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» Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE   » Community   » Film Handlers' Movie Reviews   » Toy Story 4 (2019)

   
Author Topic: Toy Story 4 (2019)
Sam Graham
AKA: "The Evil Sam Graham". Wackiness ensues.

Posts: 1431
From: Waukee, IA
Registered: Dec 2004


 - posted 06-21-2019 03:19 PM      Profile for Sam Graham   Author's Homepage   Email Sam Graham   Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post 
CINEMA: B&B Ankeny 12 & B-Roll Bowling, Ankeny, IA
AUDITORIUM: 2, SEAT: D12
PRESENTATION: B&B GRAND Auditorium Recline-o-Vision with butt warmers, DTS:X and projection from freaking laser beams
PRESENTATION PROBLEMS: None [Cool]
RATING: Four stars (out of four)

THE PLOT: Bonnie goes to kindergarten. Wackiness ensues.

The thing about the Toy Story franchise is the endings. You can go through what is a fairly routine and pedestrian approach for a Toy Story script (which is always above average anyway) until that ending, and then...pow. They knock you upside the head.

Wow. They did it again.

How did Taco Bell not get in on the promotional action? The whole story revolves around a spork. The first thing I did after the movie was head to Taco Bell.

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Mike Blakesley
Film God

Posts: 12767
From: Forsyth, Montana
Registered: Jun 99


 - posted 06-21-2019 08:37 PM      Profile for Mike Blakesley   Author's Homepage   Email Mike Blakesley   Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post 
I did read somewhere that they wanted to call the spork character "Sporky." But they couldn't get the rights to make it a character name, so they called him Forky. The negotiations probably broke down from there.

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Bobby Henderson
"Ask me about Trajan."

Posts: 10973
From: Lawton, OK, USA
Registered: Apr 2001


 - posted 06-23-2019 05:40 PM      Profile for Bobby Henderson   Email Bobby Henderson   Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post 
Cinema: AMC Patriot 13, Lawton, OK
Screen: #7, IMAX Digital, Seats L15 & L16
Format: Dual 2K Projection, 2D, 5.1 audio
Presentation Problems: Not framed correctly; left edge of image visible on screen.
Movie Rating: 3 out of 4

I was a little surprised at how deep the themes were in this movie. The concepts of letting something (or someone) go and moving on when it's time to do so are grown-up themes. Those themes are comically embodied in the MacGuffin character "Forky." He's a single-use object that is meant to be discarded to spend eternity as trash. Toys outlive their usefulness too, as illustrated by the obsolete toys in an antique store.

Pixar took the risk that these themes might go over the heads of many young kids watching the movie. Yet being able to let go and move on is something we all must learn to do, often when we're still kids. If we can't let go when we should we end up stuck.

The movie's bittersweet ending made it clear this is probably the end of the Toy Story franchise. The "letting go" is happening in more than just this movie's plot line. It has been about 24 years since the first Toy Story movie was released. And 9 years since Toy Story 3. Some cast members and production people from the franchise have passed away and the surviving cast and crew is not getting any younger. Waiting another decade for Toy Story 5 probably isn't going to work.

A lot of critics are raving how "perfect" the movie was, but I couldn't help finding fault with some of the show. Some sequences got a little tiresome for repeating the same diversionary story beat: toys are trying to get from point a to point b before something happens or the family leaves, yet one toy gets distracted by something long enough to throw a monkey wrench into the plot gears. The same story beat is played multiple times when such a thing should happen only maybe once in a movie, and only when it jives with character motivation. Otherwise it feels like Save the Cat! formula.

Another thing that surprised me: the size of the crowd in the theater. It looked like only about 1/3 of the theater's 500+ seats had sold for the 4:00pm Saturday matinee show. I thought there would be a full house. The theater had Toy Story 4 on 3 other screens. Maybe more people were opting for the standard priced shows ($7 per ticket versus $10).

