"Up"

We went to see the midnight showing of "Up" last night. Oddly, there wasn't a Pixar short with our showing, though I had heard that "Partly Cloudy" would be running with "Up". I don't know if it wasn't shown because it was the midnight showing, or if our theater just isn't showing it, or what. I'm anxious to see if it is showing other places, though, since we usually enjoy the Pixar shorts.


I had heard a few reviews of "Up" and knew the basic plot, but had avoided actual spoilers. Having heard the basic premise of the movie, I knew to expect a few sad parts. I didn't expect it to be as sad as it turned out to be. I spent a large part of the movie trying not to cry. It was horribly sad! It might not bother everyone as much as it bothered me, but the movie hits on two of the things that I find saddest. . .

Spoiler the fact that time slips away so quickly and the loss of a much loved spouse, both of which I find heartbreaking. Spoiler

But there were lots of funny bits as well, and overall the movie left me feeling happy. We were smiling and laughing when we were walking out to the car afterward - I didn't wander out sobbing or anything - but thinking about some parts of the movie are still making me a little bit teary today.

The movie was really beautiful. It was presented in 3D, and I wasn't sure at first if that was going to be a good thing. I always love the look of Pixar movies and I worried that the 3D would take away from the visuals. It didn't seem at all gimmicky, though, and added to the look of the film rather than being distracting. And it was very well done - often I spend most of a movie adjusting my 3D glasses or getting a headache from the 3D, but I actually forgot I was wearing the glasses during "Up". The 3D effects were realistic looking but still subtle enough that I didn't just focus on that aspect of the movie as I sometimes do with 3D films.


The 2 main characters were much more likable than I expected from the previews. I especially liked Carl and had not expected to at all - I somehow thought that he was just going to be a stereotypical grumpy old man, but he was much better than that. Dug and Kevin were wonderful, too, and the fact that they were so funny helped to counteract all the sad parts. None of the characters were quite what I expected before seeing the movie, but after seeing it I wouldn't change any of them.


And of course as with most Pixar movies, there were cute details throughout the movie and during the credits. In the credits, some of the badges are quite unusual, to say the least!


I will certainly buy "Up" when it comes out on Blu-ray, and will probably see it once more while it is still in theaters. It was a great movie! Just be warned that if you are the overly emotional, "mushy" type like me, you should plan to bring lots of tissues with you.