Toy Story 5 – REVIEW

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The toys are back in town…

Released in 1995, Toy Story completely changed animated movies. Audiences of all ages fell in love with Woody and Buzz, and many of those original fans are now parents themselves, eager to share the magic with their own children. While the third Toy Story film provided a satisfying conclusion to what is considered one of cinema’s best trilogies, its success led to a fourth installment. That film saw Woody and Buzz part ways, so the big question now is: how will the creators reunite the beloved characters for Toy Story 5?

The new movie focuses on Jessie and Buzz, who now belong to Bonnie, a little girl who poignantly asks her parents why she doesn’t have any friends. This line, written with remarkable skill by director Andrew Stanton, touches on a common childhood struggle. Things seem to improve when Bonnie is invited to a sleepover thanks to a new, high-tech toy called the Lily Pad, and she quickly becomes obsessed with it, neglecting her older toys. When Jessie and her horse, Bullseye, try to look after Bonnie on the car ride, they get separated and end up back at the farm where Jessie originally lived.

Alongside the main story, Buzz Lightyear’s lost storage tank lies sunken near a distant island, prompting the Star Command troopers to try and return home. Meanwhile, Woody now lives in the forest, fixing up discarded toys, and gets pulled into helping Buzz and Jessie reconnect with Bonnie. Bonnie is struggling with cyberbullying from new ‘friends’ who are obsessed with tech toys.

Toy Story 5 and its new toys ……

This Toy Story movie uniquely focuses on Jessie, with Buzz and Woody taking supporting roles. While beloved characters return, they appear less frequently due to the significantly expanded toy cast – including new additions like Smarty Pants (voiced by Conan O’Brien), a potty-training gadget whose dialogue includes witty jokes for adult viewers. The film also cleverly highlights how quickly even high-tech toys become outdated with each new innovation.

Stanton’s script beautifully portrays the honest realities of childhood and those confusing in-between moments, while also reflecting how much toys have changed. A particularly insightful scene highlights the difference between simply playing and engaging with structured games. Today’s tech toys often focus on the game itself and impersonal online interactions, whereas traditional play encourages a child to use their imagination and create narratives. This desire to grow up leads some children to bully Bonnie for still enjoying imaginative, old-fashioned play.

Kudos to….

While this fifth ‘Toy Story’ movie might be a bit lengthy and have several storylines that are hard for younger viewers to follow, the series continues to set the standard for animated films. A lot of that success is thanks to Andrew Stanton, the writer behind Pixar hits like all the ‘Toy Story’ movies, ‘Monsters Inc./University’, ‘WALL-E’, and ‘Finding Nemo/Dory’. He has a special talent for portraying childhood and human feelings in a deeply moving way. Though ‘Toy Story 5’ isn’t quite as strong as the first three films, it’s still much better than most other animated movies out there, and you can expect another sequel.

Tom Hanks, Tim Allen & Andrew Stanton launch the Toy Story 5 UK Premiere in London….

Jordan North & Sian Welby reveal their secret cameos in Toy Story 5……

Here’s the trailer….

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2026-06-16 19:24