Waking up to Pixar's Up! (2009)

I woke up today ready to go back to work, only to find out I didn't have to get up to go to work at all. "What should I do now?" I thought. The answer was to watch Up! That's right, I have never seen Up until today. The acclaimed movie by animation house Pixar simply never interested me, even though I've heard so many good things about it. I mean, all the trailers ever showed was a grouchy old man and a strange little scout kid in the most unbelievable air ship I could ever think of. That's right, a helium balloon powered floating house is even more absurd than a flying aircraft carrier (thumbs up to those who get the reference). But why am I spending time telling you the basics of the plot? You've probably all already seen Up, so why don't we just cut to the chase and I'll tell you what I really thought of the movie. You can find that, after the jump.


My God was this movie good. I seriously never saw the charm of the movie in the trailers, and I've always had that thought of "What's the big deal?" Now I know. The big deal is that in almost every way a movie can be great, Pixar's Up is great.

There was a point in my life where I had simply stopped watching animated movies. I had fallen into the trap mindset that they were just for kids. At some point though, I decided to catch up on a lot of animated movies that I had let slide by. Unfortunately that means that I won't be able to sing the praises of movies such as Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, or Kung Fu Panda. However I can gladly do just that now for Up!


Up is simply full of surprises. I've heard of people say that just in the few opening minutes of the movie you'll find yourself gripped by sadness. Again I thought "How is that possible? You'd barely know the characters to even care about them." Well I'm not going to spoil the moment of that opening by describing what happens, but they do it, and I will admit to tearing up. The opening to Up could easily be a short film on it's own.

Another thing I didn't expect to find was a fun adventure story. It's true, maybe I should have seen that coming. What else could happen when you float your house away by tying thousands of helium balloons to the hearth of the fireplace? Of course you'll end up in the lost world running from vicious dogs and fighting a mad man who lives in a giant floating fortress of a blimp.

The cast is bizarre to say the least. Grumpy old Mr. Carl Fredrickson, the plucky wilderness scout Russell, Dug the ever friendly talking dog, or Kevin, the crazy giant bird that loves chocolate are all lovable in their own quirky ways. Voice acting is top notch, as is the quality of the animation. Not only do they all look unique, but even the way in which they move is distinct and adds to their characters.

Pixar has made an instantly classic movie with instantly memorable characters that you are interested in, laugh at and fight back tears for. The story may not be very deep, but it's touching and you cheer for the characters to succeed at every turn. And lets not forget the world the story takes place in is as charming and whimsical as they come. As a person who had brushed off Up with disinterest over it's unusual premise or unconventional cast, I must say that I highly recommend giving it a chance. I think you'll be happy you did.