Toy Story 5 Review: ★★★☆☆ (3/5)
A charming, big-hearted family film with real laughs and a message worth hearing. It may not sit alongside Pixar’s very best work, but as a continuation of one of animation’s greatest franchises, it more than holds its own.
When Pixar announced Toy Story 5, a lot of fans weren’t sure how to feel. Toy Story 4 wrapped things up so cleanly that another chapter seemed unnecessary — even risky. But here’s the thing: Toy Story 5 actually has something to say.
This isn’t just another adventure about toys coming to life after the lights go out. It’s a film about what childhood looks like right now — tablets on laps, phones in hands, screens everywhere — and whether there’s still room in that world for something as old-fashioned as imaginative play.
Bonnie is older now, and her attention has drifted toward a shiny new digital device that’s slowly eating up the hours she used to spend with her toys. For Woody, Buzz, Jessie and the rest of the gang, that’s a problem they’ve never quite faced before.
They’ve always been afraid of being forgotten. But being replaced by a screen is a different kind of threat altogether.
What the film gets right is that it never turns this into a lecture. Technology isn’t the villain here. The movie simply makes the case for balance — that kids can enjoy the digital world and still leave room for creativity, for mess, for the kind of play that doesn’t have a battery life.
It’s a message that lands gently enough for young viewers and clearly enough for the parents sitting next to them.
Visually, the film is exactly what you’d expect from Pixar — which is to say, stunning. The detail in every frame, from a cluttered bedroom floor to the vivid digital worlds the toys stumble into, is the kind of thing that makes you forget you’re watching animation. Pixar keeps raising the bar, and Toy Story 5 clears it comfortably.
The voice cast slips back into these characters like no time has passed at all. Woody, Buzz and Jessie feel as warm and familiar as ever, and the friendships between them remain the emotional backbone of the whole thing.
The film earns its emotional moments too. Toy Story has always understood that growing up involves loss as much as it involves excitement, and this installment doesn’t shy away from that. There are scenes that will make you laugh out loud and others that will catch you off guard in the best way.
Where it stumbles is in the plotting. Longtime fans will see several beats coming well in advance, and a handful of supporting characters feel like they were written in to fill space rather than add anything meaningful. It’s familiar territory, and the film doesn’t always find a fresh angle on it.
But those are small gripes against a film that largely delivers. The heart is there, the humour works, and the message doesn’t overstay its welcome.
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The most impressive thing about Toy Story 5 is that it manages to feel current without abandoning what made the original films so special. It speaks to kids who have grown up swiping screens while still honouring everything fans have loved about this franchise for decades.
By the end, you’re reminded all over again why these characters have stuck around so long. They stand for friendship, loyalty and the kind of joy that doesn’t need a Wi-Fi connection.
Toy Story 5 isn’t Pixar at its absolute peak. But it’s warm, honest and quietly moving — and that counts for a lot.