Read two reviews of ‘Up’ by Kathryn McCann and Catherine Wylie.
Pixar studios have a lot to live up to with this new release after cinematic gems such as ‘Wall-E’ and ‘Monsters, Inc’, but this expectation is more than fulfilled with the release of ‘Up’. Essentially the film follows the adventures of an old grumpy guy, an overweight, over-enthusiastic young boy-scout, a ‘talking’ dog and an exotic bird. However it would be wrong to sum up the movie in this way as it is about so much more than this. The story centres on a widowed pensioner called Carl who decides to grasp his last chance of freedom and adventure by tying balloons to his house and simply flying away, escaping both the mundane reality of his life and those coming to take him to an old people’s home. However, Carl doesn’t bargain that he has a boy-scout stowaway named Russell coming along for the ride. This results in a tale that is both laugh-out-loud and poignant in parts, reminding us through this unlikely coupling that life’s greatest adventures are those achieved through our relationships with others. (Also available in 3-D)
By Kathryn McCann
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‘Up’ encapsulates all that adults know to be sadly true of life, whilst also encouraging us to hark back to our childhoods by imagining the replacement of Air France with balloons in our chimneys. Critics raved about the opening sequence, and I wasn’t disappointed as I watched Carl and Ellie’s relationship progress from wanting a baby to old age. It’s commendable when an animation puts a viewer in the mood for love and marriage. Whilst young children may gloss over the themes of love, companionship and dreams, adults can fully appreciate the genuine closeness shared by the couple and the determination of Carl to make it to Venezuela. I particularly liked the nature of their wish to have their house right on top of Paradise Falls, and also the allusion to globalization in the construction surrounding Carl’s house. I found the dogs to be irritating at times, but overall this film made me feel all gooey inside.
By Catherine Wylie
Awk, I really wanna go see this film now!
…But alas, I’m stuck in the Library.
I loved this film, although I did get slightly iritated by the hype surrounding it. It’s good, but it’s not THAT good. The way criticd were going on, you’d think it was the bets film ever made. Plus, I brought my wee cousins to see it, and I have to say,a LOT of the plot and ideas were lost on them. I was reading Shane Watson’s column in Sunday Times Style magazine and she was commenting on the Fantastic Mr Fox V Up debate, and how it is currently trendy to have intelligent adult conversations about it. Mmmh, not necessarily pointless I’d say, but a little juvenile all the same. Also, both films were definitely made with more of an adult audience in mind. Ah well, a dsitraction from the recession and these frustrting times we live in I suppose. Let the debate continue. I’m on Team Up.
What about the rest of you?
You cannot detract from the power of the dahl!
Team Fox!
I loved UP. Maybe because I wasn’t hit so much by the media storm. (I was let down by Slumdog because of the excessive hype).
I really wasn’t expecting to love this so much, and kinda only saw it because of my girlfriend, and the balloons.
Fantastic Film! 4/5