It’s been over a decade since Woody and Buzz first captivated the world, entertaining our imaginations and filling the wallets of whichever lucky toy company got the rights to produce Buzz Lightyear action figures. Now, after a wait so long there wasn’t even significant talk of a trilogy until the movie was actually announced, we can all treat ourselves to Toy Story 3. And when I say treat, I mean it. If Toy Story was an ice cream sundae, Toy Story 3 would be the cherry on top.

I’ve been excited about this film since Truth On Cinema uncovered it for us. Despite being the third installment in a franchise that can only do so much, Toy Story 3 is packed with fresh ideas. Admittedly, there are vague shadows of the first films, but these feel more like intentional links than lack of creativity. There’s the standard “no one trusts Woody” section and the “Jessie’s afraid of abandonment” arc, but these aren’t recycled plots. What’s incredible about this series is that the characters retain a personality throughout every adventure. They learn and grow and develop as characters, but still show the traits that made them great. Like a childhood toy rediscovered years later, each character brings up a toy-box-load of wonderful memories. Rex is still insecure, Woody is still loyal, and Buzz still manages to be eccentric.

I love that the creators always find a way to bring back the old Buzz. I especially love that they don’t just do it the same way. While this film does rely on the first two films for background, it does well to build its own personality. Even if someone somehow managed not to see the first two (poor souls), I doubt they’d be confused by this one. They might leave the theater merely satisfied rather than enchanted. What makes this movie an experience is the fact that we know the cast so well. Despite the title, however, this is not a story about the toys. It goes far beyond that. It becomes a story of families, of love and attachment, and of the change that comes with time. Sounds pretty deep for a kids movie, right? That’s because Toy Story 3 isn’t a kid movie. It was meant for all of us.

As a first year college student whose youth was filled with dreams of living toys and the comforting presence of the Toy Story gang, I felt the gravity of the story in a unique way. For a moment, as Andy packed up for college and prepared to part with his toys, I felt like this film was made just for me (I had, after all, just had to part with a plethora of my childhood possessions). I felt that the film was targeted at too narrow of an audience. Then I realized just how masterfully the story was crafted. Whether you are a child who loves the concept of your toys being alive or a parent who has watched their child grow up with the Toy Story gang, you can’t help but be touched by what the Disney/Pixar crew has built for you. It’s a touching tribute to what was and a small promise of what might be, and it is absolutely magnificent.

The film begins with a clever montage of play times past and the toys making a last, desperate attempt to get Andy’s attention before he departs for college and is propelled further as his mother forces him to pack up for his first year of college. After a misunderstanding lands the toys in the trash, the entire gang decides to jump into a donation box and begin a pilgrimage to Sunnyside Daycare, a place they feel must be the toy equivalent of heaven. Woody, the only toy who had been packed into Andy’s “college” box, attempts to dissuade them but ends up taking the trip as well.

The introduction of Sunnyside is wonderful and inspiring; painting the picture of a wonderful future for our favorite toys, but Woody insists on returning home to Andy. From there follows the first of many examples of plastic parkour (this officially brings my free-running reference total into the realm of astronomical and I feel I may need to see a doctor) that the film offers us. Watching the toys interact with their scenery has always been one of the greatest pleasures of the Toy Story universe, especially their interaction with humans. That has not changed a bit.

Woody, through yet another series of mishaps, ends up in the hands of an endearing young girl named Bonnie, whose cuteness is as close to unbearable as one can be and still be loved. Her toys are as sweet as she is and a joy to watch, especially Trixie the triceratops and Mr. Pricklepants, the cultured and entertainingly methodical stage enthusiast. Unfortunately, the news they bring Woody is anything but pleasant as they reveal the twisted history of one of the toys at Sunnyside and the subsequent downhill slide of “the system” at the daycare. The villain of the movies is revealed, to no one’s surprise, as a good toy with a bad history. The one thing this team was never good at was hiding the fact that there is an evil toy somewhere bent on ruining everyone else for his/her own gain. But I can forgive them that, since the characters do tend to show some incredible depth.

