Blu-Ray Review: “Toy Story 4”

Woody and Bo Peep reunited over the summer in Disney Pixar’s Toy Story 4 and fans can relive the adventure over and over with the home video release. Now available on Digital and releasing October 8th on multiple disc formats, you can complete your Toy Story film collection with the most recent installment. With hours of bonus features, fans can get a glimpse behind the Pixar lamp at the behind-the-scenes process and also celebrate the evolution of the Toy Story franchise.

No longer the favorite toy in the room, Woody finds himself in a tough spot when he has to convince Bonnie’s sentient art project Forky that he’s a beloved toy and not a combination of recycled materials. When Forky runs away during a family road trip, Woody goes after him and finds himself reunited with his long lost love, Bo Peep. His new adventure will find him having to make a tough choice between staying with his established toy family or following Bo on her new adventurous life.

Toy Story 4 surprised and delighted audiences throughout the summer months, currently ranking as the third highest grossing film of the year domestically, and one of six Disney produced films to cross the $1 billion mark this year (so far). It brought back some of your favorite characters to the screen like Woody, Buzz Lightyear, Jessie, Ham, Rex, Mr. Potato Head, and Bo Peep, while introducing new and memorable characters like Forky, Duke Caboom, Ducky, Bunny, Giggle McDimples, and Gabby Gabby.

What sets Toy Story 4 apart from the previous films is Woody’s character journey. In the first film, he was the center of attention and had to learn how to share the spotlight with Buzz. Since then, he’s become somewhat of a selfless figure who will do whatever it takes to make his kid happy. But in this film, he learns an important lesson about taking time for yourself when necessary.

This review covers all aspects of the Blu-Ray/DVD/Digital Multi-Screen Edition. This includes two Blu-Ray discs, one of which is just for bonus features, a DVD, and a digital copy code. Fans can also pick up a 4K release that ditches the standard definition disc.

Bonus Features

Disc 1

  • Bo Rebooted (6:21) – Annie Potts and some of the women at Pixar who worked on her talk about bringing her into the 21st century in Toy Story 4.
  • Toy Stories (5:38) – The cast and filmmakers talk about their favorite toys and how they inspired their decisions in the film.
  • Audio Commentary (1:40:03) – Josh Cooley (Director) and Mark Nielsen (Producer) lead this commentary track about the film. In true Pixar commentary fashion, they point out as many of the Easter Eggs and in-jokes as possible, which is difficult on this film due to the sheer volume of them in the antique store.

Disc 2

  • Let’s Ride with Ally Maki (5:41) – The voice of Giggle McDimples gives you a peek behind the recording process with the director, scratch voice artist, script writer, transcriber, production assistants, and more.
  • Woody & Buzz (3:35) – A short look at the relationship between these two pals and the ending of Toy Story 4.
  • Anatomy of a Scene: Playground (9:31) – The creative team breakdown all of the elements that went into the sequence where Woody and Bo reunite in a fun and entertaining way.
  • Toy Views – Toys-eye views of two locations from the film.
    • Carnival Run (1:00) – Ride around the carnival at night with the skunkmobile.
    • View from the Roof (0:29) – Travel up to the roof of the antique shop.
  • Toy Box – Character explorations with the cast and creative team.
    • Gabby Gabby and her Gang (4:03)
    • Forky (2:43)
    • Duke Caboom (2:25)
    • Ducky & Bunny (2:37)
    • Giggle McDimples (1:11)
  • Deleted Scenes
    • Introduction (0:48) – Director Josh Cooley introduces the deleted scenes.
    • Scamming Playtime (3:57) – Bo Peep uses her resources wisely to maximize her playground time with the kids.
    • Bo Knows Hippos (3:42) – The antiques store toys duel in nightly games like Hungry Hungry Hippos in this alternate reunion for Woody and Bo.
    • Desperate Toys (3:21) – Woody and Bo encounter other toys desperate to escape the antique store including Santa Claus.
    • Knock-Offs (4:18) – Buzz meets some cheap Buzz Lightyear knock-offs at the carnival.
    • Recruit Duke (7:20) – An alternate introduction for Duke Caboom.
    • She’s the One (4:31) – This alternate ending finds Bo choosing to go home with a child from the carnival.
  • Trailers and Promo
    • Carnival Prizes (3:25) – A real of animation bumpers used in various video media promos.
    • Booth – Global Teaser in Spanish (1:39)
    • Playtime – Global Trailer in English (2:20)
    • Freedom – Global Trailer in Russian (1:46)
    • Pixar Pedigree – Exclusive for China (1:35)

Digital Exclusives

  • Deleted Scene: Bonnies Playtime (7:41) – This alternate opening begins in Bonnie’s room with a play sequence where the toys face off against demonic books.
  • Anatomy of a Scene: Prologue (5:12) – A deep dive into the final opening sequence of the film.

Audio Options

Blu-Ray audio options include English 7.1 DTS-HD Master Audio, English 5.1 DTS-HD High Resolution, English 2.0, English 2.0 Descriptive Audio, plus French and Spanish 5.1 Dolby Digital.

Packaging & Design

Toy Story 4 comes in a standard-sized blu-ray case with stacked disc holders on the interior of both sides to house the three discs. Inserts include a digital copy code through Movies Anywhere and a flier for Disney Movie Club. The initial release comes with a foil effect slipcover.

The discs open with ads for Onward and Frozen II. The main menu features a carnival game with Buzz trying to break free in the background.

Final Thoughts

I loved Toy Story 4 when I saw it in theaters. Revisiting on home video allowed me to reaffirm my love for it and dive deeper into the making-of process through great bonus features. But one of the biggest thrills is the audio commentary with so many Easter Eggs made obvious for viewers.

Alex Reif
Alex joined the Laughing Place team in 2014 and has been a lifelong Disney fan. His main beats for LP are Disney-branded movies, TV shows, books, music and toys. He recently became a member of the Television Critics Association (TCA).