Watched Toy Story 5 yesterday. It was a very cute movie with an interesting message about children and real play, the kind you do with your whole body, not just your fingers on a screen. I don’t want to give too many spoilers, but will say that while the movie doesn’t take an “all or none” approach to technology, it does shine a light on the importance of using technology rather than being used by it.
Some of the things I noticed about the movie are the following:
The main human characters are two girls named Bonnie and Blaze. Bonnie didn’t get her first computer until she was seven or eight (I can’t recall if the movie specified). She was excited and happy and immediately got online with a group of “in” girls who were completely addicted to their tech and were, to put it bluntly, cyberbullies. They were the perfect example of what kids online can be like. Not that bullying is anything new, but cyberbullying takes it to a whole new level. The movie doesn’t make a big deal about this, it just shows Bonnie’s reaction to being ganged up on by a group chat.
Blaze, who is nine going on ten is also into tech. However, she lives on a farm and loves horses, and the movie makes it clear without saying so that all her time isn’t spent on screens. As a result, both of these girls have unusually well-developed–in other words, what used to be considered normal–imaginations that don’t need the crutch of a screen to function. Through a series of events orchestrated, of course, by Jessie, Woody, Buzz and the rest of the toys, the two girls become friends.
There’s more plot twists to the story than this, but suffice it to say I think it both entertains and makes a really good point about how not to abuse the technology in our lives, lest we lose not only our imaginations but our genuine connection with other people and hands-on experience of the real world.
On that note, I’m going to go play with my dog. Catch you later!
