Toy Story 2 (1999)

In Toy Story, the instant-classic first film from Pixar and director John Lasseter, Woody the cowboy doll (Tom Hanks) helped Buzz Lightyear (Tim Allen) come to terms with the fact that he’s only a toy. Now it’s Woody’s turn to have an identity crisis as he learns more about his own identity — he’s the central figure in a highly collectible 50’s-era phenomenon called "Woody’s Roundup" with vintage television episodes and numerous sidekicks — while Buzz is left to uphold the toy ethic that nothing matters more than being loved by a child. (An encounter with another Buzz toy is a hilarious reminder of just how far "our" Buzz has come.)

The plot is as tightly coiled as any story I can think of; everything relates to something else, and everything pays off, from the importance of a cowboy’s hat to Woody’s damaged arm, accidentally torn in an early scene, which is both the thematic trigger for Woody’s fears and an integral story element that figures in a number of critical scenes, including the first-act plot point that sets the story in motion.

The plot is driven by rollicking rescue-mission antics, but this toy story has even more heart than the original. Woody’s crisis and his new-found relationship with long-lost family, and a heart-rending musical flashback involving one of those characters, are richer and more poignant than the first film’s favorite-toy-status conflict.

On an emotional level, the toys’ dilemma resonates with parental empty-nest anxiety: Like parents, the toys give everything they have for a child’s sake, until the day the child needs them no more; and for many parents the prospect of being left on a shelf, or deposited somewhere to be cared for by someone else, is all too real. (On a literal level, it may be worth pointing out to kids that a young woman who, in a sad scene told from a toy’s point of view, gives away a beloved childhood plaything to charity is actually doing a kind thing that will benefit some child and even make the toy happier in the end.)

The imaginary "Woody’s Roundup" franchise is retro-fitted into its 1950s milieu with unerring nostalgic precision, from the note-perfect theme song to the inventive paraphernalia. And, where the climax of the first film gave Buzz a brief opportunity to soar through the sky like a real space ranger, Toy Story 2 ends with a brilliant, rousing homage to old Westerns that allows Woody, in his finest hour, to become a real cowboy hero.

Five years after Toy Story 2, the geniuses at Pixar may have set a new high water mark for visual beauty and sheer emotional power with Finding Nemo, while Monsters, Inc. represents a pinnacle of demented brilliance in character design. (The latter film also deliberately one-upped Toy Story 2’s gonzo climactic chase sequence, set in an airport baggage handling room and beyond, with an even more insane grand finale on a Monsterland closet-door monorail system.)

But Toy Story 2 remains Pixar’s gold standard for storytelling sophistication, and is not only their best all-around film, but one of the best films ever made, period.