10. Toy Story (1995)
The 1995 Pixar film Toy Story revolutionised the way animation was seen on screen. The introduction of computer generated animation had been done before, but here Pixar mastered the way characters moved around space, offering up perfect recreations of perspective and movement. Starring the voicing talents of Tom Hanks and Tim Allen, Toy Story was a critical and commercial success on release, spawning two sequels. The story follows are beloved band of toys being introduced to Andys new toy, the fascinating, technologically impressive (to the toys) Buzz Lightyear. As everybody becomes interested in Buzz, Woody, the former leader of the group begins to become jealous and after accidentally throwing Buzz out of window, sending them to a gas station and then Pizza Planet, the toys must create a plan to get Buzz from the evil next door neighbour Sid, to back where he belongs. The film really marvels in introducing us to characters that are just as flawed and as brilliant as we are. Most notably Woody feels envious of Buzzs popularity, Rex is a nervous, anxious mess, Mr Potato Head is pretentious and bossy, but underneath it all, each character has capacity to love and ultimately forgive. Something very human, not bad for what are supposedly mere plastic toys. Its really rather incredible to contemplate that Toy Story was created way back in 1995, with its computer generated animation still holding up solidly, despite not having the polished sheen of its prettier sequels. The characters are emotive, move fluidly and the film has a beautiful colour palette, from crystal blues to pretty pinks, its all very much a childrens world. Also, the depth of moment and perspective is one of the films greatest accomplishments; to achieve something this difficult at that period of time is still astonishing. Some of the beauty from the idea of Toy Story is the way it handles perspective in respect to toys and the target audience, children. For example, a simple gas station for a regular adult is nothing majestic but for a toy, its clearly shown to be something gargantuan and immense, typically similar to the perspective of a child. While children may not consciously distinguish this connection, its still beautifully simple to gauge to the viewer how large the world really can be. Or how about the shot of Buzz Lightyear sitting at the top of the stairs with the camera panning back to exemplify just how small he really is in comparison to his environment. Moments like this really do typify the brilliance of the film. Toy Story holds up incredibly well, especially considering the glut of animation films that hit the mainstream today. Its inventive, heart-warming and innovative, a film that pushed the possibilities of animation to new levels, a pioneering piece of art that deserves to be watched again and again by future generations.