A torn and frayed Woody (voice of Tom Hanks) is once again at the endangered center of the story. While his beloved lord and master, Andy, is off at camp, Woody is kidnapped by the odious, obese and obsessive toy collector Al (Wayne Knight), owner of Al’s Toy Barn. Woody had no idea how valuable he was! Turns out he was the star of a ’50s TV show called “Woody’s Roundup” (re-created here in all its black-and-white kinescope glory), which was rendered obsolete by Sputnik. By kidnapping Woody, big Al has completed his highly coveted set of the four original toys who starred in the show: Woody, Stinky Pete the Prospector (Kelsey Grammer)–a tough old coot still confined to his original plastic box–Bullseye the horse and the straight-shootin’ little cowgal Jessie (Joan Cusack). Once Woody is repaired to his original glory, they will all be shipped off to a Tokyo museum where their immortality will be guaranteed.
While Woody’s frantic pals (Mr. Potato Head, Rex the nervous Nellie dinosaur, Slinky Dog, Sarge and, of course, the self-infatuated Buzz) are desperately trying to save him from the clutches of the greedy Al, Woody himself faces a toy’s ultimate moral conundrum. Should he be happy to be reunited with his own kind, or devastated to be separated from his home? Is it a finer thing to preserve himself forever in a museum or fulfill his role as a child’s playmate, at the risk of life-ending injury? Who knew how complicated it could be to be a toy?
Lasseter and his two codirectors, Lee Unkrich and Ash Brannon, wring this complex dilemma for every laugh, thrill and surprise it has to offer (and manage to work in some hilarious “Star Wars” jokes). As in the original, the superrealist images beguile us with their bold wit, and the storytelling is so tight, urgent and inventive there doesn’t seem to be a wasted moment. Which makes you wonder–why can’t scripts this clever be written for human beings? Could it be because actors are always rewriting their parts? Something a self-respecting toy wouldn’t even consider.
