Pixar keeps defying the odds by coming up with animated movies that continue to be imaginative and a treat to view. This year's entry, Up, is the next in line that delivers that special something for kids and adults, alike. This weekend, while we were in the desert, I took the kids to the local theatre that was running this in Disney 3D. And since I'm getting older by the minute, I found myself relating more and more to this year's creation and its protagonist. L.A. Times movie critic Kenneth Turan says it best:"... 'Up' also generates genuine emotion and it does so by dealing unapologetically with one of Hollywood's last and most persistent taboos, old people. Instead of a Clint Eastwood-type senior citizen who is fitter than people half his age, "Up" gives us a man who uses a walker and can't handle stairs but still manages to be heroic when it counts."
What it also does, simply and poignantly, is examine the gauntlet that the old [male] must run through. And that is, regret. Even though it may based on love and emotion, this is what our hero (and widower) Carl Fredricksen (voiced wonderfully by Ed Asner) must get past in this tale--and what the villain, Charles F. Muntz (a silky voiced Christopher Plummer) cannot. Add to this what Pixar has mastered, and what Dreamworks Animation is finally catching on to, the dialog-free montage sequence. This year's model adds another great one to Pixar's pantheon that is a haunting treasure (yes, I'm an old softy, crust and all). And lastly, if you're been owned by a dog (or have cared for one at any time), you'll recognize their traits captured so lovingly with the canine supporting cast of this story. I highly recommend (because I refuse to use the obvious pun here).
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