Want to give your kids a horror-film education but they’re too young to watch Drew Barrymore get dismembered? Solution: Toy Story of Terror.
Image Credit: Disney/Pixar/ABC
Want to give your kids a horror-film education but think they’re just a little too young to watch Drew Barrymore get dismembered? Here’s a simple solution: Just plop them in front of Toy Story of Terror, a sitcom-length special that debuts on network TV tonight.
Older fans are, of course, welcome to enjoy the show as well like any Pixar property, it’s designed for viewers of all ages. (Anyone 20ish or older will be especially amused by a new character called Combat Carl, voiced with perfect action-hero bravado by Rocky and Arrested Development star Carl Weathers.) But younger viewers stand to gain the most, since TSoT isn’t just a short featuring some of the studio’s most beloved characters; it’s a genuinely spooky half-hour that doubles as a clever, concise deconstruction of horror as a genre.
Toy Story of Terror opens with the denizens of Bonnie’s toy box Buzz, Woody, Jessie, and the rest, all played by the original film series’ big-name voice actors huddling together as they watch an old-fashioned black-and-white vampire movie. Their viewing session is frequently punctuated by commentary from Mr. Pricklepants, a lederhosen-clad stuffed hedgehog who speaks with Timothy Dalton’s highfalutin diction.