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If ever there was a celluloid catalyst for shattering actor typecasts, this was it. Robin Williams' performance reveals a mostly unfamiliar vulnerable sincerity that, frankly, creeped me out a couple times throughout the story. Similarly, you have Joan Cusack at her most delicate and gently-spoken (with exception of course to the laughable observation she makes in regards to war being "the domain of a small..." so on and so forth). L.L. Cool J competently delivers the role of a convincingly clean, wholesome, family-valued military man caught between the warring factions of his own family, represented by a hawk (his own father, played by the appropriately casted Michael Gambon) and the dove (a perpetually juvenile Williams). Robin Wright Penn isn't given much of a stage in Toys, and consequently her performance is less than striking here. But to her credit, she nurses a few otherwise-forgettable scenes (particularly the overtly ad-libbed cafeteria scene with Williams) back to life with her disarming laugh and sincere attention.
The trivia fanatics will keenly spot the underutilized, but aptly included cameos of Yeardly Smith and Jamie Foxx.
I'm not a big movie fan, in fact I rent/buy movies reluctantly. But this one captivated me from square one and it's a hard one to let go of. Incidentally, I highly recommend the soundtrack. It's a musical revelation that does great honor to the film (with an outstanding and uncredited brief performance by the incomparable Seal).
Chances are, anyone who's reading these reviews has already seen the movie; it's not a film that is naturally attracting new audiences this long after its making. However, I'm convinced this was due in monster proportions to the lack of popular exposure that Toys received, both initially in theaters and subsequently in it's video/DVD release. I, for one, happened to see Toys only by dumb luck, and have been grateful for walking into the theater ever since. But the minimal promotion that was afforded to Toys is all right by me. This is one cinematic secret I'm happy to be in on.
The real deal though is how all these elements combine to make a dizzying comical farce that is intertwined with a real human backstory. In these modern times, when the world is as uncertain as it has ever been .. it's very comforting to see the subtle anti-war critique that oozes from Robin Williams performance. The pyrotechnic - heavy ending combined with the Frankie Goes To Hollywood tune is sheer masterpiece of NON MAINSTREAM Hollywood. The symbolism really rings out here, a chill still goes down my spine when the bear gets destroyed, and another comes over, as if trying to fix it. However, the Sea Swine is slightly disturbing ...
As the film wasn't a huge financial success, wasn't a "re-imagining" of a better film, and didn't feature lightsabers, Fox has made next to no effort with the DVD. A good quality 1.85:1 anamorphic print brings the scenery to life with a lot more feel than VHS, and the Dolby Digital 5.1 track is well mixed (it should be as it was re-recorded in George Lucas' THX theater) but that's as far as it really goes. Fox includes a woeful featurette that is nothing more than an extended trailer, and the theatrical trailer to round things off. I do hope someday one of these clever DVD production houses, like Criterion do one of their ultimate editions with this film, as how it is made and what is says warrants more than Fox has done here.
If you're still awake and have read this far ... go and buy one of cinema's most influencial anti war pieces! If you have an imagination, you'll agree you never have, nor will, see anything like it ever again.
Viewed in that light, it's tremendous. It's definitely not a comedy, which is how it's been marketed. Read more
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