Last week I posted some thoughts about Toy Story 4. It’s a spoiler post if you want to check it out, but I explained how I really enjoyed the movie even though I thought there was a glaring mistake.
Despite that flaw, there was something grand in TS4 that I continued to think about after leaving the theater, so here comes another blog post. But like last time, there’s SPOILERS if you haven’t seen it.
There’s several new toys introduced in the movie, including a fun motorcycle stuntman voiced by Keanu Reeves. The most important new toy is “Forky”, a craft Bonnie made at kindergarten orientation. She was very upset there and Woody had stowed away in her backpack. He threw some objects out of the trash to Bonnie’s table, and Forky was born.
Made out of a spork, googly eyes, a pipe cleaner, some yarn, and two halves of a wood ice cream spoon, Forky achieves sentience. I don’t know what kind of magic Bonnie has, but her new creation is alive and is now her favorite toy.
The only problem? Forky doesn’t believe his favored status with Bonnie. In fact, he’s in denial over his whole existence as a toy. Forky knows where he came from – the trash can. He’s trash, and all he wants to do is go back to where he belongs in the garbage can.
Thus begins an amusing montage of Forky diving for any trash can nearby, and an exasperated Woody keeping Forky from literally throwing his life away, because Woody knows how much Forky means to Bonnie.
This conflict of Forky not accepting what he was created to be leads to the main complication of the movie, when he falls out of Bonnie’s family’s RV and Woody dives after the runaway spork. Ever the dutiful sheriff, Woody tries to explain to Forky that he’s created for more than being trash, and he has a purpose in bringing joy to Bonnie.
That’s pretty deep for a kid’s movie.
It’s very impressive that they made it work. As Forky comes to life, he’s like an infant, with a singular purpose: getting back to the trash. Then he argues with Woody more and more, until he sees the light and realizes he is so much more than the trash from which he was created.
This speaks to the deep story of humanity. Too often we act like Forky. We’re created from dust and to dust we’ll go, so we live as if we are only going to return to the “trash”. We abuse ourselves, unable to be convinced of our true worth.
In our case, our creator is God the Father. We were created much like Forky, to bring pleasure to him who gave us life. That is the chief end of humanity. But how often do we wallow in the garbage of life, not willing to accept the truth that despite our humble nature, we have a glorious purpose and place of acceptance with God? All too often, I’m afraid.
But we are a new creation in Jesus, and even though we started as “trash”, we are no longer that, and we should live with a respect for the image of God in everyone, including ourselves.
There’s even a Christ parallel in Woody. He cares so much about Bonnie’s happiness that he risks himself over and over to keep Forky and Bonnie together, even when Forky openly rebels against that idea. The idea can’t be stretched too far, but it is a very noble pursuit for Woody.
So, Pixar. Even though I was critical of how you handled Woody’s character by his ultimate choice, I have to give you huge praise for setting up such a beautiful image of the One True Myth, the original heroic story of sacrifice to restore a creation in rebellion. I hope Forky always keeps his new identity – not trash, but a beloved toy created for pleasure.
Just like we are toward the Father.