These days it's not uncommon for sequels to outshine their predecessors, and Toy Story 2 is no exception. Boasting stronger animation, more complex characterization, and a deeper, more involving story, this sequel bests the original Toy Story on all fronts.
Toy Story 2 picks up sometime after the first film, and once again is centered around Woody (Tom Hanks) and his struggle to be a worthy part of Andy's life. Andy's starting to grow up, and Woody is beginning to realize that he won't be there to see every moment of his later years as he had hoped. When he is stolen by a collector named Al (Wayne Knight), Woody discovers that he is a rare collector's item from an old cowboy TV show called "Woody's Roundup", and he meets his Roundup Gang, which consists of Jessie the cowgirl (Joan Cusack), Bullseye the horse, and "Stinky" Pete the prospector (Kelsey Grammer), all of which are about to be shipped off to a museum. As he gets to know them, Woody begins to consider that maybe he's better off without Andy.
Meanwhile, Buzz Lightyear (Tim Allen) and the rest of Andy's toys plot a rescue mission to find Woody and bring him home before Andy returns from camp. Along the way they are sidetracked by several hi-jinks and zany characters, including a Barbie doll (Jodie Benson) and the Emperor Zurg (Andrew Stanton), Buzz's toy nemesis.
This movie released only 4 years after the original Toy Story, and already the animation is leaps and bounds ahead of anything in that film. The human models still leave a little to be desired, but everything else is top-notch, from the fabric on Woody and the Roundup Gang to the gizmos and tech in Buzz's plastic armor. Right from the opening shots in space, this movie is just a festival for the eyeballs. The lighting is especially noteworthy for the confrontations between Buzz and Zurg, the scenes in Al's Toy Barn, and the montage from Jessie's past. The attention to detail is just astounding, and this movie was made under a much tighter deadline than the original.
Not only does Toy Story 2 outdo the first on a purely technical level, but from a story standpoint as well. This movie began the Pixar trend of having sad moments and emotional subtext sprinkled throughout the kiddy stuff, and for good reason. The Toy Story series has been an allegory for many adult themes, such as abandonment, growing up, and saying goodbye to old friends, a lot of which are nailed home in this film. Jessie is the character that deals with the most emotional trauma underneath her spunky exterior, and we're shown this through the famous "When She Loved Me" scene. It's pretty remarkable what Pixar can do with the "show, don't tell" approach.
Once again, the voice cast needs to be praised for their work in this film. Tom Hanks and Tim Allen deliver a perfect return to their roles, and both give Woody and Buzz well-executed depth and complexity underneath their plastic exteriors. Allen even gets to play two different versions of Buzz to hilarious effect. Joan Cusack, meanwhile, nails Jessie's over-the-top cowgirl moments before shifting to more dramatic material as we learn more about her past. A special shout-out is needed for Andrew Stanton's performance as Emperor Zurg, who becomes a memorable character despite his limited screentime.
Something that I didn't bring up in my review for the first Toy Story but deserves a mention here is Randy Newman's music. He delivers a really strong score, from the opening trumpets for Buzz's space adventure to the Woody's Roundup theme song to the aforementioned "When She Loved Me." The background tracks are worth listening to, and prove that composers really do make the movie; without them, movie moments wouldn't be nearly as triumphant or emotional or shocking.
Toy Story 2: a sequel that beats the original on all fronts while telling one of Pixar's strongest, most enduring stories.