AFI's Top 10 Animation: #6 - Toy Story (1995)

Despite all their excellent work since, I would still have to say that Toy Story (1995) is my favourite Pixar film. Computer generated animation took a big step forward that year with the help of Pixar and their success with the first feature length computer-animated film. In fact Toy Story won a Special Achievement Academy Award (the last one thus far) for just that innovation and this is one of many reasons that Toy Story was voted to #6 on AFI's Top 10 Animation list.

Everyone played with a wide variety of toys as a kid but rarely did we think about it from the toys' point of view. That simple idea blossomed into one of the greatest movie franchises of all time (all that disagree have no inner child).

As always, voice talent for animated features is a lot cheaper to come by. Tom Hanks was in the prime of his career and got a nice, yet unnecessary, boost to his star power, whereas his co-star Tim Allen got a much needed upgrade to his résumé. Of course Tim's career was never quite at the height of his cowboy counterpart and it was a pretty smart move I'd say since the Toy Story movies are the only good things I've seen from him in a while. Just to name a few of the supporting cast, we also hear from Wallace Shawn as Rex, Don Rickles as Mr. Potatohead, John Ratzenberger as Hamm, Annie Potts as Bo Peep, and the late Jim Varney as Slinky Dog.

I'm pretty biased towards this movie so I would have had it probably Top 3 due to it being awesome plus it's innovation in animation. Of course that also might be because I'm a product of 90's pop culture, so my views are pretty narrow.

I don't really know what to say about a lot of these movies because they're ones everyone has seen before but if you are ever feeling like the reality of the world is getting you down watch some magical talking toys and everything will get better. Actually they won't get any better, but you will have spent 80 minutes in childish bliss.

Notes:

- I realize that Jessie and Bullseye aren't in the first Toy Story but that was the first picture I found, so whatever.
- Laurie Metcalf voices Andy's mom throughout the series and for some strange reason the following confusing train of thought and random factoids were the very first things that I connected in my brain. Metcalf plays Nanette Guzman (Nanny G) in just a single episode of Frasier. Kelsey Grammar played the character Frasier Crane in both his title sitcom and in Cheers. John Ratzenberger who voices Hamm is best known for his character Cliff Clavin throughout the entire 11 year Cheers run.....That is what goes on in my brain when I'm thinking about movies and pop culture.