Now determined to save his friends, Woody returns to Sunnyside with the intention of staging an unprecedented breakout. Not the most original plot in the world, but because it happens on the toy scale it retains a sense of freshness that still left me delighted. The entire breakout scene is fantastic and reveals that our beloved toy friends still have a few tricks in heir storage compartments. We see the inevitable return of overzealous space ranger Buzz after he is reset and exploited by the villains. We discover that Mr. Potato Head is actually the most valuable covert asset one can have, and we learn that Barbie is far from a stereotypical blond. There are, sadly, no new faces amongst the crew, but given the story, that fits. This film wasn’t about introducing new possibilities, it was about tying up loose ends. Despite this, the creators did give us the treat of Spanish Buzz, which I’m sure everyone has heard about by now. Even if your expectations for him are high, you will be blown away. The sequence in which he prances about and attempts to woo Jessie are pure comedy gold and serve to make an already great movie wonderful.

The toys take one final turn for the worst and end up in a garbage dump, where the creators play an almost cruel game with our feelings by threatening the worst for our heroes. While the scene in the dump could have served as a viable, and even vaguely beautiful ending, the crew had one more treat in store for us. Believe me when I say that they could not have possibly ended this series any better, though they did leave it somewhat open if ever they should want to return to the majestic world they created for us. Throwing open the doors of our imaginations one last time, the Toy Story gang invites us all to join them for one final romp with Andy and the gang. I am not ashamed to admit this: I nearly cried. This film is truly awe-inspiring, and I can find almost nothing at all wrong with it. Therefore, deducting a single point to adjust for the role of nostalgia in making this film priceless,

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Disney has just debuted the 2nd Toy Story 3 trailer and frankly, I couldn’t be more excited! I love the concept of Toy Story and have always thought that Pixar defined themselves and set their path of excellence with this franchise. The humor, the action, the story, and the heart behind the rag-tag bunch of toys in Andy’s room have blazed the trail for all of the Up’s, the Monster Inc.’s, the WALL*E’s, and the Incredible’s of the world.

What do you think? Are you ready for another Toy Story?

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We are currently at 14 days into the new year and with the new year comes a brand new bunch of movies to look forward to. I realize, given the date, that this list is a little late since I have already missed two weekends of releases, but to be honest, I wasn’t anticipating any of the ones that have already been released.

Counting down from 24 all the way to my #1, here are my 24 Most Anticipated Films of 2010.

24. From Paris With Love

Release Date: February 5
Starring: John Travolta, Jonathan Rhys Meyers
Synopsis: From the director of the sleeper hit Taken comes a thriller starring John Travolta as an American spy who teams up with a young US Ambassador employee in Paris to stop a terrorist attack in the city. I don’t know if it’s a guilty pleasure or what, but I like John Travolta as a tough guy. His shaved head and piercings and overall attitude really fit his character, and it’s nice to see Jonathan Rhys Meyers all bloodied up as well. This should be an awesome action-spy-thriller.

23. The Green Hornet

Release Date: December 22
Starring: Seth Rogen, Cameron Diaz, Christoph Waltz, Jay Chou
Synopsis: By night, debonair newspaper publisher Britt Reid (Rogen) fights crime as a masked superhero known as The Green Hornet. At his side is martial arts expert Kato (Chou). I am not very familiar with the Green Hornet comic world and will have to step back and let my Truth On Cinema Comic Book Gurus weigh in on what it’s all about. I am mainly interested in this film due to my love for Michel Gondry, the director. He directed one of my all-time favorite movies, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and I can’t wait to see what he does with film.

