Toy Story 3 --- Oops

Oops, the little girl who plays takes Woody home is not Molly; her name is Bonnie.

Imaginative Play in Summer Movie

Toy Story 3 is a beautiful film about childhood, specifically a child's imagination. I have noticed that there are so many toys available today for children that are connected to television shows and films. In my opinion, these toys do not help enhance a child's imagination. Children tend to react scenarios depicted in the television shows and films. As someone who just began teaching preschoolers, I am discovering that it is hard to teach children how to play.

Toy Story 3 helped me remember what it felt like to be a child and play with toys that have no connection to cartoons and films. It is nice to see old-fashioned toys in Toy Story 3; Thomas the Train does not make an appearance.

The film begins with a wonderful sequence of Woody, Buzz, Mr. and Mrs. Potato Head, Barbie, and slinky dog (I there were other toys as well, but these toys are fresh in my mind) in a battle of good versus evil, fueled by Andy's imagination. This sequence was a video memory of young Andy at play. Andy is going to college, and he has to pack up his belongings and decide the things he wants to keep, throw away, and give to charity. He cannot part with his toys, and decides to bring Woody with him to college and bring the rest of his toys to the attic for safekeeping. Woody notices that the bag containing his friends is accidentally left for garbage pickup, and he tries to save his friends from being sent to the garbage dump. His friends are resourceful and are able to save themselves. Woody tries to tell his friends that Andy was not throwing them out; he was going to keep them, but they do not believe him.

Unfortunately, all of Andy's toys, including Woody, inadvertently get sent to a day care center. Woody is upset to be at the day care center because he wants to get back to Andy. He manages to leave the day care center, and is taken home by a little girl named Molly. Molly brings him home, and we witness a child's imagination that reminds us of Andy's games with his toys. Although Woody is happy with Molly, he wants to get back to the day care center so he can help his friends get back to Andy. Andy's toys are happy at the day care center because children will play with them. There appears to be a hierarchy of toys at the day care center, and the newest (oldest) toys must be given to the toddlers. This upsets Andy's toys because the toddlers lack play skills. Andy's toys must work together to escape the day care center and return to the safety of Andy's attic.

Toy Story 3 makes one nostalgic for children play with different types of stories and making up elaborate scenarios, without the aid of cartoons.