Influential Movies: Toy Story

In the early nineties audiences were content with the traditional animation pictures such as Aladdin and The Lion King, and there's nothing wrong with that remember Beauty and Beast is still the only animation to ever have been nominated for the Best Picture Oscar.

However 1999 brought about major changes to the animation genre as Toy Story became the first feature film in history to be produced using only computer animation.

Ok so the film only grossed $358 million at the global box office, sounds a lot but next to the likes of Finding Nemo it really isn't, however John Lasseter and co paved the way and set a very high standard.

Lasseter, the film's director, has experienced and experimented with computer animation during his time working as an animator at Disney before going on to work at LucasFilm and then a founding member of Pixar.

Toy Story was an intelligent and sophisticated buddy movie that really highlighted the potential of the animation genre with these new techniques. But it was the sequel Toy Story 2 that really cemented Pixar as an animation giant pushing the boundaries even further.

While being just as technically brilliant, bright and funny as it's predecessor Pixar were clever to aim the movie at adults as well as children.

Toy Story 2 asked questions what is the purpose of a toy? Is it better to live a life in a box or risk everything to make one person happy, even it's for a short time? And questions are not something tackled in animation before then, it became as groundbreaking as Bambi losing his mother back in 1942.

Thanks to Toy Story the face of animation changed beyond recognition, The Lion King remains the last traditional animation movie to enjoy major box office success, as the CGI floodgates opened.

Pixar became a true master of this film genre as Monsters Inc, Finding Nemo, The Incredibles, Cars, Ratatouille and Wall-E have all followed all getting gradually more sophisticated in the techniques being used.

And the latest project Wall-E delivers a loud and clear message within the film, if you care to look the beyond beautiful animation and cute lead character, as Stanton and his team deliver a damning verdict on consumerism as well as highlighting issues of protecting the planet and obesity, subjects very prominent in the news as of late.

But Finding Nemo remains the most successful Pixar movie grossing over $864 million at the global box office, as well as scooping the Best Animated Film Oscar.

But it's not just Pixar that have enjoyed success in this area of film with Dreamworks emerging as their main rival and producing high quality stuff of their own including Shrek and Kung Fu Panda.

Toy Story really was the driving force behind the animation movies that now dominate cinema screens 'to infinity an beyond' indeed.

FemaleFirst Helen Earnshaw