On today’s episode of the Daily Variety podcast, Variety’s chief film critic Owen Gleiberman praised the Pixar film Toy Story as the fifth installment opens in theaters on June 19th. Pixar’s pioneering CG animated series, which began in 1995, represents “some of the greatest childhood movies of all time,” Gleiberman enthuses.
In Gleiberman’s role as a critic, it is his job to question and interrogate his subject matter. However, he sometimes expresses an unabashed love for the series that spans generations. The first “Toy Story” was released in 1995, a landmark moment in computer-generated animation that came about 11 years before Disney acquired Pixar. In Gleiberman’s opinion, Toy Story 5 is a worthy representation of the world of Buzz Lightyear, Woody, Jesse and the gang.
“‘Toy Story 5’ is as good as any of the others. There’s never been a better series in Hollywood history,” Gleiberman said. “People like to choose their favorite Toy Story movie. Many say Toy Story 3 is the best. Personally, I think the best Toy Story movie is still the first one, made in 1995.”
Gleiberman emphasizes that the previous five films come together as one big production. And he turned to musical metaphors to emphasize his deep appreciation for the artistry of “Toy Story.”
“All of these movies are great. They all work together. They’re greater than the sum of their parts,” he says. “So I started thinking that these are like Beatles albums, all different and all one piece of work. Why would I choose that? And to push that analogy a little into ridiculous territory, the original Toy Sto… If ‘Lee’ was ‘Meet the Beatles’ and ‘Toy Story 3’ was ‘Sgt. This is a movie that reflects the series as a whole, and it just might be the perfect ending. ”
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