Up - Discussion and Grading thread [Spoilers]

[Canadave]

Just got back from seeing it tonight, and I loved it, a solid A. Not quite as good as WALL-E or Finding Nemo, IMO, but still a fantastic movie. There was a lot of depth to the characters, and the story was really poignant and emotional at points—especially that first 15 minutes. Can't wait to see what we get in the third installment of Toy Story next summer!

 

[Ptrope]

Saw it tonight - absolutely A+! Up was brilliant - it was heartwarming and heart-tugging, both, and even without dialogue, "Kevin' was amazingly charming and sympathetic. I agree that Muntz could've even been eliminated without losing what made the story work, but as it is, he was a perfect wake-up call for Carl. As always, Pixar are at the top of the industry in technical perfection - the rendering was breathtaking at times. But it's the story where Pixar really shine, and I think they've definitely topped themselves once again.

One observation about the 3D: this is the first time I've seen a 3D movie since The Creature from the Black Lagon, and I was very impressed by how well it works. But somehow, even though the film was obviously widescreen, and looked it with the naked eye, with the 3D glasses on, it seemed more like a 4:3 format, and overall it felt very small and initimate, not wide and expansive as these films usually do. I'll have to see it in a non-3D theatre to get the full appreciation of what I've seen, but so far, I'm very, very impressed with Up.

 

[TGTheodore]

So ... who was it a few months back that started the thread about not being excited about "Pixar's next movie"?

Hmmmm ...

--Ted

 

[Lumen]

Excellent. Up worked in pretty much every way imaginable. Probably the best film I've seen this year.

However, I have to agree--the 3D was lame.

 

[Kail]

Just saw UP with the family. While I enjoyed it, I don't feel it's as good as some of the other Pixar movies. It was probably the most violent, and scary Pixar movie to date. My 5 year old asked to leave a few times because he was scared. The barking, snarling dogs, gun fire, people dangling from extreme heights, were just to much for him.

 

[Hyperspace05]

A solid 'A' from me! A great adventure film...

Our 5 yr old did just fine during the movie (sitting in our laps), so it probably varies from kid to kid.

 

[auntiehill]

A+ from me.

I just fell in love with Carl. The first 10 minutes of the movie had me in tears! I love the interaction between the characters, the interweaving of tense drama with the humor---dogs in bi-planes?

Very clever, very heart-warming stuff.

Although, at one point, when the dogs have surrounded our heroes, in the middle of the tense silence, a little kid in the back cried out, "Mama, this movie is SCARY!"

Maybe, for some really small ones, that scene might be a bit intense, but the rest of the film is so charming and lovable---I just adored this film.

 

[Kail]

I think this is the first Pixar movie to have any bloodshed. First Carl hits that guy on the head with his cane, then a dog bites Kevin on the leg, drawing blood.

I'm not saying my boy was terrified, but some scenes were kind of intense.

Speaking of the dogs, I LOL at the dogs playing poker.

And the opening scenes were very sad. They said so much without saying anything. Like Wall-ee's opening scenes.

 

[Shaw]

I liked it a ton... but my wife says I need to wait awhile before seeing it again (the beginning was quite emotional for me). I had a good idea that I would like the movie though as I love Spencer Tracy films (specially Desk Set and Guess Who's Coming to Dinner).

A+

 

[Messianni]

A+ for me. As with everyone, it seems, the first 10-15 minutes struck a real emotional core with me and my eyes kept leaking. Indeed when that general theme between Carl and Ellie was mentioned, I would get a little choked up and when Carl discovered how Ellie had filled up her Adventure Book, well... it happened again. Damn heartstrings!

The only part that really took me out of the film was the dogs in the airplanes. It wasn't a big deal, but even with a floating house and dogs talking with electronic collars the planes seemed a little silly to me. Likewise the alpha dog's broken, chipmunk voice didn't really strike a funny chord with me like it seemed to for other people in the theater but these are very minor quibbles. I hope to see it again soon!

 

[tomalak301]

A+

Went to see it today at the first showing and I take back everything I said about this film before, such as I wasn't looking forward to it and stuff like that. This is another beautiful movie from the folks across the bay and yeah those 15 minutes were an emotional rollercoaster. It's not often a movie can develop it's characters so well from the first frame that you are so emotionally invested in them at the beginning of the movie and that's what this movie did. When Russel showed up, and then Kevin, and then Doug, I couldn't help but just root for everyone. There was this great bond almost I felt watching this movie and no other company does it this well. It happened with Wall-E and it happened here.

