It's not really picking apart his argument when you "guess" at what he answers in the review. He writes, "As...Tom Townsend (Edward Clements) tries fitting in w

It's not really picking apart his argument when you "guess" at what he answers in the review. He writes, "As...Tom Townsend (Edward Clements) tries fitting in with East Side debutantes, he discovers his toy cowboy pistol in his estranged father’s trash....evok[ing] childhood, lost innocence and Townsend’s longing for even imagined potency." That's very much what it is to grapple with "sentimental value over...childhood belongings." No where does White accuse that movie of celebrating consumerism. It also seems to me that a 3D movie is very much about "buy[ing] the new stuff." That the movie 'endorses' toy recycling and passing on the toys to other people, does not mean that fundamentally it escapes its consumerist message. The want of more toys, even if recycled, is still a message of consumerism. Having one last play with the toys as they're passed on doesn't fix it. That the film isn't "consumerism at its worst" doesn't mean it's not fundamentally consumerist. The message isn't "Maybe I didn't need so many toys as a kid because I'll grow out of them," the message (as it relates to consumerism) is far more, "As long as I pass things along, I can buy as much as I want." Whether or not a movie should talk about consumerism responsibly is certainly an open question. But "guessing" what White thinks when he gives you data, or saying that because TS3 isn't the WORST consumerism it's not consumerism, is disingenuous to the argument he makes. And Armond White's criticisms are useful as a reminder that films, even Dreamworks ones, can aspire to something higher. Does he sometimes go overboard? Probably sometimes. But the above is certainly not 'picking apart his argument'. Ebert most often asks, "Will this film entertain?" White seems to ask, "Is this film good?" He concludes his TS3 review, "When a movie is this formulaic, it’s no longer a toy because it does all the work for you." I have to say I liked TS3 because it did all the work for me, and did so with excellence. But its excellence at delivering on fundamental plot arcs does not mean we shouldn't sometimes ask for more from what we watch. And White reminds us to keep asking. (To see White displaying his talent more cleanly, check out his review of Eat, Pray, Love: http://www.nypress.com/article-21533-pretty-woman-with-an-appetite.html http://www.nypress.com/article-21533-pretty-woman-with-an-ap...)