Toy Story 4 ** (voices of Tom Hanks, Tim Allen, Annie Potts, Tony Hale ) – Movie Review

Not to be too mean, but director Josh Cooley’s Disney / Pixar animation adventure comedy sequel Toy Story 4 has a lot of toys but not very much story, showing that a fourth film is one too many.

Despite eight writers for original story, it hasn’t found much of a story to tell at all, unsurprisingly since the original trilogy told and finished the extended toy story. Toy Story 4’s pretty weak screenplay is by Andrew Stanton and Stephany Folsom. It is amiable and easy-going but simply not inventive or funny enough. In one way it is good that it doesn’t try too hard. In another way it should be trying much harder.

It is great that Tom Hanks, Tim Allen, Annie Potts return as the tried and trusted voices of Woody, Buzz Lightyear and Bo Peep. Woody and Bo have a lot to do, all of it genial, though none of it very special, and their love affair is kind of cheesy to say the least, and even vaguely embarrassing. Tony Hale is the voice of new character Forky. This is a toy we can so do without. It might have seemed an amusing idea to have a toy that is just a fork and call it, er, Forky, but is that funny at all? No, not really. They might have been killing themselves at the script conferences, but on screen it just seems desperate.

The humans are a jolly dull bunch too, starting with little girl Bonnie (voice of Madeleine McGraw) who literally makes a new friend at school, that’s Forky, out of a plastic fork and a pipe cleaner. This really must be the world’s most pathetic ‘toy’, at least till Forky’s partner emerges at the end of the movie, a pathetic ‘toy’ made out of a plastic knife. Naturally they fall for each other too. OMG!

Bonnie’s Dad (voice of Jay Hernandez) and Bonnie’s Mom (voice of Lori Alan) have a fair bit to do, but they are not very interesting. As Bonnie and her parents go on a road trip with Forky, Woody, Buzz and co, Woody’s detour leads him to find his long-lost friend Bo Peep.

Two ghastly toys appear too, Ducky (voice of Keegan-Michael Key) and Bunny (voice of Jordan Peele). They are stuffed cuddly toys, about as inventive and useful as Forky.

However Duke Caboom appears too (voice of Keanu Reeves), a Seventies bike stunt performer toy from Canada in the style of Evel Knievel. Laughs do come from this idea. Thanks, Keanu. The sinister Dummies (voice of Steve Purcell) are fun too and so is Margaret the Store Owner (voice of June Squibb). Otherwise the whole burden of the movie is on Hanks. He carries it well, and, surprisingly, Woody doesn’t seem past his sell-by date.

Back in the Nineties, Toy Story and Toy Story 2 seemed magical, even the belated Toy Story 3 too. But magic doesn’t last forever. And Disney / Pixar really need a new supply of fairy dust.

© Derek Winnert 2019 Movie Review

Check out more reviews on http://derekwinnert.com

Toy Story 4 stars Tom Hanks and Tim Allen as the voices of Woody and Buzz.