Up
Disney/Pixar
PG
96 Minutes
2009
Is there any question that Pixar Animation Studios are the best, most original and inventive filmmakers in the industry? Each of their ten feature films to date have been smashing critical and commercial successes, and the trend shows no signs of stopping with Toy Story 3 slated for a summer 2010 release. With each new picture and each new success, the same questions get raised: How do they do it? What is their secret to success? The answer, as is so often the case, is simply overlooked because it seems too obvious: Pixar tell great stories with great characters.
The backbone of any motion picture lies in its story and the characters that inhabit it. It doesn't matter whether it's an old black and white drama, a live action modern comedy, or a CG animated combination of both. If you have a great story to tell and interesting characters to populate it with, people will respond favorably. Despite the cartoonish look of their digital creations, Pixar infuses their characters with so much raw emotion that they resonate with audiences. You understand their motivations; you connect with them on an emotional level; you care about them. A movie is nothing without a character, or a handful of them, for the audience to connect with, and Pixar consistently crafts brilliant, dynamic characters with vivid personalities and realistic human traits that grow throughout the course of the picture.
Their last venture, WALL*E, was quite polarizing. Largely adored by critics, and raking in over $500 million at the box office, some viewers felt WALL*E was too overt and political for what was billed as a kid's movie. Part of the problem could be attributed to the fact that Pixar's films have always appealed to an audience of children and adults, but are only promoted to the former group. Personally, I still feel WALL*E is the studio's masterwork; a film that will be just as relevant 50 years from now as it is today. It's also the best showcase of Pixar's talent for creating lovable, multi-dimensional characters - and I don't just mean visually. He may lack the ability to vocalize much, but at any given point you know exactly what WALL*E is feeling thanks to the incredible animation and attention to detail shown in his actions. Whether it's apprehensively clacking his hands together or lovingly gazing at EVE, WALL*E is as human as any live actor on the planet.
Which brings us to Pixar's latest success, Up. Directed by Monsters, Inc. helmsman Pete Docter, Up tells the story of a lonely, cranky old man fulfilling a promise to his dearly departed wife and going on an adventure, with a young, exuberant boyscout in tow. Along the way, they get sidetracked by talking dogs, a disgraced explorer looking to clear his good name, and a strange bird, resulting in drama, danger, and moments of laugh-out-loud hilarity. Up is considerably more lighthearted in tone than its predecessor, WALL*E, which will please families looking to take their children for a good time, but it does dabble in the dramatic and can bring tears of sadness to your eyes just as well as tears of laughter.
Not since Bambi has an animated film dealt so honest and openly with death. It's a tough subject to tackle, because you don't want to leave the audience depressed or weeping for the duration of the picture, but it's necessary in Up and Pixar deftly handles it with a brilliant time-lapse prologue, setting the stage for Carl Fredrickson's grand adventure. It may make you misty-eyed, but it quickly moves the story forward without dwelling too much, and it sets up the film's most touching moment later on - a moment that is guaranteed to bring an actual tear to your eyes, but for a somewhat different reason. Pixar expertly crafted this story, and the short but sad funeral sequence is bookended perfectly with a scene of fond rememberance.
Like the film itself, I won't dwell on the finer dramatic points, because Up is also one hysterically funny movie - easily Pixar's funniest since Docter last sat in the director's chair for Monsters, Inc. Ed Asner does a perfectly fine job as Carl; his gravelly voice injects the right amount of crankiness and loneliness, but most of the big laughs come from young Jordan Nagai as the enthusiastic Wilderness Explorer, Russell. At seven years old, Nagai just gets to be a kid and his non-stop chatter and excitement makes him a hilarious counterpart to Carl's cranky old man persona. Russell has all the attributes you'd expect in a young child - rambunctious energy, innocent ideals, naivete, and untintentional obnoxiousness. There's even one hilarious scene during their journey where he whines incessantly, citing aching knees, elbows, and an urgent need to use the bathroom five minutes after being asked if he had to go. To keep him from becoming more than a silly sidekick, Russell reveals that his parents are divorced, displaying confusion as a young child might when faced with such a heavy issue. This brief moment helps develop the character, causing Carl (not to mention the audience) to warm up to him.
In other show of Pixar's ability to create vibrant characters, the duo eventually comes across two more tag-alongs - a fictitious bird called a snipe that is part ostrich, part pheasant, and part toucan, and whom Russell affectionately names Kevin (despite the fact that it is actually a girl), and Dug, a Golden Retriever with a special collar invented by his master that allows him to vocalize his thoughts (courtesy of Bob Peterson, the film's co-director and a frequent contributor on all but three of Pixar's previous films). Dug is one of Pixar's most ingenius characters to date, as his collar gives him a human voice, but he still has strictly a dog's personality and all the simple desires that entails, be it chasing a tennis ball, unconditional love of his master (even if he's a complete stranger), and a comical hatred for squirrels.
Dug and Kevin both provide more than their fair share of comedic moments, but are both endearing, lovable characters as well. This is Pixar's gift - their ability to take creatures, objects, and characters and infuse them with life and personality.
Expectedly, Up is a visual treat as well. The world in general has a more cartoony look than the near photo-realistic scenes on the wasteland of Earth in WALL*E. Colors are bright and vivid, from Carl's multicolored house, Kevin's beautiful plumage, and Russell's yellow and red Wildnerness Explorer uniform. The jungle of South America is lush and vibrant, and the rocky crag of Paradise Falls is a stunning sight to behold - particularly in 3D. The extra dimension mutes the colors a tad, but it's worth the trade-off, because Up uses its 3D perfectly. Like Coraline earlier this year, this isn't gimmicky 3D where creatures and objects are constantly flying out at the audience. It's used just to add extra depth to the picture, bringing it to life a bit more and the results are very impressive, especially considering this is Pixar's first 3D film, making it yet another milestone for the studio and cementing their reputation as an animation powerhouse.
Fancy tricks aside, Up is an engrossing picture because its story is so endearing. It wouldn't matter if the film were told with stick figures drawn on paper and flipped at a rapid pace, Pixar understand better than anyone that a film is only as good as its plot and characters and Up rises above the majority of live action comedy-dramas in this department. Up is an exciting, entertaining adventure loaded with heart, laughter, and even a few tears. For those who felt slighted by WALL*E's environmentally conscious message, this will be Pixar's redemption, and for those of us who thought WALL*E was brilliant, this is just another in the long line of triumphs.
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