"Up" flies as high as the house which becomes the premise of the film.

Rating: 10/10 (30 May 2009)

When I walked into the theater last night for the 9:15 showing of Up I had high expectations. I didn't go in with a half-hearted interest or mild confidence; I was expecting to see something amazing and I wasn't let down. "Up" flies as high as the House that becomes the premise of the film.
I admit I was a bit distracted when the movie began; either no one knew the movie was starting or no one cared because they were being VERY loud. But as the movie played on the noise died down and I found myself charmed by an opening sequence that is so emotional that you'd hardly believe you were watching a children's movie. In fact, three fourths of the way through the sequence a younger woman sitting in front of me declared to her friends "This movie is sad!" in a voice that indicated she had not been expecting it. That being said this movie is still definitely suitable for little children and although I wouldn't go as far as to call it a children's film (I think pixar is beyond that) it has, as always when it comes to pixar, no course jokes or crude humor.
As the movie progressed past the opening sequence, I almost expected to be let down by what came next; I wasn't. After a touching opening sequence that told the tale of his life, the character of Carl Fredrickson continues to be developed with such care that you can't help but feel sorry for him when the men Nursing Home comes to hall him away; even if he is a bit grumpy.
Since I don't have time to go through the movie section by section (and you probably wouldn't have time to read it even if I did) I'll continue this review by highlighting my favorite bits and criticizing what little there is to criticize.
The scene in which the house is sweeping through the clouds as a storm rages around is truly incredible; the action is actually intense and you don't feel like your watching a happy fairytale in which the characters would never get hurt or die. In general, the action was that way throughout the film. There was one point somewhere between the touching storytelling, the witty script and the epic action that I literally forgot the movie was animated and that has arguably never happened to me before.
The biggest downfall of the movie, in my opinion, were the evil talking dogs. I found Dug to be the only talking dog that really came across effectively; the other "evil" dogs had little to no character development, were not memorable at all and were not threatening in the slightest. When they climbed into airplanes to shoot at Russell I found myself rolling my eyes in disbelief; dog's flying airplanes? This small downfall, however, is not near enough to ruin the movie in any way.
Another slight downfall (and I'm not sure if I'd really call this a downfall) is that I would have liked a bit more of a sense of wonder and discovery when Carl and Russell first arrived at Paradise Falls; perhaps they could have discovered a few interesting creatures (besides Kevin) or strange plants. Ultimately I don't think they would have had time for this which is probably why it wasn't there but it would have been nice addition.
As you can probably already tell, my overall opinion on this film is VERY positive; although a bit more of time would have made the film a bit more interesting and well-rounded, in the end, it is not needed and the film still comes across as charming and even epic without it.