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* We must warn you that there are
immense spoilers and plot twists to "Toy Story 3"
revealed in the following essay, so please display
caution and read at your leisure.
Ultimately the "Toy Story" series comes full circle when
we learn it's all one big metaphor for the power of
love, the sadness of growing up, and god. Many will
dispute this fact, they'll claim others are looking far
too deep in to what is just a kids adventure film, but
since when has a movie by Pixar ever been just about
adventures and laughs? "Up" was about the sanctity of
life and love, "Wall-E" about mass consumerism
destroying the world and how love can save humanity, et
al. "Toy
Story 3" is very much a take on religion in the end as
while the first installment explored the blooming
maturity of Woody's master and the threat of being
replace, and "Toy Story 2" focusing on the lessening
importance of mementos, "Toy Story 3" dares to delve in
to the after life of toys and dabbles with the concepts
of these characters beliefs and their faith that could
lead them down an interesting path in an after life
that's alluded toward but never revealed for us after
the credits have rolled in front of our eyes. When the
question of an after life and the potential death for
the toys arises we're immediately drawn in to a
discussion about their fates that could have potentially
varying degrees of experiences.
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The elephant
in the room is where will the toys all end
up? Will they be doomed to hell for
questioning Andy i.e. the dumpster that is
dark, void, and leads to the dreaded
incinerator we saw in the horrific climax?
Will they have to settle for purgatory i.e.
the attic where they'll linger seemingly for
all eternity waiting for the return of their
creator and life giver settling on commuting
with unseen Christmas ornaments waiting for
their chance to be wanted, or be sent to
heaven for their loyalty toward their deity
i.e. a now grown Andy? Notice in the
narrative that Woody remains completely
faithful to Andy in spite of being tossed
out of paradise where he showered them with
love and life, only to shun them as
worthless. Has Andy ultimately lost faith in
his creations, or confidence in himself to
create this world? |
Meanwhile the other toys question his devotion when he
declares his apathy toward their ultimate demises, so he
dooms the others to the attic for eternity waiting for
salvation while he brings only Woody, who has remained
steadfast the entire time, never questioning his
intention or devotion to them and insistently preaching
Andy's word in spite of what he's heard him say in
passing. When the antagonist Lots-o introduces himself
he seems like a very calm and gentle individual, one who
leads his 'Sunnyside Daycare' pals instilling a series
of ranks and classes among his followers as he dictates
their well-being and welfare with an almost Jim Jones
quality.
We
learn that Lots-o questions his faith in his master and
because of this he goes rotten and becomes a villain
without a sense of remorse and is interested purely in
self-preservation even in the face of Woody's goodness
when faced with the fires of doom in the final scenes. I
wholeheartedly disagree in the idea that denouncing
faith and a god will make you rotten since I'm an
atheist and I am a very good person and a loyal family
man, but I do think it's a powerful bit of a take on
faith and religion. The characters are literally saved
from burning for eternity, and Lots-o's entire
stranglehold on the community could be seen as
cult-like.
| I think "Toy
Story 3" is overall more of a push on
religion and faith, but also pulls back a
bit and puts the concept of religion under
the microscope a bit. But the angle on the
power of faith and religion is much more
prevalent when you step back and take a
second look. While it does encourage the
concept of believing in a higher being in
spite of your misery, loneliness, and woes,
it also asks us if we're really all that
doomed without the support of faith. Is
religion really needed to keep us happy?
Especially when you consider how it was
corrupted by someone like Lots-o who took
the principles of his ideology and used it
as a way to take paradise and turn it on its
head for his own twisted gain. Lots-o defies
his master and tries to be his own god
begging others to deify him and it backfires
big time when the toys' belief in a bigger
entity takes hold and convinces the other
toys to believe. |
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His
take on the religious representation is a cult-like
following where he influences the others to not believe
in any master but him offering them lives as
pragmatists, and when he doesn't find it possible to
convert them all, he forces his beliefs on their
representative, Buzz Lightyear against his will. When he
and his thugs brainwash Buzz, he becomes militant,
menacing, and unrecognizable when his language is
completely changed. It's played for humor with near
perfection for most of the film, but it also stands as a
metaphor in and of itself. Barbie, the second half of
the female protagonists plays a big part in symbolizing
both viewpoints finding that love for her man far
outweighs her attachment to her goddess, but she is also
still firm in her belief in a higher power. When Lots-O
is taken away she stays behind at the Daycare Center to
rule with Ken, probably to integrate the pragmatic and
religious viewpoints over their friends.