I also wanted to talk about the short, Partly Cloudy. As with other PIXAR films, it seems like the short gets overlooked because the main feature was so good, but leave it to Pixar to have the most simplist of stories and turn it into an art form. It wasn't as good as Presto, or the one that came with The Incredibles, but it was still excellent, sentimental and cute. I really felt sorry for the cloud and the ending just made me very happy. This was also a great short to attach with this movie because it really allowed the audience to experience the life cycle. Birth, Death, and rebirth.

I still want to see Disney go back to the Lion King type movies (And Princess and the Frog looks interesting) but PIXAR really can't do anything wrong. Just when I think they reached the top in quality, they go higher.

 

[Canadave]

It was probably the most violent, and scary Pixar movie to date.

I'd disagree with this, personally. I'd say that The Incredibles has more violence and such compared to Up, and I believe we see a number of henchmen die in that one far less ambiguously than the sole violent death in Up.

Not that it really bothers me, I appreciate children's movies that handle those sorts of things well.

 

[trampledamage]

Oh, I forgot to ask: Did anyone else feel like Charles F. Muntz bared a strong resemblance to Kirk Douglas? I know he was voiced by Christopher Plummer (who did an outstanding job of disguising his typical striking voice), but I couldn't help but notice the similarities.

Yes, I thought he looked exactly like Kirk Douglas - I thought it worked perfectly, Kirk is one of those actors that you can't guess straight away whether he's going to be mean or heroic.


I loved Up. Tears were streaming down my face all the way though, so I'm glad the movie theatre stayed dark for a while afterwards!

I'm thinking of treating my daughter by taking her for her first visit to a cinema to see this. She's seen other Pixar movies, and is used to superhero action fighting and I think she'll love the adventure of this one.

 

[Captain Kirk]

Due to recent events in my life, the first 20 min. or so were very hard to watch. That said, this may be Pixar's best film (which is saying a lot). It is a very human story. It has the "heart" that I felt was missing from Wall-E (I know I'm alone there).

A+ without question.

 

[melancholymecha]

not my favorite of Pixar's but I enjoyed it. I think my fave scene was when the house finally lifts off for the first time & you see the different folks's reaction to it as it floats by. Also loved anything with Kevin. What is it about Pixar & goofy birds?

 

[The Nth Doctor]

Oh, I forgot to ask: Did anyone else feel like Charles F. Muntz bared a strong resemblance to Kirk Douglas? I know he was voiced by Christopher Plummer (who did an outstanding job of disguising his typical striking voice), but I couldn't help but notice the similarities.

Yes, I thought he looked exactly like Kirk Douglas - I thought it worked perfectly, Kirk is one of those actors that you can't guess straight away whether he's going to be mean or heroic.

Good, I'm glad I'm not the only one who thought that. And I absolutely agree with your thoughts about Kirk Douglas. Too bad they didn't get him to voice the character.

 

[pookha]

while kirk douglas still acts wasnt his ability to speak affected by his stroke.?

 

[The Evil Dead]

I cried...

 

[Capt. Vulcan]

gave it an A+, thoroughly enjoyed the movie. That opening montage alone would have made an amazing animated short. One of the amazing things about when we saw the movie was that there were a bunch of loud idiots in the theater, yelling our retarded crap all throughout the trailers and the short. But as soon as the love story came on they started sniffling and shut up for the rest of the movie. I also thought the score for the film was great.

 

[tomalak301]

gave it an A+, thoroughly enjoyed the movie. That opening montage alone would have made an amazing animated short. One of the amazing things about when we saw the movie was that there were a bunch of loud idiots in the theater, yelling our retarded crap all throughout the trailers and the short. But as soon as the love story came on they started sniffling and shut up for the rest of the movie. I also thought the score for the film was great.

I was a bit bummed by the score actually. Nothing Pixar did persay, but the score was done by Michael Giacchino, the same guy who did Star Trek's score. The reason I was bummed was because I wish he had put this much effort into the Star Trek (2009) score instead of making it sound really repetitive.