Emily Kemper | The Chronicle
Movie Review
3.5 stars
Woody, Buzz, Jessie and the gang’s return to the big screen for the fifth time since 1995 was simultaneously a safety net and a risk. While Pixar can count on audiences showing up to see these beloved characters over and over, further additions to the “Toy Story” franchise run the risk of tarnishing the charm the first three films hold. “Toy Story 5” may not be a necessary addition to the franchise, but the film makes fantastic use of its characters’ perspective as toys to send a compelling message about technology.
In the film, Bonnie’s parents attempt to help her make friends by buying her a Lilypad tablet. Jessie, however, thinks Lilypad will stop Bonnie from playing and connecting with other kids. Trying to tag along to Bonnie’s sleepover, Jessie is accidentally returned to the house where one of her past owners used to live. There, she meets outdated tech tools and plans to make Bonnie a new friend.
Throughout the film Jessie struggles with feeling useless compared to new technology and unable to help Bonnie keep up with her peers, but eventually understands that despite kids growing up and technology changing over time, she has still made an impact on all of the kids who played with her.
The film makes a point to not reduce technology to pure evil. Instead, the film suggests that technology is a valuable problem-solving tool, but without boundaries can stunt imagination and face-to-face interaction for children and adults alike. Discussing the dangers of too much screen time in a way kids can understand is an important story to tell, but I wish the creatives at Pixar would have created new characters, concepts and settings to tell it. Although I left the theater wanting to bust my Barbie dolls out of storage, the constant stream of sequels makes me wonder if Pixar is losing its spark.
