Disney Pixar's Toy Story 3 opened June 16 in Taiwan - days ahead of U.S. release date

While the U.S. does not get the hugely anticipated Toy Story 3 until Friday, people in Taiwan got to enjoy it a few days early.  

The official U.S. release date for the Disney Pixar animated film is on Friday, June 18.  Toy Story 3 hit screens in Taiwan on Wednesday, June 16 as it coincided with a national holiday.  Wednesday was Dragon Boat Festival in Taiwan, a day that most companies were closed so employees could enjoy the holiday with their families.

Toy Story 3 opened in a number of theaters across Taiwan, including IMAX Theaters in Taipei.  Tickets went on sale Monday night at 6:00 p.m. and by 7:30 p.m. that night, many of the good seats for the Wednesday evening showings were sold out. 

We still managed to get decent seats for the 10:00 p.m. showing at Miramar Cinemas IMAX in Dazhi.  We arrived several  hours early to ensure we picked up our tickets timely (seats are released into the general pool if not claimed 40 minutes prior to showtime) and still had time for dinner. 

Surprisingly, the will-call line was fairly empty, although the rest of the mall was not.  Most restaurants had a 30-40 minute wait, which would have left us with very little time before the movie started.  After scouting out less busy dinner options, we arrived to the IMAX Theater with 30 minutes to spare. 

One of the nice elements about movies in places like Taiwan - assigned seats.  Many theaters allow you to go online and purchase assigned seat tickets (general theaters and IMAX both) so there is no need to rush inside to find that perfect seat.  Concessions can also be purchased at the initial will-call ticket window.  This saves you about 30% on the cost of food and extra time waiting in line at the concession stand itself as there is an express line for people just picking up food already paid for. 

Again, the IMAX area was basically empty, and slowly, a few groups started making their way into the queue line for the theater.   Everyone seemed to be taking advantage of the package concession deals that included a souvenir Toy Story 3 cup with a choice of toppers.   The five choice of toppers included Woody, a Green Alien, Slinky Dog, or Hamm.  The most popular option seemed to be the Alien or Woody.  

Many people in line were excited for the new Disney film because it is, well, Disney.  They love all things Disney here in Taiwan - so much so, the city of Taichung even used Tigger as their mascot for the 2010 Year of the Tiger Chinese New Year Lantern Festival in February.

For me, I was excited about finally getting to see the movie, but I was more excited to see the new characters and how they fit into the plot.  Disney has been incorporating some of the new characters into the theme parks -  Toy Story Midway Mania attraction has a new game and a few new faces to various parts of the attraction.  And Disney even brought Lotso (Lots-o'-Huggin Bear) to the Pixar Parade and to the character greeting area at both California and Florida Disney Parks. 

In celebration of the release of Toy Story 3, we brought our stuffed Lotso from Disney California Adventure to the movie.  Needless to say, he ended up finding himself quite the center of attention as people tripped over themselves to get a good look at him - girls giggled, children gasped, and even a few people asked to have their picture taken with him.  There is limited Toy Story 3 merchandise available in Taiwan, but no one had yet seen this stuffed Lotso that is available at Disney California Adventure. 

Toy Story 3 is definitely the movie to see this opening weekend. Disney Pixar really outdid themselves on this one. The plot is surprising and contains a few unexpected twists. There were several times I thought I was watching a suspense film versus an animated comedy.  I laughed, I gasped, and I cried - it was an emotional movie for Toy Story fans. 

Toy Story 3 is a look at Andy all grown up and ready to leave for college.  Buzz and the gang are left behind and mistakenly donated to a local daycare.   New characters like Lotso'o'Huggin' Bear, Ken, and a classic baby doll named Big Baby make their first appearance here.  The gang is excited about the their new adventures while Woody remains skeptical. 

As Woody tries to make his way back to Andy before he leaves for college, his misadventures land him with other new characters like Mr. Pricklepants, Trixie, Buttercup, Chuckles the Clown, Dolly, the Peas-in-a-Pod and Totoro.  These toys make great additions to the Toy Story family and are an important part of Toy Story 3.   

Without revealing any other elements of the plot, I found myself rather shocked at how a number of events played out during the film.  For grown ups who still have their childhood toys or had to unwillingly part with them at some point in life, this movie definitely pulls at those heartstrings.  I found myself identifying with several events throughout the film, which caused some slight tear shed.   

On a happier note, as with all Disney Pixar films, the level of humor seems to increase with each new film and Toy Story 3 definitely does not disappoint. Even with subtitles, nothing seemed to be lost in translation to Mandarin speakers as the theater was a constant roar of laughter throughout the entire film.

Be sure to be on the lookout for several references to other movies and Disney films.  Pixar has done a great job of hiding a number of "Easter egg goodies" in this film so keep your eyes peeled.  I need to go watch it again to catch them all myself.

Now, after watching Toy Story 3 and thinking about the emphasis on Lotso and the other characters now in the Disney parks, I wonder - can fans look forward to a Toy Story 4 after all?