Toys 1992

Was very surprised at how much I liked it. It might not be for everyone, and a few times I felt why it might have flopped as it tried to shift tone a bit and was a bit more of a caricature at times than some might expect from other moments (which seemed very Williams and Cusack stylized). It has some pacing issues, but it also has enough surreal scenery and creations to make it interesting. It also has an interesting feel as a transition between 80s to 90s culture, going from new wave zany romp to early digital culture-apocalypse. I'd almost say this should be tagged in to a semi-scifi category.

One great thing is knowing some of these actors you can sense how the message of positivity over violent play in this movie is important to them. Not that it's heavy-handed or moralizing, but it shows the value of simple innocent fun -- something most of us know Williams likes to share (when he's not being a raunchy devil).

Robin Williams and Joan Cusack make a great comedic pairing, never realized how great they could be together, and I wanted so much more time between them in the film. Robin Wright was ok here, had a couple of funny moments, but had good tender moments helping with other characters' development. LL Cool J does a great job as an odd military satire alongside Michael Gambon's cartoonish villian.
Finally, credit to the props dept, special effects teams, and overall artistic design of the film. Sometimes the basic cinematography was rather bland in the blank canvas factory setting (probably intentional for plot focus) but in the other moments of the film the clever designs, beautiful and surreal backdrops and scenes, made this film visually fun.