Upside Down

Plot synopsis:
The film starts with Adam telling the story of his two-planet home world, unique from other planets or planetary systems as it is the only one that has "dual gravity". This phenomenon of dual gravity allows the two planets to orbit each other in what would otherwise be impossibly close proximity. There are three immutable laws of gravity for this two-planet system:
All matter is pulled by the gravity of the world that it comes from, and not the other.
An object's weight can be offset using matter from the opposite world (inverse matter).
After a few hours of contact, matter in contact with inverse matter burns.
The societies of the two worlds are segregated by law. While the upper world (Up Top) is rich and prosperous, the lower (Down Below) is poor. Up Top buys cheap oil from Down Below and sells electricity back to Down Below at higher prices. A person from Down Below going Up Top (or having contact with anyone from Up Top) is strictly forbidden and can be punishable by incarceration or death. People from Up Top regularly visit Down Below to experience novelties like dancing on ceilings. The only physical connection linking the two worlds is the headquarters of the "TransWorld" company.
Adam lives in an orphanage in Down, having lost his parents in an oil refinery explosion. The only living relative he has is his great-aunt, whom he visits every week. His great-aunt has a secret recipe for flying pancakes using pollen from pink bees which gather pollen from both worlds. The recipe has passed through generations and will be inherited by Adam.
As a child, Adam secretly climbs a mountain that gets very close to Up. There he meets Eden, a girl from Up. Years later in their teens, they are in a relationship. They meet on the mountains and Adam uses a rope to pull Eden towards Down, and they head to the woods for a stroll. They are later discovered, and while Adam frantically releases Eden back to her world, he catches a bullet in his arm and drops her. Helpless, he watches Eden lying motionless on the ground as blood oozes from her head. When he returns home, his aunt Becky is arrested and her home is put to the torch.
Ten years later, Adam is now working on creating an anti-gravity product using his great-aunt's recipe. The recipe allows matter to feel both gravitational fields at once. Adam is developing it as a cosmetic product for face-lifts. Then he sees Eden on TV and learns she is alive and works at TransWorld. He finally works out his formula and gets hired by TransWorld to develop the face-lift cream. Adam's plan is to find Eden in TransWorld. In his office he meets Bob, a TransWorld employee from Up who becomes his friend after he helps him obtain rare stamps from Down. Bob offers to help him contact Eden.
With the help of Bob, Adam meets Eden by putting Up-material in his clothes to disguise himself as a worker from Up, using Bob's name as his own. But Eden doesn't recognize him because of amnesia from the accident as a teen. The Up-material in Adam's clothes starts to burn so he has to return to Down. Later on, Bob is fired but as he leaves, he secretly gives Adam his ID to help him exit the TransWorld building and into Up. Later, by calling Eden through Bob's phone, Adam manages to get a date.
Meanwhile, his cosmetic cream becomes of great importance to the company. While Adam is doing a presentation of the cream, Eden enters the lecture hall and discovers his true identity. After she flees the auditorium Adam runs to find her but Bob's ID, having been terminated, lands him in trouble. He escapes to Bob's house. He shows him that mixing liquids from both gravity fields can make a hybrid solution that resists both gravitational fields and simply floats between the two. Adam then reveals that he didn't give TransWorld the main secret ingredient of his compound, leaving the company unable to manufacture the product without him.
With Bob's help, he goes back to the restaurant where he met with Eden before and finds out she has begun to recover old memories of him. But the police arrive and he has to run. Upon returning to his planet he goes to the mountain top where he met Eden. Eden comes to find him and they meet again as they did long ago. But police are on their trail and, as they fail to escape, Eden is arrested while Adam falls the remaining distance between worlds. But he survives because of a vest containing inverse matter which he still had strapped to his torso. TransWorld agrees to drop the charges against Eden if Adam gives them his formula and never contacts Eden again.
Now Adam has gone back to his old life, believing he will never see Eden again. But Eden, not so easily dissuaded, goes to Bob for help. Bob finds Adam and surprises him by showing he can stay Down without the help of the opposite-matter accoutrements; Bob has been able to use Adam's methods to create a way to negate the effect of gravity. Bob tells him he had purchased the patent of his beauty cream before TransWorld attempted to do so. He finishes by informing him that Adam also has a "date" with someone.
The film ends with Eden revealing she has become pregnant with twins, and the camera zooms far out to reveal towering skyscrapers on both sides, showing that both sides have become prosperous, as well as children from both sides interacting by playing basketball.

