Pixar Animation Studio, with The Walt Disney Company’s help, wowed the world in 1995 with the release of their first full-length, computer animated movie ‘Toy Story.’ I was one of the kids who absolutely fell in love with the baby lamp and his ball-balancing acrobatics. How little I understood at the time about how truly amazing his feats were.

Now, Pixar has released 11 full-length movies, including ‘Finding Nemo,’ and my favorite ‘Wall-E,’ and countless shorts, such as the 1986 classic ‘Luxo Jr.’ about the little lamp and the 1997 ‘Geri’s Game’ about a chess game where cheating always helps you win your teeth.

I went to the movie theatre at the end of the opening day for the last showing of the night at 10:25 p.m. I was surprised to see there were two showings that late at night and even more surprised when I saw one was sold out. I smiled to myself when I recalled the plot of the commercials advertising the movie: Andy was going to college. I saw the original as a child and now I was going to see the same movie as a recent college student.

I remember as a child being very close to my toys; I would always carry a select few stuffed animals and dolls around with me. On one occasion my family was going to a mall, so I left my toys in the car so I wouldn’t lose them. My father asked me if I still loved my toys because I left them alone in the car as we walked inside. We had recently seen Toy Story and I felt so guilty leaving them that day that I never did again. I would always let them take turns when I carried them around after that.

I looked around at the other movie-goers as I picked out a seat. Although it was late, I was surprised to see two or three kids in the crowded theatre. The rest were middle-aged or high school couples and groups of friends. As I was waiting for the show to start, I saw the best pre-preview commercial. It was a Google commercial using sound bites from the original and the new Toy Story movies of the toys talking while using the Google Search toolbar. It ended with Woody leaving “Bring your toys to college” in the toolbar before Andy comes in. It was a great play on the original “moments in life” commercial Google has used before.

One of my favorite aspects of the movie is the fact it is G-rated. There are too few G-rated movies for families to take their kids to anymore. The previews before the movie were heartening because at least three of the six were G-rated and all were at least family-friendly. Of course, the movie began with a short. Titled “Night & Day,” it was about two figures, one whose body was Day and the other’s was Night. At first they tried to outdo each other by showing the best things about their time of day. After going at it for a while, they soon discover they each like something in the other and get along. The most amazing part is the entire dialogue and background sound is completely portrayed by natural sounds, like bees, wind, and water. I definitely recommend looking into it.

The movie opened with what seemed like the main toys’ own movie about Woody trying to save a train full of Trolls from one-eyed Mr. and Mrs. Potato Head and evil Dr. Porkchop. You soon find out this is a flashback from Andy’s childhood. Although the movie opened well with a flashback montage, when the toys call Andy’s stolen cell phone from within the toy box just so he will pick them up really shows how desperate they are. In the movie Woody preaches about staying loyal to Andy and being there for him and the other toys want to be played with. Woody is chosen to go with Andy to college and the rest are boxed to go in the attic.

When I went to college, cherishing my toys was still deeply seated within me and I was torn as to which I would take to me with I went to college. Just as Andy did in the movie, I let some toys go over the years and others have been passed down to my younger brother. The ones who had stood the test of time were being tested as I had to move away. Some of my went to stay with my grandmother and some ended up in the attic.

After a mix-up, the toys end up at a daycare. I don’t know about anyone else, but this gave me the creeps. It didn’t help when it turned out the toys at the daycare were creepy themselves. There is just something scary about twisted, evil toys. The whole middle part of the movie can be summed up in this line: “the daycare is ruled by a bear that smells of strawberries.” Yes, really. Though, the crayon drawings on the toys were pretty cool.

There were some really cool toys in the movie too. I have to give kudos to the use of Barbie and Ken. It’s especially funny when Ken is trying on all of his outfits for Barbie, and then she turns on him and starts ripping his outfits to get him to talk. Barbie turns out to be really intelligent, spewing lines such as: “power should derive from the consent of the governed,” which earned her a couple of good looks from the other toys. Spanish Buzz was hilarious and a highlight of the movie — the entire theatre erupted into laughter as he danced around Jessie. There is also a brief moment where Mr. Potato Head becomes Mr. Tortilla Head. Lastly, for anyone who is a Studio Ghibli fan, the use of a Totoro plushy from “My Neighbor Totoro” was refreshing.

Kids can learn a lot from ‘Toy Story.’ Woody and Buzz are loyal friends and all of the toys are extremely resourceful. Something can also be learned about the simplicity of play time and caring about your possessions. Overall, the storyline was very fluid and moved along well. I thought there were moments that were seriously scary for a children’s movie, but Pixar pulled through them with grace. Thinking back on the original ‘Toy Story,’ I can tell the graphics have improved tremendously. Pixar was able to do more with the story because of the years of practice using Renderman, the technology behind all of their productions. I also have to applaud the integration of recent culture into the movie. Cell phones and laptops were commonly used.

As the movie came to an end, the audience got to see a moment where transition meets static time. Andy gives away his toys, including Woody, to a young girl who is seen throughout the movie who loves toys. He stops for a moment on his way to college and they play with the toys together — It is a truly touching moment. As he drives away from the girl’s house, Buzz and Woody watch his car go. From behind me I heard a girl say, “I love this movie.” I nodded in agreement and clapped with the rest of the theatre.