Up (Superset) (2 Blu-ray discs + DVD + Digital Copy) Blu-ray

Milo Wakelin says that Pixar's uplifting adventure, which opened the Cannes Film Festival, was easily one of the best films of 2009.

In 2009, Up became the first ever animated film to be chosen to open the Cannes Film Festival, confirming Pixar Animation Studios' status as a serious creative force in contemporary cinema. However, many pundits wondered aloud whether this tale of an irascible septuagenarian and a plump 8-year old boy scout might be a little too offbeat for its own good. Would audiences really warm to a 78 year-old protagonist with a hearing aid and a walking stick?
 
Thankfully, Up is Pixar's most involving film to date, with an emotional reach that will coax smiles - and tears - from viewers of any age. From a wordless opening montage, which carries the audience through the highs and lows of a 60 year marriage, to exhilarating scenes of airborne spectacle that recall the best of Hayao Miyazaki, this warm, uplifting adventure is easily one of the best films of 2009.
 
Following the death of his wife, Carl Fredricksen (voiced by veteran actor Ed Asner) is left childless and alone, his quiet routine interrupted only by an overeager boy scout, Russell - who is trying to win an "assisting the elderly" badge - and builders who see his beloved home as little more than unused real estate.
 
Determined to fulfill his wife's lifelong dream of visiting South America, Carl hitches thousands of balloons to his house and floats away to freedom - only it turns out Russell has hitched along for the ride. The rest of the story is part Jules Verne, part Arthur Conan Doyle (and with a little bit of Clint Eastwood's Gran Torino (2008) thrown in for good measure) - and it's far too good to spoil here.
 
Pixar's mastery of storytelling and film-making does not stem from the singular brilliance of an auteur, but through sheer painstaking craftsmanship, and here the storyline and characterisations have been honed with the same attention to detail as the beautifully nuanced animation.
 
With a lineage of hits dating back to Toy Story (1995) and with recent Oscar-winners including Ratatouille (2007) and Wall-E (2008), Pixar's output has gone from strength to strength. Up continues this tradition; it's a perfect example of how CGI animation can be used not as an end in itself, but as a means to explore and expand the possibilities of the art of film-making.

Milo Wakelin on 27th January 2010
Author of 103 reviews