the toys again and again, while also feeling our own different lives.
The 24-year history of toys, like a monument, has witnessed Pixar's growth from a non-mainstream animation studio to the industry benchmark of today's animation, witnessed the birth of the world's first billion-dollar animation film, and witnessed the immortal legend of Woody and Buzz Lightyear spanning three eras.
If toy one represents tolerance, toy two represents reality, and toy three represents inheritance, then toy four represents freedom.
Everyone, from birth, will continue to have toys around you, but with the passage of time, most of the toys will be abandoned or given to others, and only a few will become treasures. Andy's toys are the same, and at the end of the third part, Woody and Buzz Lightyears are adopted by the equally loving Bonnie, but as Bonnie grows up, their life trajectory begins to change.
For Bonnie, who is about to usher in her elementary school years, she is full of trepidation about the unknown environment and the future, so she uses waste to create a toy fork that is completely her own, and Woody, who is increasingly marginalized, still cares about Bonnie's growth like an elder, and when he thinks that the fork gives Bonnie confidence and courage for the future, he takes on the heavy responsibility of educating and rescuing fork.
As a new character in Toy Four, Fork is completely different from all the toys before, because it is a simple splicing of scrap, resulting in him not recognizing his toy identity from the bottom of his heart, so he chooses to run away. However, just as all adults have a special affection for their first love, Bonnie has a different affection for the first toy she made by herself.
Fork fork does not know, even if he is such a humble gadget, but carries too much hope and sustenance for Bonnie, when Woody accompanied fork through this thrilling adventure, fork fork also has a new understanding of the meaning of the toy.
There is also the Gaby doll, the reason why she kidnapped the fork and blackmailed Woody, but because of the lack of love, from the factory, she unfortunately became a toy with serious defects. In fact, she is also very pitiful, even if Woody has not been pampered, but after all, she was once regarded as a treasure by Andy, but Gaby has never been cherished by anyone.
When she tried her best to win the favor of the girl Hamuni, she only exchanged it for a cold discard. Every toy wants to have a good home, Gaby only because of the deep obsession, when she can finally truly feel the world, she understands that Harmony is not her only, only by letting go of herself, the world will be wider.
The appearance of Fork and Gaby only represents a return to the core values of the first three parts of the series. "Toys exist for the sake of the owner", if that is all, then there is no need for the toy to start shooting the fourth part. However, Pixar is Pixar, and it is always able to create a new possibility based on the continuation of the classic.
The return of the Shepherd Girl marks that Toy Four has completely jumped out of the framework of the first three parts, it is no longer entangled in the emotional entanglement of toys and human beings, but jumps out of fixed thinking, exploring how to survive and how to live the life they want when the toy leaves its owner. If The Likes of Buzz Lightyear and Trish represent the old idea of how to return to their owners to accompany them, even after being forgotten, then shepherd and Woody behind represent the awakening of toys in terms of human nature.
The character of the shepherd girl is not prominent in the first and second parts, but after being snubbed in the antique shop for several years, she bravely takes the first step to the outside world, and the tempering of society allows her to grow and learn how to protect herself and make herself full and happy. When she stood at the top of the amusement park and looked down on the whole world, she was no longer the frog who would just stay under the well and look up at the sky, but transformed into a new-age woman with an independent personality and bravery.
The appearance of the Shepherd Girl makes the toy no longer just a human appendage, and she proves to Woody that she can live well without the human toy. She tells Woody, "You can't live without Bonnie, but at least we haven't lost ourselves," a thought that eventually changed Woody, when in fact, children need to grow, and toys don't need to grow.
Although the film describes both attitudes to life, it does not favor either side of the main audience, in fact, no matter how these toys are chosen, the most basic premise is that they are willing, the choice itself is not right or wrong, the key is to bear the consequences of their own choices.
Woody's eventual decision is destined to be controversial, but this time, instead of being abandoned, he chooses a lifestyle that suits him best. He took the blessing of Bass Lightyear "flying to space, the universe is infinite" to a new journey, the road ahead may have ups and downs, there may be twists and turns, but life is like this, if you do not try, how can you know whether it is good or bad, at least, he has worked hard, and there is no regret.
For the toy series, this is not the end, but more like a new beginning. Years later, when those friends like Andy have grown up, will they still remember the toys that accompanied them, the real they can't speak, but they were once an indispensable part of life, that kind of happiness, after many years, is still so simple and beautiful!