FILM REVIEW: 'UP' BLU-RAY & DVD

Pixar Quality Soars High Above the Others with 'Up' on Blu-Ray

My theatrical experience with Up was less than satisfactory though not quite the fault of the movie. Packs of screaming children tend to ruin movies for me, though Up’s magic somehow transcended the howls and shrieks of the hoards of infants in the North Jersey movie theater I was in, and for that it deserves immense praise. Viewing the film in my dorm room was definitely a more satisfying (and quiet) experience, and let me just say: Up is just as good, if not better, the second time around.

As a young boy, Up’s hero, Carl Fredrickson (Edward Asner), meets Ellie, the love of his life. They always wanted to travel a mystical unnamed land in South America, yet as Ellie grows old and becomes ill, their dream soon becomes impossible to fulfill. After her death, Carl promises to go and does, taking his house with him as it’s lifted up by hundreds of colorful balloons. What he doesn’t realize, however, is that he has unintentionally brought a chubby boy scout named Russell with him.

Up lacks the heavy environmental message of WALL-E, yet certainly packs an emotional punch. I can’t say that a children’s film has ever moved me to tears before, but the opening montage is probably one of the saddest things I have ever seen on the big screen. Depicting Carl and Ellie’s relationship, it’s fairly simplistic but devastating in execution. Otherwise, Up is fairly lighthearted, filled with talking puppies and giant birds, and other things that we’ve come to expect from a Pixar film. It’s positively delightful.

On a technical level, Up does set itself up for disappointment, yet still, of course, looks nothing short of amazing. Pixar doesn’t introduce anything new this time around like they did with fur in Monsters, Inc. or water effects in Finding Nemo, yet the colors in Up pop off the screen (see: the balloons that lift Carl’s house into the sky), and the lush visuals in the second half of the film are a treat to look at. I’m sure everything looks even better in 3-D, but the pedestrian nature of Jersey Shore movie theaters alas prevented me from being able to justify that statement.

Once again, Pixar has made an animated film that caters more toward adults than children, though feel free to bring your kids to this one too! I, for one, am constantly ranting and raving about the declining quality of children’s films, yet whenever a new Pixar film comes along, I always perk up and revisit my accusations. Up is, dare I say it, my favorite Pixar film to date. It’s not nearly as “epic” as their other offerings, but I bet you’ll have a hard time finding a more emotionally resonating children’s film out there, and a CGI-animated one at that. Even the second time around, Up comes with my highest recommendation.