To start of, I’d like to note that this is the first time I saw Toy Story in theatres ever in my life. I’m glad to say that it was in the best, most captivating way possible!
Toy Story and Toy Story 2 in 3D Double Feature will mesmerize audiences young and old and as evidenced by the screening, it’ll keep everyone (yes even the little ones) in their seats all the way through. Whether they’ve seen these classics or not, Pixar’s first feature and its sequel are marvelous time and time again.
I found myself gasping at some plot points even though I’ve seen the movies tons of times, it just felt like a brand new experience. Maybe it’s because of the brand new 2D animated "retro style" intros or maybe it was something else…
One jaw dropping detail that will undoubtedly take your breath away is all the re-rendered goodness. Although it’s the same old Toy Story, you can tell some of the textures and hair are much finer. It’s great to see the movie like it was intended, on a big screen, and imagine what it would have been like to experience it in 1995. At the same time, you appreciate how this version will introduce a new generation to Andy’s toys.
Another thing that’s readily apparent is how perfectly and seamlessly TS/TS2 translate into 3D. Like director John Lasseter said, each Pixar movie was in fact made in a 3D environment but never projected in the third dimension until Up. This has to be the best 3D experience on screen yet! The two films are much more in-your-face than Up, but never annoying. It’s especially fantastic in the toys eye view.
Now, you might be a little worried about the length of the double feature. Including trailers and the intermission, it’s about 3 hours and a half. Speaking of intermissions, you should get 10 minutes to go to the bathroom, buy a snack or… sit down for Toy Story Trivia and Treats!! This segment of the double feature is definitely worth staying for if your bladder isn’t killing you. Show of your Toy Story and Pixar knowledge while watching new and old Toy Story Treats during this portion.
As you end the break and blast into Toy Story 2 (quite literally) you really get to experience how Toy Story and it’s sequel fit perfectly side-by-side and how the second improves on the first. The narrative feels naturally continuous, even episodic. Although Toy Story 2 exhibits huge technical innovation, you’ll notice how the first computer animated feature film is not only culturally significant but an overall great story.
At the end of the double feature I couldn’t help but getting anxious for June 18th to come around. Before the movies play you’ll get to watch the full Toy Story 3 trailer! Wow, what an amazing preview. It’s emotional, hilarious, informative and mysterious all at once! I’ll briefly describe what I saw. Beware, spoilers ahead!
The trailer starts with old home videos of Andy (the humans have improved massively and fit perfectly with the universe) and then it cuts to an 18-year-old version of the toy’s owner. He’s faced with the decision of picking Buzz or Woody to take with him to college. This panics the gang with fears of their upcoming fate. Later in the trailer we see Andy’s toys somehow end up at a day care and meet new toys. Hilarity ensues as the toys plot to escape after meeting their new "owners": disastrous toddlers! The plan backfires and Buzz gets reset into Spanish mode! End of spoilers.
Don’t miss this two week limited engagement as Toy Story and Toy Story 2 truly go to infinity… and beyond on October 2nd only in Disney Digital 3D in select theatres! It’s truly a fan must see and a great introduction or nostalgic trip for anyone who wants to come along! Get tickets at Fandango for extra Disney Movie Rewards points.
Last modified: September 26, 2009
OMG, this is the icing on the cake of my awesome night!! I’m soooo excited for these, I’m glad your screening was so good! How exactly did you see it before it was in theaters? In any case, I’m hyping this more than anything else right now. Oh, and how did the “Toy Story trivia” work in-between? I’m just a little confused about the formatting and am anxious to see some of my childhood favorites on the big screen once again, this is just overwhelmingly awesome. _ I never got to see the first Toy Story on the big screen, but starting with ABL I have seen all of them in theatres.
And also (LAST QUESTION!), how was the 3-D more “in our face” than Up’s? Were things just more present in the foreground or sticky-outty than things were in Up? I’m fine with it in either case, but…
—Leirin
Haha, I’m glad you’re excited! The wait is well worth it.
I get to see movies before they come out if they’re pertinent to the blog’s subject matter. Courtesy of Disney.
Toy Story Trivia and Treats worked like basic movie theatre trivia with cameos from the Toy Story characters and some serious Pixar/Toy Story questions (What Pixar short inspired Toy Story?) and some silly fun facts + games (unscramble this character’s name: HAMM. Answer: switch the two MMs). In between that are select Toy Story Treats (you can see those on the 10th Anniversary DVD and TS2 Special Edition) and some brand new animation of the characters doing random things.
Both movies start with a beautifully animated 2D intro.
“I never got to see the first Toy Story on the big screen, but starting with ABL I have seen all of them in theatres.” —Same here.
Yeah the 3D was more in your face than Up but it wasn’t gimmicky. Let’s just say more things popped up but not in a theme park-y way. They took advantage of the technology well. You’ll just have to see for yourself.
Enjoy it on October 2nd!!
Now I am even more excited for this!! Next weekend can’t come soon enough!
Everytime I watch TS2 I cry in the same freaking scene. Well, not anymore because it’s predictable, but when Jessies song comes along I bawl
Now, I think that the best part of this is the Toy Story 3 trailer, ive only seen the 1:44 one! The one you explained has more stuff and sounds longer! And apperantly shows Andy! Great!!!
Im the kind of guy that will see a movie just to see a trailer before it if I know which trailers will play. Especially if its MARVEL related xD
R.I.P. Slinky Dog voice over guy =[
James-
will there be a pixar short attached to it?
Wow! That sounds fantastic,can’t wait!
Also,what does Andy look like?
Awwwwwwww I can’t wait for this! I second the question that annaborjack asked. 🙂
My excitement for this was already through the roof, but you’ve just pushed it through the stratosphere!
Thanks for all the great info! You answered EVERYTHING I was wondering about, you rock!
