Ah, Toy Story 2, how do I love thee? Let me count the ways!

Forgive the bit of melodrama above, but I thought it best to make immediately clear my tremendous enthusiasm for what emerges as a splendid film that could single-handedly restore even the most cynical person’s faith in the cinematic virtues of sequels and the cross-generational appeal of a well-done family film.

Toy Story 2 is a deceptively simple tale that returns us to the adventures of a collection of playthings from Andy’s room, toys that come to life whenever no human is looking. The group is led once again by cowboy Woody (voiced by Tom Hanks) and space ranger Buzz Lightyear (Tim Allen). This time Woody’s paranoia is focused not on Buzz’s hogging of the spotlight, but on his own shelf-life, as he becomes a bit frayed and worn at the edges and wonders how much longer he will remain in Andy’s assortment of stuff before being discarded. Tension mounts when Andy’s mom stages a tag sale and all the toys fear the worst. It’s not Andy’s mom they need fear, however, but a greedy toy store owner, Al (Wayne Knight), a collector who kidnaps Woody after he finds the doll is not for sale.

It’s revealed that Woody is something of a collector’s item, a valued artifact from a 1950s TV show, “Woody’s Roundup.” Once paired with Al’s existing array of collectibles from the series, including Jesse the Cowgirl (Joan Cusack) and a still-boxed Stinky Pete the Prospector (Kelsey Grammer), Woody makes the set an attractive sell for Al, who is looking to field a potentially lucrative bid from buyers in Japan. It’s up to Buzz and his ragtag rescue team of Hamm (John Ratzenberger), Slinky Dog (Jim Varney), Rex (Wallace Shawn), and Mr Potato Head (Don Rickles) to bring Woody back before he’s shipped overseas.

Director John Lasseter and his cohorts at Pixar Animation have outdone themselves by furnishing a follow-up that’s every bit as delightful as the charming, sublimely funny original that spawned it. The characters all exhibit a range of personality and emotion far beyond the bits, bytes and pixels that form them, and that’s saying much, as on appearance alone, the film rates highly. Its stylized look and slick design are the most wonderful form of eye candy. Yet Lasseter and company also understand, unlike many filmmakers in Hollywood, that technology is only a tool, not an ends, in good storytelling.

Toy Story 2 is in that glorious, exclusive class of kids’ film which is not really a children’s movie at all… at least not in the sense that it plays down to the young audience. Surely the youngest tyke will enjoy the flick, with its colorful characters and attention-grabbing action and derring-do, but viewers are likely find just as high a number of adults grinning ear to ear, feeling as giddy with glee as any of the children. The humor is clever and boldly zestful, with a tone that is spot on, never mocking or sardonic, yet playfully cheeky. Plus, Lasseter and pals have again fashioned a funny film that is also serious about such timeless themes as friendship, faithfulness and family with a continuing subtext of finding one’s worth by discovering your rightful relationship with your Owner or Creator. As Lasseter has put it, the theme of this sequel is “Toys are put on this earth to be played with by a child.” One could argue that the value of this series, among its many worths, is its allegorical theme of finding contentment by uncovering one’s role in life and finding out exactly why we’re put on this earth.