Film Review: ‘Toy Story 5’ is a Stunningly Successful Sequel and a Beautiful Ode to the Power of Play

Pixar, I’m sorry that I ever doubted you. I’ve been on record that the original three Toy Story films are perfect and one of the great trilogies. So, especially when Toy Story 3 ended so brilliantly, why tempt fate? Then, Toy Story 4 came and defied the odds, being a more than worthy sequel (Lightyear I consider a separate thing from these, for what that’s worth). Given how unlikely that had felt, continuing on always felt like a huge risk. After all, when will their luck run out? Well, it’s not with Toy Story 5, which is not just great, but better than the prior installment, standing nearly toe to toe with the first three.

Toy Story 5 is a beautiful ode to the power of play, while also being a moving meditation on the passage of time. Throw in the franchise’s most subversive plot and there’s more going on here than meets the eye. All of the classic Toy Story elements are here, as are almost all of our favorite characters, but the focus this time is different, and even sharper.

The toys are back! While so many others are losing their kids to tech, our heroes still have a kid in Bonnie (voice of Scarlett Spears) who loves to play. However, she’s having trouble making friends, something Jessie (voice of Joan Cusack) is determined to fix. When an initial encounter with neighbors goes poorly, Bonnie’s parents get her a Lilypad (voice of Greta Lee), a device that sees the solution as being connecting her to friends online. Jessie and Buzz Lightyear (voice of Tim Allen) stand up to Lilypad, but when she quickly has won over Bonnie, Jessie contacts Woody (voice of Tom Hanks) for advice/to see how bad it is out there for toys. Woody confirms that tech is taking over, but when he thinks that Jessie is in trouble, he heads back to reunite with the gang.

Stowing away on a sleepover Bonnie has been invited to by other tech loving girls, Jessie and Bullseye end up split from Bonnie, ultimately being taken to the home Jessie grew up in with her first kid, Emily. There, a girl named Blaze (voice of Mykal-Michelle Harris) also loves to play. So, she’d be the perfect friend for Bonnie. Along with new friends like Smarty Pants (voice Conan O’Brien), Snappy (voice of Shelby Rabara), and Atlas (voice of Craig Robinson), she sets out to connect them.

Joan Cusack gets a real showcase here and is splendid, mixing the leadership of Jessie with the trauma she revealed in Toy Story 2. The callbacks to that are terrific, and one moment involving a reveal for Jessie about what happened to Emily legitimately brought me to tears. Cusack arguably turns in the best voice performance in the series’ history. Tim Allen is fun as usual as Buzz (well, many Buzz Lightyear toys, as you’ll see), with his subplot involving a charming desire to propose to Jessie, while Tom Hanks is reliable as ever. Woody feels a bit tacked on to the plot, but will I ever complain about his inclusion? No, I will not. Greta Lee represents an evolution for the franchise, and while more of an antagonist than a villain, she presents tech in a way that fits well into this world. The other new voices are fun, with Conan O’Brien the best of the lot, while Scarlett Spears and Mykal-Michelle Harris do good work as Bonnie and Blaze, respectively. Returning voice players include Tony Hale, Bonnie Hunt, Annie Potts, John Ratzenberger, Kristen Schaal, and Wallace Shawn, plus many more.

Andrew Stanton directs a Toy Story for the first time, also contributing the screenplay, co-written with Kenna Harris. The film looks spectacular, with all of the cutting edge Pixar visuals you’d expect. The script continues to speak to adults as much as kids, with a wonderful plea for toys and the power of play. Tech is shown as potentially dangerous to children, even tackling cyberbullying, which is something even Pixar might have been loathe to take on. The callbacks are well done and the passage of time is made melancholic yet also necessary. In short, Stanton makes this a vintage Toy Story outing. Plus, the Taylor Swift song at the end is catchy as well.

The amount of time we spend with Bonnie is a novelty for this franchise. Usually, and especially back with Andy, the humans are very much in the background. Bonnie has been shown a bit more, but here she’s a legit character, with more screen time than Woody, for example. It works, even if it takes a bit to get used to. Then, there’s an initially unrelated seeming subplot involving a hoard of new Buzz toys with tech included that washed up on a shore. Their journey becomes tied in with our main story, and that’s a narrative change we haven’t seen before in the series.

Toy Story 5 blew me away. I was worried that this one would sully the franchise, but instead, it continues to show that this is the crown jewel property of Pixar. I’ll be terrified if they try a sixth installment, sure, but at this point, I’ll just trust the powers that be. They’ve earned it. Toy Story 5, combined with Hoppers, shows that Pixar is still at the top of their game. Bravo.

SCORE: ★★★1/2