Pizza Planet Double Feature: Toy Story (1995) and Toy Story 2 (1999)

Sitting alone in Pizza Planet can really raise a girl's appetite for a Toy Story double feature. Groundbreaking for its use of CGI and notable as Pixar's first feature-length, Toy Story imagines a world in which every toy comes to life when humans leave the room. This particular story's human is Andy (John Morris), an 8-year-old boy with a penchant for the old west. His favourite toy is Woody (Tom Hanks), a cowboy doll with a drawstring speakerbox. Woody is the friendly leader of Andy's toys, who include the decidedly unscary dinosaur Rex (Wallace Shawn, who doesn't have an IMDb photo, really?), the smart-alecky piggybank Hamm (John Ratzenberger), steadfast Slinky Dog (Jim Varney), aggressive Mr Potato Head (Don Rickles), and Bo Peep (Annie Potts), the only female toy I could spot (realistic for a boy's room, I suppose). For his birthday Andy receives the super-hip, super-cool space action figure Buzz Lightyear (Tim Allen), who quickly replaces Woody as the favourite. To Woody's severe annoyance, Buzz doesn't realize he's a toy, and keeps trying to fly and stun-gun everyone; the other toys find this impressive. After a Randy Newman montage Woody's jealousy gets the best of him and he kicks Buzz out of the window, only to be excommunicated by the other toys. Soon he and Buzz are kidnapped by the evil toy-destroying Sid (Erik von Detten) from next door, and they must put aside their differences so they can save themselves and get back to Andy!

In the sequel, Woody and Buzz are now best friends and the family has a dog. Andy goes away to cowboy camp without Woody because he'd accidentally torn his arm. While he's gone, his mother has a yard sale and the gross toy store owner Al (Wayne Knight) steals Woody as he's rescuing another toy from being sold. It turns out the cowboy is a collectible figure from the 50's television show Woody's Roundup, and is worth tons of money when sold as part of the whole set of character toys. He meets playful loyal steed Bullseye, still-in-the-box Prospector Stinky Pete (Kelsey Grammar), and the energetic yodeling cowgirl Jessie (Joan Cusack). After Woody is fixed up, they'll all be shipped off to Japan to be part of a toy museum. Buzz and the gang show up to rescue him, but he's torn between staying and helping out his new friends (who'll be packed away again if they can't be sold) and going back to Andy, whom he's afraid will outgrow him soon. Decisions, decisions. Also, adventure! It's so nice when a sequel stand up next to the original, eh?

These movies are awesome. Well-written (Joss Whedon helped pen the first one!), funny, impressively animated and designed, and highly entertaining. They take a familiar concept and infuse it with lovable characters, humor, and relatability. Definitely part of the "fun for parents as well as kids" film club. I love their adventure aspects, especially. The first one manages to give us exciting thrills in the confines of two suburban homes and a pizza restaurant. Everything we find small or trivial is massive and dangerous to them. The sequel sports escapades that are out of their element, through backyards, across highways, and within a toy store, high-rise apartment building, and even an international airport. Exciting stuff! But at its heart the series is about the toys' relationships with each other and mission in the world, namely to make a child happy.

Other stuff: I know Randy Newman is like way annoying and shows up everywhere, but one must admit the songs in this movie are catchy and suit the mood well. I remember digging it as a kid, anyway, which is more important. The animation is truly surprising, looking back on it now more than a decade later. It is easy to see the incredible dedication and attention to detail seeping into each shot: the reflections on Buzz's helmet, the labeled books lining Andy's shelves, the posters on Sid's walls, the level of expression on each face (toy or human). Considering this was the first of its kind, the animators could have easily slacked off on some of the minor stuff without anyone noticing, but they instead created a solid, beautiful world that holds up to a lot of other computer-animated films being made today. As much as I lament the passing of cel animation (though here's hoping it gets a comeback in a big way with The Princess and The Frog), watching this reminded me of the excitement and overall coolness generated by this then-novel technique. Now I'm all geared up for Toy Story 3!

Both Films: 4.5/5