In the
end their whole belief in one another as they join hands
and prepare to accept their fates at the vicious mouth
of the hell fires saves them again as they're saved by
the bright light from above: the claw! It's
representative of divine intervention by the unflinching
believers i.e. the Martians and the claw when the toys
are about to be sucked in to hell in the dumpster.
They're pulled from the ashes and saved from death
because there is still some essence among them that
holds true to their principles. Or have they died and
are grabbed by a hand escorting them in to the after
life because they've accepted their mortality? As I've
said in previous writings, I don't enjoy movies that
push religious themes (like "The Chronicles of Narnia"
that pretends to be simple fantasy but is just blatant
propaganda) on audiences, but I loved "Toy Story 3" for
exploring such issues and undertones subtly and quietly
while entertaining us to a great degree.
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I
don't endorse pushing blatant religious views as
a form of conversion on impressionable viewers,
but it's perfectly human and rational to
question what happens after we've all died. And
in the end it's not a whole summary where the
writers explain: "They believed in god, so
they're safe now and Lots-o isn't because he was
not a believer." The whole message is that
belief in a higher being can empower us and keep
us moving to a certain extent but in the end
love is what really matters. Whether we think
love can come from one another or from a more
powerful being in the sky. They lose their god
in the final scenes, but they on the bright side
they have faith in each other and in the force
of their devotion to their goals and their
bonds, and that empowers them more, and they
learn to be out on their own in a world that's
vast and scary. But we're told deep down they'll
survive because religion and a god should be a
back up and not a crutch. |
The end
result reminded me of when I became an atheist; I was
very scared about dropping religion from my life
completely and I turned out just fine. When the screen
fades to black, the belief in a higher being is still
present in the toys, but they also learn they can exist
and walk with love and faith without any help from a
higher being. The question that ultimately stands is
would being handed over to toddler Bonnie by adult Andy
in the climax be representative of reincarnation? Or
have our toys died and been granted a ticket to heaven?
Deep down I think it's just an open door for a possible
reboot or part four (should Disney demand more from this
universe), but you could look at it the outcome as a
two-fold result. The toys all stick to their guns and
their god rewards them with a new life in greener
pastures, a new start with more friends, and a young
loyal master who treats her creations with respect and
love. In spite of her rough treatment, she gives her
friends respect and equality and because of that they
never question or disrespect her.
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Mr. Pricklepants is even committed to
playing his part encouraging the others to
follow her rules while Buttercup the unicorn
offers Woody a way out through the door to
his own world but he himself and his friends
never choose it. It's an option, it's right
there, but they choose to remain in their
god's world. They choose the comfort of
their love from their master Bonnie instead
of the world outside where danger lurks.
When Woody discovers this new life with
Bonnie, a fresh new master who appreciates
and loves him, he questions his loyalty to
Andy as well, and this dooms him to turmoil
and pain that sucks him in to hell until his
god, Andy, decides to hand them over to a
new master Bonnie, a new god and creator of
worlds for them. What can be interpreted by
this final act is through the final scene
where our protagonist and new owner Bonnie
explores the intricacies of her characters
and allows them free reign of her house
where they can live in peace to which the
camera pans up to the open blue serene sky.
Is this a new domain with a new maker... or
have the toys died and are now resting in
heaven? I guess we'll find out in a decade
or so if Pixar is willing to let it end on
this note, or continue sapping at this
mythos undermining all theories about
religion as applied to the arc. |
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"Toy
Story 3" is, as many have agreed, a wonderful finisher
to the story of Woody and his pals and arguably a
masterpiece from Pixar, so in spite of this article the
interpretations on the many themes of prevalent in the
threads of the narrative should not dictate your
enjoyment. The question I pose to readers is: Is "Toy
Story 3" and the entire trilogy a take on the force of
religious belief, or a summary on the force of love that
doesn't always have to include a higher force? The
messages are mixed and there are slight contradictions,
but I think that will be left for us to interpret when
we fade to black. |