Tags: romantic

Review:
Since it's main point of drama was in the romance and even THAT was awfully put together, all in all, it was flop.However, it was an okay watch and again, the visuals of such a disorientating world totally threw me off whack.
For the next ten minutes after the movie, I felt like things should be floating upward and I should be upside down...it was weird but showed that I actually did get immersed into the world.My recommendation?
Of course, with fantasy films like this that operate within its own set of rules, you usually have to ignore the implausibilities and just go along for the ride.However, the story is a whole different matter.
With the film's over-reliance on narration, "Upside Down" leaves little time for its characters to develop which consequently makes the story as a whole feel contrived.For example, the love interest that grows between the film's two main characters comes out of nowhere.
Furthermore, the film lacks any real climax, so the last 20 minutes where everything should build up to a resounding resolution, instead, just fizzles out to an anti-climatic, deus-ex-machina-like ending as if the story didn't know how else to end."Upside Down" has a great idea that should have been a lot better than it ended up being.
The film's setting is magnificently beautiful, there are a lot of stunning ideas and images and the main story is good enough to make the two-planet world look real.
It would still be worth watching if you're one of those people who doesn't care about the story even if its flaws are inevitable, but it still deserves something better.Upside Down is visually breathtaking but it didn't go beyond that.
This film is a love story set in a world where there are two worlds separated by different gravities.On the surface, "Upside Down" is about a man from down below falling in love with a woman from the world above.
Were it not a visual masterpiece, I would have turned off the film within the first minute.Upside Down also veers into Candyland many times where things get so sticky schmaltzy sweet that I had to fast-forward to avoid having to inject insulin.
A lot of time and effort is sunk into explaining this concept, which seems like wasted effort because not only is it mostly self- evident, but the finer laws (like the idea that matter from one world bursts into flames after an hour on the other) are often broken without consequence as the plot gradually develops.
Of course, Adam, the poor orphan kid from Down Below that seems to come straight out of a Dickens' novel, meets Eden, the posh girl from Up Top. Just looking at the two characters' names, you realize that there is still a lot of work to do before Science-Fiction finds scriptwriters worthy of it.
This movie is a plagiarism of the award-winning short of similar story except it adds on tons of ridiculous cheese elements and found two good looking actors for the main character.
It doesn't explain itself from a physic stand point and it doesn't feel romantic because it is simply too long to play the cute idea card - besides because the movie really only use the idea as a plot, not the center piece (which in the short it is a metaphor of relationships - that often bounds two very different persons together), and since the world is so big, too much distractions are involved, questions and conflicts become about life and death, instead of cute and romantic - the drama is too intense, and makes no sense.
Furthermore, Jim Sturgess and Kirsten Dunst both give excellent performances as the star crossed lovers, never letting the in addition to a lovely turn from Timothy Spall.
The plot makes no sense and if you are more than 5 years old, knows that planets aren't flat and that to have a sunrise/sunset they need to rotate in some way then this movie is definitely not for you.
I consider myself pretty tolerant to the artistic expression, reasonably open minded and full of good will toward movies that try to be something different and approach well exploited story lines from different angles.In this case, "Upside Down" seemed like a very interesting piece, presenting the concept, of two planets orbiting like siblings, in their direct vicinity.
You can come up with any idea and actually sell it to the viewers, providing, that you put enough work into it to make it plausible and logical.In this case, "Upside Down" script writers decided they don't need anything else than the initial concept of two worlds being opposite to each other.
Even though, it is impossible even to think about two planets not colliding with some magnificent support of gravity, I truly enjoyed the concept.Now, the story is kinda weak but it appeals and aptly complements the concept of Upside nwoD.Jim is extraordinarily charming, Kirsten is okay but sweet and Timothy's character is very adorable.
Upside Down is nothing more than Gattaca meets Romeo & Juliet with unforgivably bad special effects.Of course the film, because the screenplay is original, didn't stand a chance to be brought to life by a studio with their endless resources, so being a high-concept sci-fi, it's going to lack great special effects.
At the end of the day, this type of things makes you think about the whole world and the universe, even in the love, this is the what movies are all about, leaving people think at the end of the movie, the other people that think a waste of time and money, I think they are crazy....
This is a movie you definitely have to see on a big screen to appreciate the outstanding images of that world.Overall, if you are tired from all violence and action and want something original with some nice romance (thank God they didn't overdone with the romance), you have to see "Upside Down" 2012..
I can not say that the film is completely lived up to my expectations.Think of all the visuals will love movies, because each frame is similar to an independent picture, and it is no exaggeration and sarcasm.