22. Tron Legacy

Release Date: December 17
Starring: Jeff Bridges, Olivia Wilde, Garrett Hedlund
Synopsis: Sam Flynn (Garrett Hedlund), the tech-savvy 27-year-old son of Kevin Flynn (Jeff Bridges), looks into his fathers disappearance and finds himself pulled into the same world of fierce programs and gladiatorial games where his father has been living for 25 years. I hate to admit that although I grew up in the 80′s, I’ve never seen the original Tron. I know I just shocked the world and will forever be labeled as “that guy who hasn’t seen Tron”, but I plan on watching it this year in preparation for this highly stylized and modern sequel/reboot/re-imagining.

21. Jonah Hex

Release Date: June 18
Starring: Josh Brolin, Megan Fox, John Malkovich
Synopsis: In the Wild West, a scarred bounty hunter tracks a voodoo practitioner bent on liberating the South by raising an army of the undead. What’s not to be excited about: it’s a comic book adaptation, it stars the great Josh Brolin and John Malkovich, it’s a western, and it involves the undead! Oh yeah, Megan Fox is in it, which I’m sure will make some people excited (not this guy).

20. The Expendables

Release Date: August 13
Starring: Sylvester Stallone, Jason Statham, Jet Li
Synopsis: A team of mercenaries head to South America on a mission to overthrow a dictator. The premise couldn’t be any simpler but the movie looks like an awesome action flick! I think Sly Stallone is an underrated director and is more of a joke to people, so I can’t wait to see what he does with a cast of almost every major action star, Stone Cold Steve Austin, and explosions!

19. Kick Ass

Release Date: April 16
Starring: Nicolas Cage, Mark Strong, Aaron Johnson
Synopsis: Dave Lizewski is an unnoticed high school student and comic book fan who one day decides to become a super-hero, even though he has no powers, training or meaningful reason to do so. I know that a lot of you will be offended by my inclusion of this film in my list, but after seeing the trailers and my love for Mark Millar and his writing, a movie about a bunch of kids who want to fight back and just kick ass sounds great to me! (send all hate mail to me if you want)

18. The American

Release Date: September 1
Starring: George Clooney, Bruce Altman, Thekla Reuten
Synopsis: An assassin hides out in Italy for one last assignment. Here is another music video director debuting his first film and he happens to land George Clooney as an assassin: golden!

17. Edge of Darkness

Release Date: January 29
Starring: Mel Gibson, Ray Winstone, Danny Huston
Synopsis: As homicide detective Thomas Craven investigates the death of his activist daughter, he uncovers not only her secret life, but a corporate cover-up and government collusion that attracts an agent tasked with cleaning up the evidence. We haven’t seen Mel Gibson in a starring role since 2002 in Signs, and after all of the off-the-camera problems he’s had, it’s good to see him back in a role where he can take care of business. Maybe it’s because I’m a Dad now, but I am just loving these Father-revenge-the-death-of-their-kids stories that are coming out of Hollywood. I don’t know what it is, but it works.

16. The Losers

Release Date: April 9
Starring: Zoe Saldana, Chris Evans, Jeffrey Dean Morgan
Synopsis: After being betrayed and left for dead, members of a CIA black ops team root out those who targeted them for assassination. Again, I will have to let the comic book guys shed more light onto the details of this comic, but what I’ve seen and read, it looks awesome! This movie, if the characters are done right, could be one of the coolest comic book adaptations to-date.

15. The Wolfman

Release Date: February 12
Starring: Benicio Del Toro, Emily Blunt, Anthony Hopkins
Synopsis: Upon his return to his ancestral homeland, an American man (Del Toro) is bitten, and subsequently cursed by, a werewolf. The long gestating and oft-delayed Wolfman has finally made it to the screen. It was at first slated to hit cinemas in 2007, but the difficulties in finding a director made this release date impossible. Then a new release date was set for February 2009, then November 2009 and then finally February 2010. It has a bunch of really big name actors and is directed by the man who has been called to helm the Captain America movie sometime in 2012…what does all that mean? I guess we’ll find out.

