Toy Story 4 - Expanding/Deepening Franchises
Thoughts On: Toy Story 4 (2019)
Woody, no longer a favourite toy, tries to do what is best by Bonnie, yet gets lost along the way.
It took me a long time to sit down and watch Toy Story 4. In the last 4 years, 4 of Pixar's 5 feature-length releases have been sequels. Since 2016, the studio has produced Coco, and then Cars 3, Finding Dory, Incredibles 2 and Toy Story 4. It is hard to come to a conclusion, but the question is very apparent: is this good or bad?
I am yet to see Finding Dory in full, but, I would actually say that Coco is maybe the least impressive Pixar film of the last 4 years. That is to fundamentally say that the sequels are not poor in quality. Such may be a bold statement, but, even Cars 3 was a solid film. Pixar do not know how to make bad films. My grievances with Coco come from its tone; this feels, to me - especially following some unwanted re-watching - to be a slightly disingenuous film concerned more with the creation of a world and the cultivation of a child archetype to become possessed by than anything. What is more, the triteness of its musicality and the spectacle of aesthetics are somewhat dull. That said, the story of Coco holds its own - and, of course, this is an original feature - so maybe it exists on the same level as Cars 3. The debate is not very important.
We may establish the fact that Pixar sequels are not bad. Nonetheless, there is a pressing question: are they necessary? Maybe the most damming aspect of the Cars franchise concerns how pointless it appears. The depth of characterisation in all of the Cars films and shorts is easy to criticise. And though we appear to be in an age of the series and the embrace of the infinite narrative, this pointlessness compounds with the advertisement of every new sequel. There is, too, the exasperating sewage pipe splurging from the ass-end of Disney a constant, putrid stream of live action re-makes. With the explosion of Disney live-action remakes - none of which are good, nor justifiable at present (time may change things) - the increase of Pixar sequels feels more worrying than it maybe should be. Such, at least, is what Toy Story 4 indicates.
Toy Story 3 stands out in the Toy Story franchise as a film that cannot exist without its predecessors. Its ultimate goal is an exploration and evocation of mortality: the death and transformation of childhood. This drama is centred entirely on emotion and sentimentality, therefore, an attachment to and knowledge of the two previous features. This aspect of the third film in the franchise can be read positively or negatively. On the one hand, we see Pixar returning to the same well to evoke sentiment in their audience by simply pointing at their previous successes. But, on the other hand, we see the development of character and narrative to a deeper level of drama. Here is the fundamental debate at hand when we consider this new trend of sequels in Pixar. Are these sequels developing greater, deeper narratives, or are they merely expanding a franchise. With Toy Story 3, I leaned toward the latter. Toy Story 4 presents greater complication.
Like 3, Toy Story 4 relies on its predecessor as to be comprehensible. However, it returns to a central thematic hub of the franchise - which concerns individuation. Toy Story 1 was about jealousy; 2, community; 3, mortality; 4, freedom. Toy Story 1, 2 and 4 all require transformations of character. Toy Story 3, however, is more so about acceptance - it felt like the natural end to the franchise. Toy Story 4 successfully reopens the gates by following its main character further along a journey toward individuation; of not only accepting his life, but living it. This activity and engagement of transformation invigorates Toy Story 4 with more than sentiment, and so I see this film as more of a success than 3. In such, it deepens the franchise instead of merely expanding it.
The picture is then complicated. Toy Story 4 seems to be a substantial addition to the franchise, but, this is not a universal phenomenon for Pixar. This brings me back to the apprehension I confessed as we started. What are we to expect from Pixar next? Are they going to continue to deepen their franchises through substantial narratives? Or, will we see more quality products that maybe only need to be seen once?
Woody, no longer a favourite toy, tries to do what is best by Bonnie, yet gets lost along the way.
It took me a long time to sit down and watch Toy Story 4. In the last 4 years, 4 of Pixar's 5 feature-length releases have been sequels. Since 2016, the studio has produced Coco, and then Cars 3, Finding Dory, Incredibles 2 and Toy Story 4. It is hard to come to a conclusion, but the question is very apparent: is this good or bad?
I am yet to see Finding Dory in full, but, I would actually say that Coco is maybe the least impressive Pixar film of the last 4 years. That is to fundamentally say that the sequels are not poor in quality. Such may be a bold statement, but, even Cars 3 was a solid film. Pixar do not know how to make bad films. My grievances with Coco come from its tone; this feels, to me - especially following some unwanted re-watching - to be a slightly disingenuous film concerned more with the creation of a world and the cultivation of a child archetype to become possessed by than anything. What is more, the triteness of its musicality and the spectacle of aesthetics are somewhat dull. That said, the story of Coco holds its own - and, of course, this is an original feature - so maybe it exists on the same level as Cars 3. The debate is not very important.
We may establish the fact that Pixar sequels are not bad. Nonetheless, there is a pressing question: are they necessary? Maybe the most damming aspect of the Cars franchise concerns how pointless it appears. The depth of characterisation in all of the Cars films and shorts is easy to criticise. And though we appear to be in an age of the series and the embrace of the infinite narrative, this pointlessness compounds with the advertisement of every new sequel. There is, too, the exasperating sewage pipe splurging from the ass-end of Disney a constant, putrid stream of live action re-makes. With the explosion of Disney live-action remakes - none of which are good, nor justifiable at present (time may change things) - the increase of Pixar sequels feels more worrying than it maybe should be. Such, at least, is what Toy Story 4 indicates.
Toy Story 3 stands out in the Toy Story franchise as a film that cannot exist without its predecessors. Its ultimate goal is an exploration and evocation of mortality: the death and transformation of childhood. This drama is centred entirely on emotion and sentimentality, therefore, an attachment to and knowledge of the two previous features. This aspect of the third film in the franchise can be read positively or negatively. On the one hand, we see Pixar returning to the same well to evoke sentiment in their audience by simply pointing at their previous successes. But, on the other hand, we see the development of character and narrative to a deeper level of drama. Here is the fundamental debate at hand when we consider this new trend of sequels in Pixar. Are these sequels developing greater, deeper narratives, or are they merely expanding a franchise. With Toy Story 3, I leaned toward the latter. Toy Story 4 presents greater complication.
Like 3, Toy Story 4 relies on its predecessor as to be comprehensible. However, it returns to a central thematic hub of the franchise - which concerns individuation. Toy Story 1 was about jealousy; 2, community; 3, mortality; 4, freedom. Toy Story 1, 2 and 4 all require transformations of character. Toy Story 3, however, is more so about acceptance - it felt like the natural end to the franchise. Toy Story 4 successfully reopens the gates by following its main character further along a journey toward individuation; of not only accepting his life, but living it. This activity and engagement of transformation invigorates Toy Story 4 with more than sentiment, and so I see this film as more of a success than 3. In such, it deepens the franchise instead of merely expanding it.
The picture is then complicated. Toy Story 4 seems to be a substantial addition to the franchise, but, this is not a universal phenomenon for Pixar. This brings me back to the apprehension I confessed as we started. What are we to expect from Pixar next? Are they going to continue to deepen their franchises through substantial narratives? Or, will we see more quality products that maybe only need to be seen once?
