UP is what going to the movies are all about.

Rating: 10/10 (29 September 2009)

My Take: Pixar has done it again in this brilliant, imaginative and heartwarming animated adventure.
I've always admired Pixar's works, from their debut in TOY STORY to their later works like RATATOUILLE and WALL-E. I like their talents in telling a good story, the brilliant animation and their own unique style. But as their movies keep getting better every time, my affection for them deepens. I still like the animation and the story-telling, but over the years, they have given me more reasons to like them. But their latest works like WALL-E and the subject of this review UP has pretty much summed up one of the things I truly love about their films: It's how they manage to get you even in those smaller moments of their movies. Their movies always have wonderful stories to tell, but even some of their small scenes, like when WALL-E was listening ram shackling some interesting "trash" for example, provide small moments of wonder and curiosity. Their latest film UP has a lot of these scenes, particularly what happens earlier in the movie.
The movie opens with an adventurous boy named Carl Fredricksen sitting in a theater watching the adventurous of his hero Charles Muntz, an adventurer in a quest for Paradise Falls, a land lost in time. But after being convicted about being a fake by his critics, Muntz disappears in search of proof. Meanwhile, Carl finds his match in Ellie, a little girl who shares his passion for adventure and the quest for the legendary Paradise Falls, which she intends to be the site for her new clubhouse. Carl and Ellie swore that they'd be best friends forever, and one thing led to another: they become closer friends, grow up, fall in love, got married and enjoyed a fruitful, happy, often problematic life, but with the quest for the legendary falls still somewhere in their minds. For 70 years, the two of them spent the greatest adventure of their lives, until Ellie dies leaving Carl a sad and rather empty man. This may not be the story of UP, but for those early 30 something minutes of the film, UP already has my vote for the best movie of the year.
If the film had the power to make the audience laugh and cry in the first hour, I was dying to know what happens afterward. Carl ends up being an old, lonely man (voiced by Ed Asner) still living in the house he and Ellie built, in spite of heavy construction being built around his home. But when he was forced to go to a retirement home, his passion for adventure kicks back in. He ties a million balloons to his house and sends it flying to South America in search for Paradise Falls. Along for the trip is eager 8 year-old wilderness explorer Russell (voiced by Jordan Nagai), whose reluctant to get his "Assisting the Elderly" badge. Along the way, they meet danger, a rare giant bird, a dog with a voice-translating collar, and a familiar hero in his older years.
UP was released at a late time here in the Philippines, and didn't really stay for too long in theaters which is too bad. This is probably the best film I've seen all year, and probably one of the best movies I've seen in a long time. UP is not contended with just being cute as other animated movies of its kind do; the story is told the way it was supposed to, regardless of how dark and mature it might be for the younger audiences (the scenes involving the Ellie's demise may be a bit too heartbreaking for small fry). It doesn't matter whether or not there are gonna be toys or McDonald's tie-ins, the movie alone is already worth a million viewings. It's certain the movie will grab just as much audiences on DVD as in Pixar's other movies. UP, to put it straight-forwardly, is a masterpiece, and if there are other movies this year that want to be as great, animated or not, they have a lot to live up to.
Rating: ***** out of 5.