Pixar Studio deserves the avalanche of awards it has won. Every time I think they’re about to blow it with an impossible story (a French rat in a five-star restaurant, a nearly silent film about robots in love) they manage to prove me wrong. Toy Story 3 was no exception. I was worried that they were pushing the franchise too far. The first two films were fantastic, but a third? Surely they’re going to “jump the shark” this time. Wrong again. It was brilliant…the best of the bunch.

There is plenty to praise about the movie, but I want to focus on just one thing—the monkey. The hideous, hilarious, and haunting monkey! For those who have not yet seen the film, the monkey monitors the video surveillance system at Sunnyside Daycare—the veritable prison from which the toys attempt to escape.

Every good story needs a villain, and many of the best villains come in two forms. First, there is the unexpected villain—the gentle, caring, lovable grandmother who pulls out a shotgun from under her skirt. Lotso plays this role in Toy Story 3. He’s a soft purple teddy bear who appears to be welcoming and kind. In truth he’s a conniving, cold-hearted thug.

The other is the archetypal villain—the ugly, cruel monster whose vile character is matched by his appearance. Think of Tolkein’s orcs or Harry Potter’s Voldemort. The surveillance monkey in Toy Story 3 is a perfect embodiment of evil in the story. And this may explain the audience’s burst-out-load reaction to him in the theater. Consider three elements of the monkey:

Unblinking Eyes—Those lidless yellow and red eyes starring ceaselessly at the monitors. They reminded me of the Eye of Sauron from The Lord of the Rings. He’s always watching; never sleeping. The eyes embody our fear that our wrong deeds will not go unnoticed. We will be caught. And when the monkey spots you his eyeballs bulge from his head like they want to reach out and grab you themselves. 

Clinched Teeth—Like a shark his mouth is permanently menacing. He’s ready to bite; ready to rip flesh. In Peter Jackson’s version of The Return of the King, the mouth of Sauron character was depicted with a helmet covering his eyes, and a huge mouth with jagged, bloody teeth too large for his lips to conceal. The unblinking eyes are there to catch you, and the teeth exist to punish you.

Piercing Scream—But apprehension and punishment are not the full extent of our fear. We also dread our crimes being announced. That is what the monkey’s scream represents. The blood-curdling sound that we’ve been found out; that everyone knows what we’ve done. Again, Lord of the Rings comes to mind—the screech of the nazgul when they’ve uncovered their prey.

Being seen. Being punished. Being exposed. This is what the monkey represents, and it’s a primal fear we all carry.

Okay, are you ready for the theological leap? Here we go…

These same elements can be found in the character known as ha-satan in the Old Testament, or simply Satan in the New. The Hebrew title ha-satan means “the accuser” and is found in the Book of Job. He stands before the Lord to accuse human beings of wrong. He exposes and announces their wickedness before the heavenly court. And he is an instrument of pain. Job’s suffering is executed by ha-satan.

My point is not to develop a biblical theology around Satan, and it’s worth noting that the character is depicted somewhat differently in various parts of the Bible and has taken on many qualities throughout history not found in either the Hebrew or Christian scriptures (horns and pitch fork, for example).

Rather I think it’s interesting that the most vivid depictions of evil, from the ancient Hebrew Bible, to The Lord of the Rings, to an animated children’s film like Toy Story 3 contain amazingly similar elements. And these elements correlate with three of our deepest human fears—the fear of being seen, the fear of being punished, and the fear of being exposed. 

Thanks, Pixar, for another brilliant film, another wonderful story, and for another vision of evil. Now when I imagine the wardens of Hades, perched beside Satan and Sauron will be the Sunnyside Daycare surveillance monkey.

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