14. The A-Team

Release Date: June 11
Starring: Liam Neeson, Bradley Cooper, Sharlto Copley, “Rampage” Jackson
Synopsis: A group of Iraq War veterans looks to clear their name with the U.S. military, who suspect the four men of committing a crime for which they were framed. Although I am not as excited about this after seeing the first trailer, it’s still one of the films I just HAVE to see this year. I’m just not sure how I am going to like the new direction, but I am willing to give it a chance.

13. Date Night

Release Date: April 9
Starring: Steve Carell, Tina Fey, Mila Kunis
Synopsis: In New York City, a case of mistaken identity turns a bored married couple’s attempt at a glamorous and romantic evening into something more thrilling and dangerous. 2010 isn’t just chalked full of action thrillers and comic book films, there’s also going to be a great comedy starring two of the funniest people around right now. It’ll be nice to see a romantic comedy with real comedians instead of casting dramatic actors and actresses and hoping they can be funny. This should be a real fun date night for a lot of people….pun intended!

12. The Prince of Persia: Sands of Time

Release Date: May 28
Starring: Jake Gyllenhaal, Gemma Arterton, Ben Kingsley
Synopsis: Based on the video game, which follows an adventurous prince who teams up with a rival princess to stop an angry ruler from unleashing a sandstorm that could destroy the world. Jake Gyllenhaal gets buff and stars in a film that has been waiting to be made ever since we played the computer game in middle school. Produced by Jerry Bruckheimer, this looks to be a fun ride in the vein of National Treasure and Pirates of the Caribbean. Whether or not it’s cheesy or if Jake’s accent will muck it up remains to be seen, but consider me anxious.

11. The Last Airbender

Release Date: July 2
Starring: Jackson Rathbone, Dev Patel, Noah Ringer
Synopsis: The story follows the adventures of Aang, a young successor to a long line of Avatars, who must put his childhood ways aside and stop the Fire Nation from enslaving the Water, Earth and Air nations. M. Night Shyamalan is back ladies and gentlemen! I don’t know a lick about the Avatar world (no, not the blue people movie) that this film is based from, but from the teaser trailer, it looks EPIC. Although his last film was a complete flop and a waste of anyone’s time, hopefully he’ll be able to redeem himself and get back in the good graces of the audience with this one.

10. Toy Story 3

Release Date: June 18
Starring: Tom Hanks, Tim Allen, Michael Keaton (all voices)
Synopsis: Woody, Buzz, and the rest of their toy-box friends are dumped in a day-care center after their owner, Andy, departs for college and hilarity ensues. Do I need to really sell you on seeing the 3rd Toy Story? I hope that Pixar can reclaim the same magic that the previous two films delivered and satisfy the craving we have had since #2. To Infinity and Beyond!

9. Clash of the Titans

Release Date: March 26
Starring: Sam Worthington, Liam Neeson, Ralph Fiennes
Synopsis: The mortal son of the god Zeus embarks on a perilous journey to stop the underworld and its minions from spreading their evil to Earth as well as the heavens. Though this won’t be as good as the original with Harry Hamlin, it still looks like an action-packed-300-esque thrill ride that will sure find its audience in the middle of the spring. I wish they would throw in a stop-motion-animation Kraken just for the fun of it though.

8. Alice in Wonderland

Release Date: March 5
Starring: Mia Wasikowska, Johnny Depp, Anne Hathaway
Synopsis: 19-year-old Alice returns to the magical world from her childhood adventure, where she reunites with her old friends and learns of her true destiny: to end the Red Queen’s reign of terror. When I first saw this story as a made-for-TV film, and then grew up and learned who Tim Burton was, I knew he HAD to take this on. This was a story just waiting for Burton to take and have his way with. I am looking forward to the zaniness, the craziness, the insanity, and the heart that will come out of this film. Who knew that Tim Burton could see color?

7. Green Zone

Release Date: March 12
Starring: Matt Damon, Jason Isaacs, Amy Ryan
Synopsis: Discovering covert and faulty intelligence causes a U.S. Army officer (Damon) to go rogue as he hunts for Weapons on Mass Destruction in an unstable region. Directed by Paul Greengrass, who directed the last two Bourne films, Green Zone is being heavily compared to the Bourne films and in fact some people are even speculating that it IS the 4th film, just with a different name (ridiculous). Whatever the case, I love Matt Damon and I love the action style Greengrass shoot his films in. I can’t wait to see Damon in action again!

