"Well, whatever happens at least we'll be together ... For infinity and beyond." The final 30 minutes of this film are picture perfect, extremely emotional, and pretty mature. It's hands down the best part of the film, and even if you haven't seen the previous Toy Story films, the final act is bound to make you cry no matter what.

Now, that being said I didn't really find the rest of this super engaging.

The new toys are cool and all, Lotso in particular was a really good character and antagonist, but I never felt the same charm I felt with Toy Story 1 and 2 whenever watching this.

I feel like the plot can be pretty forgettable and plain, and nothing super notable happens until those last 30 minutes.

(I honestly really didn't like Spanish Buzz, I thought it was a really overdone gag and overstayed it's welcome.)

All in all this isn't a bad film, I think it's definitely my least favorite Toy Story though, it just feels alittle lackluster until that final act. And boy does that final act hit hard.

This would've been a very well done finale to the Toy Story trilogy, but then we got Toy Story 4, and from what I can remember I actually liked it more than this film weirdly enough.

"So long ... partner."

Is there Life after playtime? Can you handle a film in which the toys are playing with us, the audience? The third chapter of the Toy Story saga asks some tough questions of viewers, but the rewards of seeing this remarkable film outweigh the emotional toll.

It's the last week of summer before Andy heads off to college, and Woody (Tom Hanks) and the other remaining toys in Andy's bedroom find themselves in fear of what's to become of them. It looks like the attic, but events conspire to throw them a day-care center called Sunnyside. It looks swell enough, at first...

"You'll never be outgrown, or neglected," the toys are informed by the chuckily plush play bear Lots-O (Ned Beatty). "Never abandoned or forgotten. No owners means - no heartbreak!"

It's odd to see a film series that started out as an animated lark turn into "Watership Down", but there's always been some existential angst at the heart of the enterprise, c.f. the fragile buddy system employed in the first "Toy Story", Sid's hapless victims, and talk of rummage sales. The second film pushed these buttons a bit harder, to the point of losing the humor.

This time the drama is stronger than ever, yet the film amazingly manages to stay refreshingly clever and hilarious. We meet Ken (Michael Keaton), who introduces himself to Barbie saying "We were made for each other". Ken must deal with wisecracks about being a girl's toy, or as Mr. Potato Head (Don Rickles) puts it, "an accessory, a purse with legs." The daycare center is also fabulously realized, a cacophony of misfit toys all showing signs of wear from constant play. Every now and again we break away to see Woody in his new situation, being played with by a girl named Bonnie who is very nice but has a left-field imagination. "We do a lot of improv here," another toy tells him.

All this is very funny, and director Lee Unkrich and the Pixar writers and artists find brilliant ways to keep humor close to the center of things throughout. Yet this movie is no lark. One of the funniest scenes the first time I saw this movie three weeks ago, involving a cutaway to a clown staring at a window, got hardly a laugh when I saw it again tonight. I think it was because the rest of the audience, like me, knew what was coming; a sad story about cosmic indifference and cold-hearted abandonment which sets in motion the real emotional undertow of the film.

Set against this is Woody's firm if shaken resolution to "be there for Andy", even when it seems he and the other toys are no longer wanted by their owner. It's a message of faith you relate to, yet it also brings out another point, the notion of change, even painful change, as needful. The toys know they'll be neglected, perhaps forever, if exiled to the attic, but prefer it to the unknown. This actually makes sense. What can happen out there isn't very nice, but even in the face of extinction the film suggests a certain nobility through acceptance can be still possible. It's a pretty heavy message to take away from watching a G-rated comedy.

The film doesn't leave you on a down note, but it's a funny thing. In the past, I always looked forward to the post-credit goof scenes as something to laugh at on my way out of the theater. This time, I appreciated it just as much as a chance to wipe my eyes before I got out of my chair. It still felt good, though.

I've said this before, but I'll say it again: Pixar has shown with their initial ten films that they haven't the faintest clue how to make a bad movie. And yet, somehow, I always find myself feeling doubtful whenever a trailer for one of their new films is released. With Toy Story 3, I got the impression that it would be just another adventure with Woody and the gang for the sake of having one. So, with this, and a movie year that has been relatively lacking so far, would Toy Story 3 disappoint? The answer: absolutely not.

Probably the most surprising aspect about this film is that, even after eleven years since the release of Toy Story 2, the material that has made this series so damn enjoyable hasn't been lost one bit here. All of the old characters are just endearing as ever, if not more so, and all of the new ones feel right at home here. Ken (voiced by Michael Keaton) is especially hilarious, to the point where even the mention of him got me laughing.

To touch briefly on the visual front, the characters themselves are just as expressive as they've always been. However, like Wall-E, the world that they inhabit looks much more photorealistic this time around. Also, this is one of the few instances when the 3D aspect actually enhances the film. It's by no means as crucial to the experience in the same way that it was for Avatar, but it gives the film a little extra something.

The action sequences, too, are spectacular. These are toys that we're talking about, and somehow, Pixar's managed to provide these scenes with one hell of a punch. Not much else to say about 'em other than that the climax in particular feels as epic as anything from The Lord of the Rings trilogy.

What really puts Toy Story 3 above most films out there, though, is how it deals with the themes of loss and growing up. Even after getting to know these characters over the course of two films, I was still surprised by just how much I got sucked into their despair. Without giving anything away, there were two scenes that caused me to tear up, and even more that had me on the verge of doing so.

Toy Story 3 is not only a worthy conclusion to a fantastic trilogy, but also the one third installment (other than Return of the King) that I feel is better than its predecessors. For all of the reasons already mentioned and more, it's one of the studio's best entries. Sorry for doubting you, Pixar, even if it was just for a bit.