I remember watching Toy Story in theaters when I was only 3, and I can barely remember it. And I’ve seen them all in theaters since. (except The Incredibles, parents wouldn’t let me, because it was a PG)
There’s only one thing I’m confused about, I clicked on the part that said “get tickets here” and it just went to the toy story website. I can’t find where to get tickets on the site. (I’ve looked before) Could you tell me exactly where on the site they are?
Thanks in advance, and thanks again for the great review!
Questions:
“will there be a pixar short attached to it?”
Not a traditional short, but the double feature does contain Toy Story Treats shorts and some short animations, so sort of.
“Also,what does Andy look like?”
Gosh, that’s hard to describe. The humans are more along the lines of a Finding Nemo human than a The Incredibles human but they’re a huge leap beyond the ones in Toy Story. Andy is just like a teenage version of the kid we saw in the first two films, I’m really blanking. For the home videos, they also really improved the kid version of Andy, his proportions are a tiny bit different. Basically he looks awesome, trust me. The trailer will be online any day now, so just wait for that, ok. ;D
“Could you tell me exactly where [I can pre-order tickets] on the site…?”
My mistake, I just assumed the site would have a pre-order bar on the top like all other Disney movie sites. But definitely try Fandango, especially if you collect Disney Movie Rewards points.
That sounds great, as for the new toy story treats… any word when they will be on the internet and do they have any new characters as well as the ones from ts2? I’m hoping we get one or two of Buzz and Jessie together.:)
I can’t remember… Do we have a thread here for reviews of the TS/TS2 double feature yet?
Slinky’s original voice-actor was Jim Varney. (of Ernest fame)
I’m sure Toy Story 3 is gonna’ be great, but it won’t be quite the same without Mr. Varney…
R.I.P. Jim
I was also privileged to see the preview of the double feature on Saturday! Overall it was amazing! Pixar really nailed the whole retro idea behind a double feature. The animated cards that bookended the films had a very strong “50s theatre” influence, but the design was current and “Flash-like” so that modern audiences really didn’t notice. Add to that the original and very funny bits with the toys “running” the show, and some new fully animated gags with the toys (15 seconds each on average) during the intermission and you have another hit for Pixar! The intermission was ten minutes and there was a nice timer and updates so no one would be caught off guard.
I purposely sat off angle to really scrutinize the 3d. it was amazing overall. I mean we’ve all been bombarded by 3d lately, but sometimes during those 2 films you just “feel” like you are on the floor with the toys. I mean Pixar even modeled the scratches and defects in the hardwood floor of Andy’s room. Even the circular “tailings” on the backs of the soldiers just seemed more real. The 3d effect caused some ghosting in Toy Story in one spot, the Dinoco sign at the gas station. This could very well have been screen flexing or some other issue, but it was pretty noticeable to me. Also, The “sky boxes” where we see the stars and moon are a flat plane in Toy Story, where in Toy Story 2 all were in 3d. This is understandable as Toy Story 2 was vastly more complex technically so Pixar had more to work with when converting. Also an artistic decision was obviously made to touch the original Toy Story as little as possible, and I respect that. I hope 3d does not turn into a new “colorize black and white movies” fad. That would be sad. I am seriously nitpicking here and no one but an animation nut who has seen these movies many times like me would ever notice.
The crowd response was interesting. It was mostly very silent, even during the funny parts. I found myself the only one laughing at many of the classic bits. I even overheard many adults saying they had never seen Toy Story. However at the end of both films hearty applause was given. Perhaps it is the cultural icon status of Woody and co,? It was really odd. Funny story, a local radio personality spent about twenty minutes giving an intro where he had 35 t shirts to give away. He wanted to have an impromtu trivia contest, and announced it before he realized he did not know any! I was nearby so I fed him toddler level questions until all the shirts were gone! Fun stuff! Anyway, there are few better ways to spend a Saturday morning that with Pixar on the Big Screen! Oh, by the way, LOVE the new Pixar 3d identity bumper! So classy!
There’s a trivia segment?!? I planned on seeing the double-feature anyway, but I’d go just for that!
It sounds as if the re-release of both “Toy Story” films will be a blast. I saw the film in 1995, but it will be nice to revisit it in the cinema.
Thanks for the review, martini!
This isn’t a double feature in UK 🙁
No word on Toy Story 2 yet either 🙁
Hope there are same bonues as with the US double feature 🙁
Anonymous, you mentioned how the stars seemed flat in toy story and more 3d in the sequel. this likely doesnt have a thing to do with technology. in toy story one the stars are millions or billions of miles away. you shouldn’t be able to tell how far away one is compared to another. in toy story 2 your in space right there with the stars, so it makes more sense to have them be more dynamic and 3d.
As for that ghosting on the dinoco sign, wouldn’t that just be from the glow? hard to say without seeing it myself.
Refer here for UK releases: http://www.thefilmfactory.co.uk/pressoffice/index.html
You could be right about the stars, it was just an educated but uninformed guess, and Pixar isn’t talking! The Dinoco sign was definitely not a glow. In any case, these are super minor things that no one else will probably even see. By the way, I am ArtJoe. the names are on the bottom on this blog?
At least your name shows, I cant get mine to show up for the life of me. I’m Kyle, and despite logging in I always show up as Anonymous. So annoying.
Any sign of Bo Peep in the trailer?
I’ve already written a full review for this, but man… seeing this in theatres was… totally surreal. It’s actually brought me back into a Toy Story phase. I mean, I always LOVED the films, but after seeing them again like this, they just rejuvenated all my interest in the series. The 2-D animations were cute, also!
I hope many children get to see these movies in theatres. It is truly a lifetime experience. Both movies are phenomenally wonderful works of art that are just as good now as they were at the time. Timeless.
~=Lei