6. Shutter Island

Release Date: February 19
Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Mark Ruffalo, Ben Kingsley
Synopsis: Drama is set in 1954, U.S. Marshal Teddy Daniels is investigating the disappearance of a murderess who escaped from a hospital for the criminally insane and is presumed to be hiding on the remote Shutter Island. There is no way I am going to miss the award-winning combination of Martin Scorsese and Leonardo DiCaprio in another thriller. These two can’t make a flopper even if they tried (I don’t know why they would try). I am certain that this will be a film that I’ll have to see with my Dad as it looks way too creepy for my wife to want to go.

5. The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader

Release Date: December 10
Starring: Ben Barnes, Skandar Keynes, Georgie Henley
Synopsis: Lucy and Edmund Pevensie return to Narnia with their cousin Eustace where they meet up with Prince Caspian for a trip across the sea aboard the royal ship The Dawn Treader. Along the way they encounter dragons, dwarves, merfolk, and a band of lost warriors before reaching the edge of the world. This was one of my most favorite books of the series and I can’t wait to see it on film. There hasn’t been much in the form of footage or even talk of the film lately and so I am hoping that this release date doesn’t get pushed. They lost some of the magic in the second film that they captured with the first, so here’s hoping they return to form and whisk us away to a magical land.

4. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part I

Release Date: November 19
Starring: Emma Watson, Rupert Grint, Daniel Radcliffe
Synopsis: Voldemort’s power is growing stronger. He now has control over the Ministry of Magic and Hogwarts. Harry, Ron, and Hermione decide to finish Dumbledore’s work and find the rest of the Horcruxes to defeat the Dark Lord. But little hope remains for them, so everything they do must go as planned. How can I even to begin to describe to you my excitement for the last in the Harry Potter series. Finally, we can get past the school, we can get past the teachers, we can get past the mundane schoolwork and get down to business fighting for your life against the dark lord. The only rain cloud over this film is that we have to wait an entire year to see the next one.

3. Robin Hood

Release Date: May 14
Starring: Mark Strong, Russell Crowe, Cate Blanchett
Synopsis: The story of an archer in the army of Richard Coeur de Lion who fights against the Norman invaders and becomes the legendary hero known as Robin Hood. I am super excited about seeing this version of the classic Robin Hood tale and though it sounded better a while back when it was going to be called “Nottingham” and it was going to be from the perspective of the Sheriff, I still want to see Crowe in the tights.

2. Iron Man 2

Release Date: May 7
Starring: Robert Downey Jr., Gwyneth Paltrow, Sam Rockwell
Synopsis: With the world now aware of his dual life as the armored superhero Iron Man, billionaire inventor Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) faces pressure from the government, the press, and the public to share his technology with the military. Unwilling to let go of his invention, Stark, along with Pepper Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow), and James “Rhodey” Rhodes (Don Cheadle) at his side, must forge new alliances — and confront powerful enemies. The film that stole the 2008 movie season will be opening the 2010 Summer Movie Season and fans can’t wait. This is no doubt going to make a boatload of cash at the box office and will probably be the front runner for months following. Jon Favreau, we are waiting…

1. Inception

Release Date: July 16
Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Ellen Page, Joseph Gordon-Levitt
Synopsis: A CEO-type becomes involved in a blackmailing scandal. That’s literally the shortest summary of any film on this list and that right there is one of the reasons why it’s my #1 Most Anticipated Film for 2010. Christopher Nolan has already said that this is his biggest film yet, bigger than The Dark Knight, and with the tagline of “Your mind is the scene of the crime” it’s going to be one heck of a mind-bender. I literally can’t wait.

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Thanks to FirstShowing for the trailer.

What did you think of the trailer?

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