What are critics saying about Toy Story 5?

The eagerly anticipated Toy Story 5 is coming out soon - and critics have given their verdict on the latest installment of the beloved Pixar franchise.

The animated comedy series, based around a group of toys and their adventures, first began back in 1995. This time, Tom Hanks is back once again as the pull-string cowboy doll Woody, and Tim Allen as the superhero action figure Buzz Lightyear.

Pixar

Seven years on from the previous film, Toy Story 5 has a new villain - technology. More specifically, a frog-shaped smart tablet called Lilypad described as a "new threat to playtime" for the toys...

What are critics saying?

Pixar

The film has received mixed critical reception, many noted how the timely storyline of the encroaching impact of technology, and it comes at an interesting time for this conversation as the UK has followed in Australia's steps to announce a proposed social media ban for under-16s.

On film and TV review aggregate website, Rotten Tomatoes, Toy Story 5 has a critics rating of 94 per cent, while on IMDb it has been rated an 7.8 out of 10, at the time of writing.

The Independent's Clarisse Loughrey gave the film two stars, noting how it is "certainly topical" but ultimately "the worst in the series".

"While this is topical, there does come a point in any franchise where the natural momentum dies," and adding that "With Toy Story 5, Pixar’s 30-year-old franchise has finally started to show its age."

"It’s almost incredible to think that the Toy Story series is more than 30 years old, a central plank of the Pixar animation golden age. But now it is played out and IP exhaustion has set in," The Guardian's Peter Bradshaw wrote, giving it two stars out of five.

Indie Wire's David Elrich graded the film a B+, "For all of its teachable wisdom, this movie knows that life is never sweeter than it is during the moments, and years, when we simply can’t accept that love is also made out of plastic."

"While Toy Story 5 may fall short of essential, in an age in which children’s entertainment routinely panders to its audience, there is something quietly radical about a film that is willing to worry for them," The Telegraph's Robbie Collin commented in his four-star review.

Financial Times's Danny Leigh noted in his three-star review, "There are flashes of wit and charm (2000s digital gizmos are now relics too), but a certain mechanised whirr is also never far away in a film that feels oddly cold about most kids, and a little thin on plot."

"It’s a sublime summing up, a movie that reflects the whole series in its magic mirror, and (just maybe) a perfect ending," said Variety's Owen Gleiberman.

When does the film come out?

Pixar

The release date for Toy Story 5 is June 19 - so not too long to wait!

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