Toy Story 5 splits critics, but most praise its 'cautionary' message about tech

Here is the latest breaking news from around the world: Toy Story 5 splits critics, but most praise its 'cautionary' message about tech16 minutes ago Share Save Add as preferred on GoogleDisneyTom Hanks's Woody (right) and Tim Allen's Buzz are back but facing a new threatThe fifth instalment of Toy Story has received mixed reviews from critics, who have describe it as being "a warm and wry update" to an otherwise now "played out" franchise. But one thing most reviewers agreed on is that the message of the film - which finds Woody, Buzz and Jessie fighting with a new digital device called Lilypad for children's attention - is a "cautionary" one. Toy Story 5 is released in UK cinemas on Friday, just days after Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer announced a forthcoming social media ban for all those under 16.

In a two-star review, the Independent's Clarisse Loughrey said the movie was "certainly topical" but also "the worst in the series". "While this is topical, there does come a point in any franchise where the natural momentum dies," she wrote of the series, which began in 1995. "With Toy Story 5, Pixar's 30-year-old franchise has finally started to show its age.

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"DisneyJessie (centre) and Bullseye transfixed by a new tablet screen known as LilypadThe action-comedy favourite once again stars Tim Allen as spaceman Buzz Lightyear, Tom Hanks as a pull-string cowboy doll named Woody, and Joan Cusack as cowgirl Jessie. Past Lives actress Greta Lee joins the star-studded cast as perhaps their biggest threat yet, a frog-like smart tablet known as Lilypad. Buzz and Woody once again help to bring a team of toys together in a bid to save their owner, young Bonnie, from falling under the spell of the electronic device.

Conan O'Brien, Jordan North and Bad Bunny are among the stars supplying voices in the film. The Guardian's Peter Bradshaw also awarded the film two out of five stars, saying Toy Story was now all "played out" and in need of "new batteries". He said the one particular plot point "is revived and resolved in a very spurious and unsatisfying way", adding that "IP exhaustion has set in" on the franchise.

Getty ImagesTom Hanks, Tim Allen, Joan Cusack and Greta Lee all voice characters in Toy Story 5However, the Telegraph's Robbie Collin held a much higher opinion of film five, pointing to a "warm and wry update of a beloved formula" in his four-star review. He praised cowgirl doll Jessie's "promotion" to lead character, referring to the character's emotional journey while revisiting her first owner. The film is, he said, is "another parable of parental crisis dressed up as a brightly coloured family adventure" - and a "cautionary tale about online childhoods".

Yet it "pulls fewer punches than might be expected", he added, regarding its social commentary on technology. Kevin Maher of the Times also offered four stars, commenting that "Sir Keir Starmer will love it". He said the movie's message is "a sign of turning tide or an audacious act of self sabotage".

The story has become one of the most prominent items on the global agenda.