This is flat out the best film that will not win Best Picture at this year's Academy Awards. It's hard to feel bad for
Toy Story 3, though, as it's a shoe-in for Best Animated Motion Picture (or whatever that category is called). Of course, the success and emotional pull of the film is built heavily on the critical and financial success of the previous films in the
Toy Story franchise as well as the unbeatable force that is Pixar. We care about the characters in this film right away, no need to spend time on exposition or dialogue to establish these relationships. The audience is already invested. The filmmakers don't squander this goodwill, though, but rather build on it to create something completely new:
