I’ve spent the last two days blogging about a movie that, in my opinion, is nearly perfect. I can’t overstate how well this movie is written. And what I’m not saying is that Toy Story 3 is my favorite movie, because it isn’t, or that it’s even in my top ten, I’d have to think about that for a while. What it is, however, is the best-written screenplay to come down the pipe in many years. And of course it has much to teach about life, leadership and the very nature of our existence. So I’ll wrap up this series with a list of things we can learn from the movie. Feel free to keep the list going in the comments.
- A great story, and a great life, must be clear. Now of course Toy Story is a movie and life is life. Life will never be as clear as a film (unless it’s a poorly written film) but to the degree we can clarify our objectives and define our antagonist, life begins to feel more meaningful.
- Great stories are about love. Now this one is tough to execute, but life works best when we defend love. This means we defend the innocent, we defend brotherhood, we defend romantic love, and we identify and defend that which is pure. In the movie, the Toys stick together no matter what, and they are willing to sacrifice and even die for each other. Our corrupted natures are going to fight this, but we have to fight back.
- A great life much be planned. I’m certain to get some push back on this one. There are, of course, many exceptions, and we are in no way in complete control of our lives, however, I’d argue that a person who plans out a year is going to have a more interesting year than a person that just lets whatever happens happen. I think it’s true in our work and in our relationships. A person who has a vision of a great relationship with their children and sits down for a week to plan out what those relationships might look like is going to have more success than a person who doesn’t. There is nothing sinful about being intentional. God may change our path, but I don’t think that’s an excuse to sit on a couch and not move forward.
- Great characters have integrity. Each of the heroic protagonists in Toy Story live by a code. They put others before themselves, they fight the lie that their existence doesn’t matter, and they show grace when they are wronged. A moral code matters if we want to live a meaningful story.
- Great characters believe their stories can be redeemed. One of the great plot lines in the movie is the recurring theme that things are going to work out. This changes from act to act, and yet the characters continue to believe that life can get better, and ultimately, their faith that they would be reunited with their master is realized. I think this is a universal theme, and as a Christian I, of course, apply this to my own faith that someday I will be reunited with God because of my relationship with Christ.
There are plenty of other lessons to be learned from this movie and I invite you to share what you learned. Ultimately, stories are mental maps, they posit ideas of right and wrong, good and bad, what is beautiful and what is profane. I’m curious, if you saw the film, what you might have learned.
