That was an excellent one.

Great Film overall

I enjoyed watching this film and would recommend other to give it a try , (as I am) but this movie, although enjoyable to watch due to the better than average acting fails to add anything new to its storyline that is all too familiar to these types of movies.

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

Kenneth Zevo runs the family fanciful Zevo Toy factory in Moscow, Idaho. He tries to convince his brother military Gen. Leland Zevo (Michael Gambon) to take over the company instead of his flighty son Leslie (Robin Williams). He is desperate for Leslie to grow up. After Kenneth dies, Leland reluctantly takes over. Leland and his son Capt. Patrick Zevo (LL Cool J) want to make war toys but Leslie and his sister Alsatia (Joan Cusack) object.Director Barry Levinson tries to make a "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" with toys. He's also trying to make a point about violence and toys. The wacky designs lack the wonder and the joy. The harder it tries, the less fun it is. The military theme and the toy theme clash in a very awkward way. The harder Levinson tries to push his point, the less compelling the point becomes. There is simply no happiness here.

This movie is fascinating, so creative. I don't want to review it or summarize it per se - it's excellent - but I wanted to point out how the conflict of the story is the militarization of "toys" to create remote controlled weapons. The toys that get made, or more correctly, intelligent drones predict in perhaps a satirical way on what has actually happened with modern warfare. Even how it appears like a "video game" in certain scenes.It's also very funny in what I call "smart-stupid" whereas the writing appears kind of dumb, but is actually very funny and well written in a dry way. I loved it as a kid for the war robots as I called them, I appreciate it more now.P.S. Who has sustained a similar level of fame for so long as LL Cool J???

Barry Levinson brings us a strange tale of a toy factory whose owner passes on and leaves in the hands of his two children (Williams and Cusack), very much children at heart, and his brother (Gambon), a US General with daddy issues. Seeing an opportunity, the General decides to hijack the traditional methods and mentality of the factory and build a new type of tech; war toys, designed to be economically lethal. Finding this out, it is up to our heroes, along with some friends like the General's camoflauge-happy son (LL Cool J) and a copy girl who falls in love with Williams' character, to stop him.A case of 'wrong place, wrong time', Levinson odd little film is, though not without faults, surprisingly forward thinking about the desensitisation of youth and the dehumanisation of war. Today, that issue is much the rage (how often have we heard COD being called Propaganda/Army Porn or the use of drones), and in a post Columbine world, the idea of a youth perverted by the lack of distinguishing fantasy from reality is very potent, and one feels that 'Toys' would've been better served coming out now.What's more, this also qualifies as one of the oddest studio films ever; from the Rene Magritte-centric production design to the interesting mix of actors here, though they all fit their roles well. The late Williams is very much the star of the show, and the child-like, jokey nature of this character fits him like a glove. Cusack as his doll-like sister also does well, giving the role a very youthful, almost eternally naive, quality. Joining them is the always superb Gambon as the pompous and crusty General, and he's having quite the ball in the role, and even Cool J as his son isn't half bad either, and actually has some good comic timing, especially given how meticulous his character is about proper military procedures. We even have Yeardley Smith and Jamie Foxx in small background roles.However, some tonal indecisions, such as going from the dark subject matter to Williams' ad libs and wacky sight gags like a literal smoking jacket or fake vomit recipes, and a laggy climax involving a rather drawn out toy war do deflate things. In fact, that sums up why I believe the film's rep is so uncertain among critics and audiences; who is the target audience of the film? Is it an anti- war/protect our youth's innocence message for adults, or a quirky, oddball adventure for kids? It's like Levinson wants a live-action Ghibli film, but that careful blend of childhood magic and adult themes is off, making for an uneven, though still oddly fascinating, viewing experience.Honestly, 'Toys' is worth seeing once as a ambitious novelty. It's such an odd mix of ideas, stories and even practices that there is really no movie like it out there, and it's sort of interesting seeing where it'll go or what it'll do next. Sometimes, a unique misfire is better than mediocre success.

Any movie that picks humans over guns is good in my book. The movie is a clear message on how to live in harmony as the diverse community of humans that we are, without resourcing to disrespect or allowing any form of religion or political system replace the regard that each and everyone of us should have for one another, because we are equal and everything else is just a lie the rich, in the case of this movie the rich would be the general's army, promote to keep us from seeing the reality that we are equal. The way it promotes the use of toys, inventiveness, and comradeship, over trivialities like guns, and war, is something to admire, respect, and in turn, as well, promote to everyone else. Hardly anyone in America heard from this movie, precisely on account of its message that guns aren't needed to live in peace and find happiness, and that war only creates terror and horror to others but the select few who choose to promote, because of self centered egoistic reasons. This movie is a must watch for any child. Choose this over Disney any day.