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Connor Wilson
Expert Film Handler

Posts: 190
From: Sterling, VA, USA
Registered: Jan 2011


 - posted 06-23-2019 06:37 PM      Profile for Connor Wilson   Email Connor Wilson   Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post 
Truthfully, I saw this movie because I wanted to check out the Dolby Cinema at 34th St. in case I want to see DUNE (2020) at the cinema, and wow! No invasive glow from the exit signs on the screen, bright images, and awesome sound! Truly a beautiful place to see a movie.

As for the movie, Pixar has done it again, technically speaking. This has to be the cleanest, smoothest animated feature I have ever seen. No jagged edges, etc., IMDb lists this film having a 4K DI, and I'm impressed.

Story wise, this movie was eh. I think they should have stopped making these movies at 2.

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William Kucharski
Expert Film Handler

Posts: 244
From: Louisville, Colorado, United States of America
Registered: Oct 2012


 - posted 06-24-2019 02:53 AM      Profile for William Kucharski   Email William Kucharski   Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post 
I loved it.

Surprisingly what made me really tear up was not
Spoiler Alert - Click to Toggle

.

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Mike Blakesley
Film God

Posts: 12767
From: Forsyth, Montana
Registered: Jun 99


 - posted 06-24-2019 08:48 PM      Profile for Mike Blakesley   Author's Homepage   Email Mike Blakesley   Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post 
I liked it quite a lot, although they still have not (and likely never will) beat the last 20 minutes of the original Toy Story. That segment is one of my favorite 20 minutes of any movie I've ever seen, animated or not.

This one was the least funny of the TS movies, I thought.... since the idea of toys having minds of their own has been thoroughly dredged over by now, the "fish out of water" aspect of these stories is no longer the draw. But as Bobby pointed out, the themes are deep as can be especially for an animated movie. I'd dare say it's more of a grownup movie than a kid one.

As for the story itself and the movie as a whole, I have not "loved" any of the Toy Story movies except the first one. They're all good, but they're not keepers in my opinion. The third one had that horrific climax followed by a sad ending, the second one was kind of forgettable (to this day I don't remember much of the story at all). I'd say this one is the best of the sequels, but it still doesn't have that boffo ending that you (or at least I) wish for in a perfect Toy Story movie. It's not one I'll be anxious to watch repeatedly.

I like carnivals - they did a nice job on the carnival animation (except there aren't enough burned-out light bulbs).

2.5 out of 5 for me.

A side note: I like how Disney and other studios are providing "Policy" trailers asking people to shut up and "silence" their phones, but somebody seems to have missed the memo that most people already silence their phones. What's more obnoxious is the bright lights. They need to say "silence AND DIM your phones, or better yet turn them mo-fo's off."

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Jarod Reddig
Jedi Master Film Handler

Posts: 513
From: Hays, Ks
Registered: Jun 2011


 - posted 06-25-2019 09:19 PM      Profile for Jarod Reddig   Email Jarod Reddig   Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post 
My wife and I absolutely loved it! We really enjoyed the new characters and just thought they did a bang up job. My only complaint is the lack of a short before the feature.

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Jonathan Goeldner
Phenomenal Film Handler

Posts: 1360
From: Washington, District of Columbia
Registered: Jun 2008


 - posted 06-25-2019 10:57 PM      Profile for Jonathan Goeldner   Email Jonathan Goeldner   Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post 
I loved this ~ and I've already seen this twice - last Thursday night in 3D, and earlier today in Dolby Cinema. The latter had great colors and what I'm assuming is a 4K DCP. The Atmos mix itself though had more bass in the AMC 'Prime' (3D) auditorium - go riddle me that, the sandbox scene really pumped out a good rumble

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Bill Brandenstein
Master Film Handler

Posts: 413
From: Santa Clarita, CA
Registered: Jul 2013


 - posted 06-26-2019 06:08 PM      Profile for Bill Brandenstein   Email Bill Brandenstein   Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post 
Indeed, the DCinema projectionist's letter confirms that it's a 4K release, but only in the 2D DCPs. Why in this day and age is a 3D DCP still limited to 2K?

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