Toy Story 4 – finally the right ending

Toy Story 4 was wonderful! Just wonderful! I reckon I could watch twice in one weekend. Buzz and Woody are back and on an incredible adventure with some new friends. And Bo Peep is back, reimagined and amazing. A lot braver, a little jaded but pure magic!

I’m not sure what I was expecting but after Mary Poppins Returns didn’t live up to the original Mary Poppins I tempered my expectations. But I didn’t need to. It lived up to my expectations and more.

Toy Story 4 is easily better than Toy Story 2 and Toy Story 3. I can’t decide whether it’s the best one or whether Toy Story 1 still trumps them all. My husband said that it was definitely his favourite.

Toy Story 4 was better than I could have imagined. It brought the gang back together with some HILARIOUS new toys and it feels like the story finally ended in the right way.
You'll laugh, you'll cry (if you're like me) and you'll probably love it. 
It's really a great great movie! Maybe even the best of the four.
I think that this may be the best of the Toy Story Movies.

Toy Story 4

Toy Story 4 picks up from Toy Story 3 although the first bit is from 9 years previous to the end of Toy Story 3. There are two main story lines that flow through the movie.

Story Line 1

The opening scene shows Bo Peep leaving Andy and Molly’s home and Woody saying goodbye to her. It’s a storyline we saw glimpses of in the first movies but that never developed – the relationship between Woody and Bo Peep.

This forms the basis of one of the main story lines.

During the course of the movie Woody meets up with Bo. Bo has changed but for the better. She is no longer the shy lady who looks to Woody for guidance. Bo is now the lady of her own direction. She’s now a dynamic lady who is looking to experience what the world has to offer.

Bo Peep is BACK! And she is awesome.

Story Line 2

The toys now live with Bonnie and some of her toys. Woody even has Bonnie’s name written on her foot. But as Woody is continuously reminded: Bonnie isn’t Andy. And poor Woody isn’t the favourite anymore. He gets left in the cupboard, isn’t in charge of the Toy’s anymore and isn’t listened to for advice either.

“Bonnie literally made a friend”

Bonnie on her first trial day at school makes a new toy, Forky. She develops an instant bond with him and swiftly becomes attached to him. The problem is that Forky, being a recycled craft, identifies as trash, not as a toy and just wants to get back to the safety of being in a rubbish bin. Forty is hilarious

Bonnie and her parents go on holiday, a short trip and take all the toys with them, including Forky. Unfortunately Forky is having an identity crisis and keeps trying to run away to the safety of the nearest rubbish bin. One of his escapes leads to Woody and the Forky getting out the RV and having to find their way back to Bonnie and Family.

Forky. Treasure from Trash.

Buzz then also leaves the RV to try and find Woody. The movie centres around how Woody, Buzz and Forky get back to the RV.

Unfortunately, they are intercepted by a calm but scary new villain, Gabby Gabby. Gabby Gabby is desperate to trap Woody so that she can take his voice box and become a fully functional toy, something she never was.

Thankfully, there is a happy ending and all the toys reunite. But right at the end Woody has a massive decision to make. And its at this point that Woody finds his happiness (and I cried my eyes out).

The Good

There are three things I really really love about this movie, above all else because there are a LOT of things I like about this movie. But the three things I love the most are:

1. The story ends how the previous movie should have. With a sense of sadness but completeness. As if everything is now right and as it should be.

2. The baddie becomes a goodie.

3. The wonderful new characters that are introduced.

Toy Story 4 was better than I could have imagined. It brought the gang back together with some HILARIOUS new toys and it feels like the story finally ended in the right way.
You'll laugh, you'll cry (if you're like me) and you'll probably love it. 
It's really a great great movie! Maybe even the best of the four.
Duke Caboom is just one of the great new characters who is introduced.

The ending – no spoilers here

In my opinion the ending is just perfect. But you’ll have to see it and decide for yourself. I’m really interested in hearing your opinion!

The baddie becomes a goodie

What I love about this movie is that the baddie finally sees the error of her ways. She joins the gang for a short time and

New Characters

There are loads of new characters. Some of the them are absolutely hilarious.