Its hard to not love this film when the visuals do such a great job making up for the holes in the story.
This is one movie that was completely fresh and unique, sure the love story has been done hundreds of times but the setting in which they do it is the first time I've seen anything like that.
I won't tho because the scifi concept and visuals were used to just the right effect.So whilst i knew i was watching a romantic film, i still got sucked in and whilst i will agree with the previous review that the dialog isn't 120%, to me it really didn't matter as the 'mix' of music, dialog, story and effects were almost spot on.If you're more of a scifi fan than a romantic fan then this will pull the two worlds closer together.
Overall taking out the visuals, you just end up with a poor boy meets rich girl love story, and that has been told at least a thousand times over..
If one moment before - during the short Adam's monologue when he said he want to do the best he can in his world - I was starting to believe foreseeing sort of metaphorical meaning of the movie, this impression vanished immediately when Eden make her announce...
The story, however, we have seen a thousand times.The only difference with this take is that Kirstan Dunst and Jim Sturgess struggled to make the love story feel real - even though the CGI and effects team worked their hardest to seamlessly blend the cinematography into something believable.Perhaps it was the writing, or the actors themselves, but without the human element the love -> lost -> love story just seemed to go through the motions and I didn't feel any emotional attachment to either character, nor really cared about what happened at the end.
I even found myself skipping fast forward through some of the scenes, as my interest was waning.So in summary, the special effects and unique world wasn't enough to make this movie shine, the story is nothing you haven't seen before and the actors struggled to show any real connection to the audience..
And Jim Sturgess plays the love swept dreamer equally wellI just think it's refreshing to see a film go back to the roots of story telling, so we can all just relax and enjoy a great movie that leaves some welcome room for our own imaginations.
And conveniences are what Solanas enjoyed most in his film when he discovered he'd soon be found out, that the logic he placed didn't become the opportunity for a special tale to be told, but an albatross around the neck.Jim Sturgess plays Adam, the man from Down who falls in love with Kirsten Dunst's Eden from Up, whom he met when they were young kids atop their respective mountain peaks, and breaking multiple rules just to hang out together.
The special effects will set to wow, especially when it remembers that Adam has a specific career requirement in the development of an anti-ageing cream, with a key ingredient that will be crucial to the plot.Jim Sturgess and Kristen Dunst didn't need too much time to make it believable that they could be lovers separated by distance and social standing.
But Solanas' handling of the story, and film, left too many gaping narrative gaps that would short change the audience, especially its ending when the director felt that pulling the plug on a tale he has no idea how to finish, would be the best move.
But his main reason for being there is to reconnect with the woman he loves (and don't think the two characters don't wind up living up to their allegorical names in the end).Written and directed by Juan Solanis, the French/Canadian "Upside Down" is one of those rare science fiction films that actually expands the limits of one's imagination.
And even amidst all the dystopic "Brave New World"/"1984"/"Fahrenhiet 451" - style tropes and trappings, Solanis has managed to create one of the most thoroughly captivating love stories we've encountered in quite some time.A movie not to be missed, and, when once seen, never to be forgotten!.
Maybe I missed something in the cheesy, over dramatic narrations.At any rate, if you're in to overly cheesy, mushy, sentimental love stories then you'd probably like this movie.
In all honesty i think the main reason why I enjoyed the movie so much was mainly because of how much I fell in love with the visuals and the concept and how it could've been better.
'UPSIDE DOWN': Four Stars (Out of Five)A French-Canadian romantic fantasy film about a world where two planets exist directly over top of each other, each with it's own separate gravity and inverted life.
The film is sort of a 'Romeo and Juliet' style love tale with Jim Sturgess and Kirsten Dunst playing star-crossed lovers, each from a different planet, who met as kids high atop their planet's mountains.
The movie is a bit of a mess and doesn't come to a satisfying conclusion but it's definitely worth the watch for romance and visual effects fans.The science of the movie makes no realistic sense at all, which is why it's better classified as a fantasy film than science fiction.
This doesn't stop our hero, Adam (Sturgess), from using inverse matter to venture over to the other world in an effort to find his lost love, Eden (Dunst), after being separated from her for over ten years.
I would say after watching this movie, i can definitely say it's got to be one of the best romantic fantasy films i have ever seen.
The director/writer Juan Solanas has done such a great job telling a whole narrative in standard movie time, where every character gets to play just the right amount of time it needs to complete the story.
They meet and fall in love across the great divide, and herein lies our story of forbidden love.The science fiction aspect is a little iffy since there are scientifically impossible problems with gravity situation as it is explained in this film.
