Up

I hear some of you out there: “How can a movie about an old guy, a boy scout and a house being carried around by thousands of balloons be entertaining?” I am here to put those concerns to rest, my friends. Up, the latest movie from Pixar is a sweet and funny adventure for all.

Carl Fredricksen (the voice of Ed Asner) made a promise to his wife many years ago that they would seek adventure in the wilds of South America. Now alone, Carl makes the fateful decision to keep that promise. Tethering thousands of balloons to his house he takes off into the wild blue. There’s just one snag, overachiever Wilderness Explorer Russell (the voice of Jordan Nagai) is accidentally trapped on the porch at lift off. Eager for some real camping experience and contrary to Carl’s original plan, Russell tags along. At their destination of Paradise Falls the pair encounters strange flora and fauna. Carl even comes face to face with his childhood hero, disgraced explorer Charles Muntz (the voice of Christopher Plummer) who is desperately looking for redemption in the form of a 13-foot-tall bird. With the help of the talking dog Dug, Carl and Russell try to stay one step ahead of Muntz’s pack of trained dogs. In the end they both learn valuable lessons about friendship and the importance of every day adventures.

This will probably the shortest review of this movie you’ll read: Up is simply adorable. It’s got everything – laughs, thrills and most of all heart. This film brought me to tears a couple of times. The animation isn’t as staggering as previous Pixar films but then the animators were going for something they dubbed “Simplexity”. Carl is an unusual hero and it works so well with this story. If anything it shows that it’s never to late to start living your dream. Russell is great character for kids. He’s determined, he’s a sort of moral compass for Carl and he doesn’t judge people (or dogs). Speaking of dogs Dug and the pack of talking dogs provide some of the movie’s most hilarious bits. But let me also point out that there were some young kids in the theater I was seeing the film in and they were not enjoying the darker moments provided by said dogs. It is something to bear in mind if you have kids younger than 5 or 6.

I can’t recommend Up enough. I know there are many out there who are on the fence about seeing it. Go. Trust me; you’ll be glad you did. I saw the 2-D version but if a movie is available in 3-D it’s always worth seeing it in that format. Remember “Adventure is out there!”

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