Up

Ready? Let's take a moment to acknowledge the obvious joke about Up bringing Pixar back "down to earth" after the celebrated, grandiose, and (in my opinion) didactic hit Wall-E. Up takes Pixar in a direction I'd been hoping to see since The Incredibles; it's heartening to see another film about recognizably specific human concerns. Near the beginning of Up there's a montage that follows Carl (Ed Asner) from his 1930's childhood meeting with Ellie (they bond over their love of a famous explorer) through marriage, home, a miscarriage, constantly delayed plans for a trip to South America, and finally Ellie's illness and death. It is a well-conceived scene but I'm not ready to join those proclaiming it a unqualified classic moment. One of the problems with Up is that Carl doesn't have that much to say (and Asner's performance is disappointingly flat for much of the film). When Carl and Ellie first meet as children he's struck dumb by her assertiveness; it's a fun scene but because we're taken through the marriage so quickly it's impossible to know what kind of man Carl became. Pixar, as much discussed, has been a little slow to provide well-developed roles for women and I do think Up blows a chance with Ellie. The two bond over their love of adventure but surely that's not enough to sustain a marriage. In the absence of children, what sort of extended/alternative family of friends and coworkers did they develop? Who took all those pictures we see as Carl pages through Ellie's adventure book? Ellie is reduced to being a symbol of goodness and unqualified encouragement, the reason that Carl decides to take that balloon ride.

Once Carl ties a bunch of helium balloons to his house and starts his trip to South America he finds himself in the company of Russell (Jordan Nagai), a scout who had been pestering Carl in an effort to get an "assisting the elderly" badge. What Russell lacks in survival skills he makes up for in enthusiasm, and Russell provides just about all the big laughs in the movie. The pace of Up picks up considerably once Carl and Russell hit South America. I won't get too much into plot specifics but I wish the central relationship between man and boy was developed a bit more before bringing on the talking dogs, giant bird, and that explorer. I'm hardly the first to point out that Pixar has now proven itself to be a superior maker of children's entertainment and now stands poised to make a definitive animated film for adults. But what about the Happy Meals? I enjoyed the comic mayhem as Carl and Russell unexpectedly find themselves in the role of protecting rare wildlife but there's a deeper movie underneath about loss, change, and the passing of knowledge between generations that I think largely gets missed. But I'll let the quieter moments of Up serve as an optimistic sign. Pixar will be with us for some time to come of course and I think the in-the-works project with a female director and lead character is surely a good sign. As the studio's ambitions grow and technology expands storytelling possibilities I hope Pixar's product stays as grounded as Carl's house ends up.