Rarely is a fourth entry in a motion picture franchise ever worth its salt, let alone existence — think Lethal Weapon 4, Scream 4, and Indiana Jones 4 — but then, when the head honchos over at Pixar decided to toss in a sentient spork and designate him the de-facto emotional centerpiece of a bloated, yet gorgeous trip down memory lane, anything seemed possible. Even ol’ Sheriff Woody himself, who has teeter-tottered between narcissistic sociopath and noble, magnanimous hero in three short films, is hung up by his own pull-string over whether or not he’s got enough chutzpah left for another outing. Though it’s actually his antique castaway, Bo, who emerges as the worthy successor to this chapter's meandering toy conjuration, commandeering the screen nearly as effectively as Bonnie's franken-utensil creation, "Forky." While sweet, dim-witted Forky wants nothing more than to be wedged between garbage and discarded banana peels, Bo and her flock of Cerberus-like sheep have settled nicely into a kind of meridional carnie life — relishing the idea of being played with interchangeably as unaccompanied trinkets. No children to break, trample, or whisk away their non-existent hearts, Peep sheds her signature pink porcelain frock and endeavors deep into the unknown, somehow winding up rougher and tougher than Woody, Buzz, or any of the other toys in Bonnie's closet put together. It's possible the writers of TS4 wanted to give Bo a more triumphant sendoff, making her more freewheeling and independent by necessity — yet it is by no means a compelling enough reason to plop us back into this topsy turvy world of talking toys, plastic sporks, and Tim-Fucking-Allen.
Credit must be given when it’s due however, and Forky truly is the most inspired thing to happen to the Toy Story-verse since Lotso Huggins, providing an anxiety-riddled, yet comforting segue into some painful life divinations about the sacrifices we're forced to make along the way as adults. The dilemma unfortunately, is that here he’s essentially forgotten about by the film’s second act, and to its detriment he becomes more of a thematic tool than constructive, supporting ally. But let's face facts, he's a talking spork, do we really need to get into the weeds of this guy’s central purpose — or lack thereof? I only wished the creators behind TS4 bothered to scrutinize the franchise’s mythology further, like explaining why scribbling on something’s feet suddenly renders them self-aware? After an airtight trilogy which saw its third, most compelling chapter end with an apocalyptic dumpster inferno, how much more is there to glean from these characters whose sole purpose is to enchant children and acquiesce to their emotional infirmities? A fourth outing should’ve been willing to do some heavier intellectual mining, and explain why, if toys really are all-knowing keepers of our secrets and sacraments, haven't they risen up and conquered humanity? And don’t even get me started on Bo Peep, Woody's plan B who should've clocked him sideways the minute he asked her to help track down Forky, rather than inquire about where’s she’s been the past 9 years, or if she’s changed at all since then.
The casual, straight white male slovenliness Woody has always enjoyed (even as a toy), finally comes to a head in TS4, and he's rewarded mightily as a sex-starved, adventure-stricken egotist. The end result being, well, that he finally gets the girl and sets forth upon a beautiful life with swole-mate, Bo (sorry, Buzz). As for Forky's less certain future, he too is proffered a female companion to teach and unnerve further, yet when she asks him “what a toy is” he stares at her with the same blank, shit-eating grin plastered throughout the entirety of the film. For Forky is no spiritual force blessed by the cosmos of the toy terrene, he’s a nervous embodiment of this new volatile generation of kids forced to endure daily thoughts of active shooter drills, and climate catastrophe. An incarnation of their own apprehension who seek not the respite of toys, but of laptops, smartphones and tablets telling them their days are numbered. Forky might be the lone optimist who still opines that even if one is born without a purpose, or feels as if though don't have a future worth living, it doesn't mean they shouldn’t disassemble and start from scratch. Hell, they might even be better off for it. With all that being said, this film feels more like a fruitless exercise in tacking onto a popular franchise which frankly, should’ve been put to bed 8 years prior. Pixar may even need to take a couple years off, and re-think their creative efforts. After all, sequel after mediocre sequel doesn't seem like a recipe for a movie studio’s longterm success. And if playing it safe had been Disney/ Pixar’s modus operandi back in 1995, when the original “Toy Story” was released, we wouldn't be sitting here talking about a fourth iteration of it today. They may have well come to their own forky in the road, and have no clue what the hell comes next.
“TOY STORY 4” a.k.a. “Pixar’s Forky in the Road” Rated G. Running time: 1 hour 40 minutes.
