Point-by-Point: Toy Story 3 6/10

I realize this review is approximately 3 years late, given that Toy Story 3 came out in 2010. Forgive me. I avoided seeing this for a few reasons: I hated TS2 with a passion (mainly because of Jessie "The Worst Character Ever" Cowgirl) and I was informed that if I cried at Up, I'd lose my head at this. I can't even listen to the soundtrack to Up without bawling: stories about aging, obsolescence and loss are kind of my kryptonite. Given this auspicious lead-up, I was prepared for something big when we popped it in the DVD player.

Imagine my surprise when, 2 hours later, I felt ... nothing. TS3 is very competent. It's cute. It had some nice bits. It just wasn't anything special.

The Good:
Pixar doesn't put out half-baked films, and given its pedigree, Toy Story 3 got the royal treatment. It's a very pretty movie that both hearkens back to the original(s) and utilizes the technological advances that have come into use in the intervening years. From Randy Newman's soundtrack to the return of most of the principal voice characters, this has all the trappings of the original Toy Story my generation grew up on.

The boys are back in town

The junkyard/trash-compactor sequence is one of the better animated action sequences out there. It's inventive, tense and interestingly drawn. I'm not sure I'd show it to small children, but it rivals many of the escape scenes in adult movies.

The Bad:
I remember reading so many reviews raving about the emotional affect of this movie: the brilliance of its commentary on old age and the trauma of being pushed to the wayside. I'm sorry -- I didn't see it. I just didn't. Again, this was a hype thing: I was just expecting something more in line with what a lot of commentators I respect had written.

Additionally, I felt like this movie felt like a sequel. The nuance in the original was brilliant (it, in fact, improves as one revisits it with adult eyes), and yet here, when the stakes are bigger and the psychological punch should be more profound, the jokes are more facile and the characters' motivations are simpler.

The Ugly:
Pixar can animate beautiful, intricate hair and water, and yet for all that attention to detail, the animators seem to obstinately continue to create people who look freakish, disgusting and somehow more plastic than the toys this movie is about. I realize this is a stylistic choice, but it seriously  detracts from the (my) enjoyment-factor. Especially given this studio's talent for hyper-detailed creations, this irritates me more than is rational. For a better illustration of how to animate people with style, watch Laika Studio's films Coraline or ParaNorman.

Do not need. Ever.

Points I Pondered:

• How did the "ooooOOOOoooo" aliens get into Andy's toybox? I thought, in the original, they were left in the arcade game?
• Does anyone like Jessie the Cowgirl? Am I the only one who can't stand her? I may have issues. I never saw the end of Toy Story 2 because she was just too annoying to push through the pain.
• Do parents really make kids strip their rooms before college? I'm 28 and I'm pretty sure my bedroom is still pretty much set up like it was when I moved out a decade ago.