Review: Up

Posted by: Rory  •  May 30, 2009 @ 5:35pm

Filed under: Reviews

Up is the latest installment of Disney's long list of classic movies. The film is about an elderly man named Carl Fredricksen who, when he is forced to move out of his longtime home, decides to go on the adventure he and his late wife never got to go on. But with a twist: he decides to bring his house along for the ride using helium balloons to fly it to Paradise Falls in South America. Mr. Fredrickson has an unlikely visitor, a Wilderness Explorer named Russell who accidentally stows away on the porch when the house takes first flight. With an unexpected adventure ahead of them, this movie has its fill of comic gold. But how else can this be good? Well, how about putting it in 3D! Oh yeah, that just happened. It's fun for the whole family.

Well, I haven't review a movie in a while, but I was happy when my name was called to watch this exciting adventure movie. Like the kid in all of us, 3D is the icing on the cake. I was so ecstatic while watching the movie. It was able to keep the attention of all adults with what is, in my opinion, the best storyline that any of these CG animated movies has ever had.

The one thing I never expected from this film was to have it start off with a multi-year story of love, following Fredrickson and his late wife, Ellie, through the hardships in their relationship, like not being able to have a child of their own. But their love was shown to be strong enough to get through anything. The most touching scene in this early flashback through their life is when Carl remembers his childhood promise to Ellie to take her to Paradise Falls, and decides to buy tickets for them to go to South America -- but before he is able to fulfill his promise, she becomes ill and passes.

That whole sequence was geared towards the adults in the crowd to set up, like I said, the best animated story I have seen in a long time. But the movie was also able to keep the kids involved, using bright colors and throwing in some timely jokes to keep them entertained. Within the first 20 minutes, the story already gets a hold of the parents, but gives the kids something to look forward to as well. Even after all that, the ending adds its own stamp on the movie, which again makes you happy for the characters as well as leaving you with a feeling of closure to a well-rouned story. This is probably my favorite aspect of the film, because without a great story, the rest is wasted.

Besides the story being entertaining, they introduce some other hilarious characters, including Russell the wilderness explorer. Who wouldn't want to see a young child trying to help an elderly person, but also messing up as they go along on their journey? Or how about a talking dog named Dug, a not-so-bright dog that is basically the laughing stock of his pack. Let's just say the cone of shame was a nice touch. With this line-up of oddly-matched characters on the journey, it allows the movie to take another step up for the viewer.

The laughter doesn't stop once they get near Paradise Falls, as they encounter a bird that no one in the world believes exists, who goes along on the hilarious voyage dispite Carl trying to avoid any distractions from his true motive. The characters' interactions add another dimension to the entertainment. Picture a scenario where a giant, flightless bird tries to defend Russell and his elderly companion while clumsy dog Dug tries to capture it for his master -- it's priceless.

As for the 3D, the thing I really enjoyed about this movie is the fact that they didn't have to use gimmicky 3D effects to make you enjoy it. They were as basic as they could be when it comes to 3D, which made me really like the use of it within the story.

When it comes down to my feelings towards Up, I would have to say that it has to be one of the better animated movies I have seen in a while. I would recommend this to anyone, whether they have kids and want to enjoy a movie with the whole family, or they just want a movie that incorporates a great story with hilarious antics.

Take it easy, moviegoers, and remember: adventure is out there.

Tags: Up, Pixar, Disney, 3D, Bob Peterson, Pete Doctor, Ed Asner, Christopher Plummer, Jordan Nagai, Delroy Lindo

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