Up

With their tenth film, Up, Pixar has created a story, and a world, that is much more for adults than children. There are elements of the film that children will enjoy, like the talking dog, or the house floating balloons, but the themes of death and loss are not something that will appeal to them. It's just a touching and beautiful story with a heart and complexity that's rarely seen in any film.

Carl Fredricksen (Ed Asner) and his wife Ellie dreamed their entire lives of following in the footsteps of their hero Charles Muntz (Christopher Plummer) and visiting Paradise Falls in South America, but they never made it. Life just kept getting in the way. When Ellie dies, it seems that the dream would die with her. Carl withdraws from the world, seeing a development spring up around him, encroaching on his space, and his memories. After an altercation with one of the developers, he's going to be forced out of his house, and into a retirement home. Not able to stand this he attaches thousands of balloons to his home and sets off, accompanied by stow-away scout Russell (Jordan Nagai), for Paradise Falls, and adventure.

There are few entire films that have as much heart, and emotional affectiveness as the opening minutes of Up. We're shown Carl's life from the first time he met Ellie as a child, all the way through the beginnings of their romance, their life together, the realization that they couldn't have children and to Ellie's death. Told almost without words, it pack an emotional punch that nearly brought me to tears. Just within those few minutes I became so attached to, and identified with Carl that I would have been willing to follow the film anywhere else it wanted to go. It's brilliant work.

It's in this very real, very emotional, world that Up has its greatest success. There are moments of great comedy, and fun in the fanciful South American wilderness, but the heart of the story isn't those adventures, it's the relationships between Carl and Ellie, and Carl and Russell. It's a story where Carl learns that even though he and Ellie never made it to Paradise Falls together that they had a wonderful life together that made him very happy.

Carlalso develops a relationship with Russell that takes him forward into the rest of his life. He moves past his initial annoyance, and frustration with the kid that's just tagging along, and into a real friendship and love for him. He gets to be a surrogate father for Russell, the way he never got to with kids of his own.

I don't really want to write too much about Up. I don't want to spoil anything at all. Just know that I think it's a great film, sure to be one of the best of the year. I recommend it very highly.

Grade: A