  • Forky is one of the core characters of the movie. He’s the product of recycled craft making at school. My 4 year old thought he was the best thing ever. He is hilarious but boy he is like every little child, constantly wanting to do the things you are trying to prevent them from doing.
  • Duke Caboom is also an awesome new character. Voiced by Keanu Reeves, Duke Caboom is a vintage toy who was meant to be great but this version didn’t live up to the advert. He is also so funny and a beautiful character.
  • The third best on the list of new characters is a duo. Bear and Ducky. They are fluffy gangstas that Buzz meets by accident and become part of the gang trying to help Buzz, Woody and Forky get back to Bonnie. They are so silly and so funny.
Toy Story 4 was better than I could have imagined. It brought the gang back together with some HILARIOUS new toys and it feels like the story finally ended in the right way.
You'll laugh, you'll cry (if you're like me) and you'll probably love it. 
It's really a great great movie! Maybe even the best of the four.
Bear and Ducky. Ducky and Bear.
  • Bonnies’s doll is mayor and is in charge of all of Bonnie’s toys. There is also a new Hedgehog that is one of Bonnie’s toys and a triceratops.
  • Unicorn is one of the hilarious new additions. He’s such a cute little thing but filled with some dark thoughts. All he wants is for Bonnie’s dad to get arrested.
  • Giggle McDimples is a cute little girl who is Bo Peeps new trusted ally. She is really really cute.

The great quotes

“I don’t remember it being this hard.”

Woody in reference to small kid toys.

“Carry me…. carry me”

Forkey every five minutes.

“Useless. Like your purpose has been fulfilled.”

Forky to Woody.

“He’s my accessory”

Bo Peep about Woody.

“Be who you are right now.”

Bo Peep to Woody

“If you sit on a shelf for the rest of your life you’ll never find out.”

Woody to Gabby Gabby

He’s not lost. Anymore.

Buzz about Woody

The cinematography

Not only is the story line strong, the characters still beautiful but the enhanced graphics just brightened up the whole movie. In comparison to the previous ones, it’s like you’ve just been watching the old ones on a VHS.

The movie quality is so much better than the previous movies!

The improved CGI, the colouring and clarity that it brings is just incredible. Incredible.

To see each little finger move on the characters and the sky so bright, it just brings everything alive!!

The Bad

A little too real for some

One of Bonnie’s first scenes in the movie is her preparing to go off to school. Bonnie’s not looking forward to it and tries to avoid it. She also tries to make friends at school but no one engages with her.

I think the movie may be a little to real for little ones who are off to day care or big school soon. Her sense of sadness and holiness is portrayed really well.

I turned around a few times in this section of the movie to see how my little one was doing, given that she is off to big school next year and she was quiet and wide eyed. I could see that Bonnie’s feelings were resonating with her.

Too hard for little kids to follow?

I’m not sure that little kids will be able to follow all the different things that are happening in the movie. The story line where Gabby Gabby wants Woody’s voice box is too much to work out but they will be able to follow that she is not nice and wants Woody for something.

Toy Story 4 was better than I could have imagined. It brought the gang back together with some HILARIOUS new toys and it feels like the story finally ended in the right way.
You'll laugh, you'll cry (if you're like me) and you'll probably love it. 
It's really a great great movie! Maybe even the best of the four.
Woody and Forky.

The scary

The RV roadtrip

Poor Forky is continuously trying to escape to any trash bin he sees. In one scene he jumps out the RV and it’s quite a shock when he does. Woody close behind him, jumps out too and hits the road pretty hard. It’s not traumatising but it does give you a fright.

The Antique Store

Woody and Forky on their return to the RV stumble across an Antique store and Woody goes in to see if he can find someone. While in the Antique store they come across these horrible horrible 1950s male dolls with heads that turn like owls. They are absolutely horrible!! And they’re under the control of Gabby Gabby a controlling but very sad doll.

These male dolls are terrifying. Eerie. I think that they will scare little kids. Not only with the way they look but with the way their heads turn.

The antique store is the scene of most of the scary scenes, the dolls described above and their attempts to capture Woody for Gabby Gabby.

Gabby Gabby doesn’t say anything too scary and when she alludes to what she wants she is always calm and collected but you get a horrible feeling about her right from the start.

Two of the scariest scenes at the Antique shop are when the toys try rescue Forky and the Sheep the second time and then finally when the antique store toys get hold of Woody.

The sad

As I expected and as I am sure you do too, Toy Story 4 was sad. I was crying my eyes out a few time.

Don’t get me wrong, the movie isn’t depressing. It’s really touching and special.

Thankfully a lot of the sadness is quite high level so the kids won’t necessarily understand it. At the end of the movie when I was crying both my kids looked at me like I was crazy.

And some of the sayings are just so beautiful and make you feel inexplicably teary for no reason. Like when Woody has to say goodbye to Bo Peep all those years gone by, that sadness when she leaves. And the look he has when he sees her lamp again… Moving stuff I tell you.

Age Appropriateness

I think the older the better, especially if you watched the first ones as children or parents of children. Parents and grandparents will probably get the most enjoyment out of it.

Not to say that it is not child friendly. It really is. Lots of the humour and funny scenes are aimed at little kids. Throughout the movie you could hear little people chuckling at it.

My son, aged 6 and daughter, aged 4, loved it! So much so that we’ve even made our own Forky at home.