![when was toy story 2 made when was toy story 2 made](https://static2.srcdn.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/woody-toys-toy-story-2.jpg)
When we return to great films, we often approach them through a different lens. The best films-and make no mistake, Toy Story 2 is a great film-don’t just elicit repeat viewings, but hold up to the scrutiny brought on by time and to the the changing perspectives of their viewers. Really, viewing the film through a Vertigo lens-attempting to find any connection back to Hitchcock’s film-is just another way to view it.
![when was toy story 2 made when was toy story 2 made](https://www.thatericalper.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/DI-Toy-Story-Of-Terror-2.jpg)
Some of these connections are clearly deliberate, and some are most likely not. So, am I really suggesting that Toy Story 2 owes a great debt to Vertigo. In Toy Story 2, the effect distorts the bedroom, and Andy with it. What begins as a dream turns to dread through the filmmakers’ use of a dolly zoom (i.e., the camera zooms in while tracking backwards, distorting the perspective), the very shot made famous in Vertigo‘s famous staircase sequence.
![when was toy story 2 made when was toy story 2 made](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/dXN6HqZ_CMY/maxresdefault.jpg)
Stuck on that shelf and fearing the worst, Woody experiences a Vertigo-esque nightmare that reveals his fear of abandonment, a theme that runs through all the Toy Story films ( here’s the entire clip). This shelf is the place where broken toys disappear, never to be seen again. In Toy Story 2‘s first act, Woody is placed on Andy’s highest shelf after the seem of his arm is accidentally torn. Its numerous links to Alfred Hitchcock’s Vertigo, for instance, resonate beyond the similarities of image or sound to connect back to that film’s themes as well. But some of Toy Story 2‘s pop culture references exist as more than simple homage. Toy Story 2 is littered with subtle homages (and many not so subtle), most notably to well known sci-fi epics such as The Empire Strikes Back ( "No, Buzz, I am your father"), Jurassic Park ( "Objects in mirror are closer than they appear"), and 2001: A Space Odyssey (by way of Richard Strauss’s "Also Sprach Zarathustra"). Most often they are great films, the kind that reveal hidden nuances with each additional viewing. But Pixar’s films are far greater than the sum of their homages. They’re cinematic in-jokes for the initiated, connections that simply make one smile. Most of these homages are created as comedy. Consider WALL-E‘s villainous robot AUTO whose devilish red-eye brings to mind HAL 9000 from 2001: A Space Odyssey or The Incredibles‘ hilarious Edna as a doppelganger for real life costume designer Edith Head or even A Bug’s Life whose entire plot-a defenseless village hires warriors to protect itself from bandits-is lifted right out of Seven Samurai. The films of Pixar are heavily populated with references to movies of the past, to the films most beloved by the studio’s many writer/directors.