Toys is one of Robin Williams’ least successful movies despite the whimsy and fun that it seems to inspire. I can recall a few people stating that this movie was quite dark in some ways but in truth it seems more like the journey of a man that needs to acquire confidence and a level of maturity that he’s not yet been forced to experience. In any case the fight he must wage to save his father’s toy factory and his family’s good name swiftly becomes a test that he ends up passing as, with his friends, he saves the day and the toy factory so that his father’s peaceful legacy might continue.
It seems to have tanked in the box office, but honestly it seems like a fun story.
10. This was Jaime Foxx’s debut appearance.
He didn’t have a huge role in the film but it was enough to take notice of him. Eventually he did get to be more of a star as the years went by.
9, The film took ten years to develop and ten months to shoot.
Considering all the different elements that went into the film it’s not surprising that it took so long to finally come to fruition, but it was still bad timing.
8. This movie came out about a month after Aladdin.
After his role in Aladdin this movie kind of tanked largely because Williams had played such a huge role that this part came off as kind of creepy in a way no matter the positive aspect of it.
7. The field scenes were filmed at Pierce College in the San Fernando Valley area of LA.
The rolling fields were a very impressive part of the film, some might say one of the only really impressive parts, but they didn’t really seem to fit for some people.
6. There was a camera rolling every time Robin Williams was on the set.
This was so the director could catch any ad-libbed lines that Williams came up with since he was constantly doing something that seemed like it could be used for the movie.
5. The film makes uses of a Confucius quote.
When the general attempts to kill a fly with his gun the quote “Never use a cannon to kill a fly” becomes pertinent.
4. The film was considered to be one of Robin Williams’ worst ever.
Critics lambasted this film and didn’t give it an ounce of mercy when it came out. There were some that felt it was just too depressing despite its upbeat manner.
3. The film bombed at the box office.
It made about half of its budget back and didn’t go on to become a cult classic when released to home video either.
2. The Entertainment Weekly film editor at the time predicted this movie would bomb.
Normally someone gives most films the benefit of the doubt, but this one seemed almost universally hated.
1. This was supposed to be Barry Levinson’s directorial debut.
It might have been if not for the amount of time it took for the film to finally reach the screen.
For whatever reason people just didn’t like this movie, but honestly it seems like it was far from being the worst in Williams’ career.
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