It was nice to finally see Timothy Spall out of his Pete Pettigrew make-up (in the Harry Potter films) in his featured role as Adam's friend Bob. I think this is simply a nice little romantic movie that was tried ts best to imagine and create an original setting.
This movie makes into my list of evergreen movies, i have seen it 5 to 6 times.Ten cheers for the director, Simple concepts written in totally different way like rich & poor are upside and down below, The Graphics are Visually Stunning best of all this the reason i can enjoy watching this movie again and againDo watch this movie especially with your partner, because the movie is dam romantic and will really make you feel it.Very few movies are as good as this.I would give this movie 10 on 10.
As teenagers the poor Adam (Jim Sturgess) fell in love with the rich Eden (Kirsten Dunst) even though they are on opposite sides.
The visuals in the film are incredibly striking and just take a look at the work place and how the two sides (the rich on top, the poor on bottom) are perfectly used and the way Solanas uses this to tell the story is perfectly handled.
It just takes way too long for this thing to really warm up and often times you're wanting to know more about the two different cities and you really don't care about the love story.
A Visual Spectacular and Imaginative Sci Fi Love Story.
Unlike an older version of super-powered Superman or the Spiderman II love encounters or even the visually ground-breaking and more action-thrilled Avatar ( 2009), towards the end of Upside Side there is a romance scene that is so naturally provocative, perhaps one of the best scenes that captured the real beauty of the unique photographic magical essence of movie-making as an art medium.
Ultimately, that's where things finish.What we end up with is a pretty bog standard Romeo and Juliet-style story of forbidden love, albeit one told in a rather unique setting.So, enjoy the visuals and some solid acting, but that's really all the film has going for it.
But it is set with a very original idea and has incredibly beautiful visuals which make one enjoy the movie from the beginning until the end.
I just took it as a fantasy world where rules don't matter and enjoyed it all the way.Acting is not the main part of the movie but all actors do a great job.
I especially liked Timothy Spall in his supporting role of a guy from the upper world helping the two lovers to connect.Guess it was one of the movies people either love or hate.
but this movie did a good job at pulling you into the fantasy world of Adam and Eden.
an admirable movie for the grace of telling the story, for the precise details, for the flavor of fairy tale, for the sensibility who has in Jim Sturgess the perfect actor , for the differences between Up and Down, for memories about other films, for the hope.
Talented cast in Jim Sturgess and Kirsten Dunst who do their best here too but I still found the Romeo and Juliet-esqe romance lacking and the story itself kind of dull once the visual gimmick of opposite gravity wore off.The film sees Jim Sturgess as Adam, a man from an impoverished planet who falls in love as a teenager with Eden (Kirsten Dunst).
After being separated by interplanetary-border patrol agents Sturgess risks everything to reunite with his love, taking a job at a vast corporation whose towering headquarters connect their planets.I can see though how some people will think this movie is absolutely brilliant or life changing like Brad Pitt's weird (Tree Of Life) or that Hugh Jackman thingy (The Fountain) but it didn't work for me that way.The visuals are gorgeous and unique though and I also enjoyed Timothy Spall 12/1/15.
at its simplest, its a simplistic movie with beautiful 3D up-down set pieces and starring Hot Kirsten Dunst(tm) and Wormtailits baffling to me that people would want to argue that the scientific aspects are not consistent...the consistent part is that its a classic love story, and everything is tailored to that end...some of the visual aspects are quite memorable as wellyou might say that some of the scenes with up-and-down at the same time are unrealistic but hey, its a movie :-)in conclusion, i feel this is well worth a watch, at least for those that convey a reasonable suspension of disbelief lol...check it out :-).
The explanation of this world needed to be much clearer.The love story between Kirsten Dunst and Jim Sturgess is sweet, she is from above who met him, the boy from below when they were children.
Follow along the same line of thought when watching this movie, and I think you'll find it to be a weird but sweet fantasy of a love story; visually wondrous, and something you could watch with children, too (I would have ADORED this movie, as a kid), though maybe not children who are very, very young.I would suggest throwing the rules of 'our world' out completely, here.
Upside Down is a romance between two people of opposite worlds in a imaginative setting.The good.
I was excited to watch it.Very well produced SciFi. This is one movie that was completely fresh and unique, sure the love story has been done hundreds of times but the setting in which they do it is the first time I've seen anything like that.If you're more of a scifi fan than a romantic fan then this will pull the two worlds closer together.Saw This Movie and made your life upside down for a couple hours ..