November 13, 2009 in Features

Pixar reaches new heights with the touching, funny ‘Up’

Washington Post
 
Disney/Pixar Films photo

Animated characters Russell, left, and Carl Fredricksen are shown in a scene from the film “Up.” Disney/Pixar Films
(Full-size photo)

Coming up

Among upcoming DVD releases (schedule subject to change):

Tuesday: “Bruno,” “My Sister’s Keeper,” “The Open Road”

Nov. 24: “Angels & Demons,” “Four Christmases,” “Funny People,” “Shorts”

Dec. 1: “Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian,” “Paper Heart”

Dec. 8: “The Cove,” “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince,” “Julie & Julia,” “Public Enemies”

‘Up’

Pixar’s first foray into 3-D animation is a soaring, touching, funny and altogether buoyant movie that lives up to its title in spirit and in form.

Ed Asner provides the voice behind Carl Fredricksen, a boxily built curmudgeon who decides to fly his house to South America by way of a bunch of balloons. Newcomer Jordan Nagai voices the young scout Russell, who comes along for the ride, to Carl’s initial consternation and eventual comfort.

Among “Up’s” myriad pleasures is watching this inter-generational friendship bloom, at a time when pop culture seems to be dominated by self-absorbed tweens.

Adults will appreciate the finer things in “Up,” including a sublime prologue limning the hopes and heartbreaks of Carl’s life, a passage worthy of Chaplin in its heartbreaking poignancy. (1:38; PG for peril and action)

‘The Ugly Truth’

At a floundering California TV station, Abby (Katherine Heigl) can’t seem to keep her Nielsen ratings or her dating life steady. Then the station picks up a relationship advice spot hosted by the rakish, unshaven, semi-offensive Mike (Gerard Butler).

Mike uses dirty words on air, Abby hates Mike; Mike doesn’t believe in love, Abby doesn’t believe in lust; unlikely friendship (and something more?) ensues.

The script has an off-kilter quality that makes it more impressive than its fluffier cousins. One senses a gleefully dark, ironic sensibility lurking in the minds of the film’s three female screenwriters. (1:41; R for sexual content and language)

‘Enlighten Up’

Filmmaker Kate Churchill’s idea for a documentary – following a yoga newbie as he immerses himself in the discipline’s physical and spiritual culture for six months – sounds great on paper.

And her gamely agreeable guinea pig, 29-year-old former journalist Nick Rosen, is honest about his skepticism. As a movie, however, it doesn’t really go anywhere.

The climax of the movie eventually comes at the feet of the Guru of the Blissful Refuge. With his beatific smile, he opines that where Nick is at, doubts and all, is just fine. Which is an insight that Nick – and very likely most of his audience – already has. (1:22; not rated, contains a brief obscenity or two and sexual references)

Also available: “The Accidental Husband,” “Justice League: The Complete Series,” “Monsters, Inc: Four-Disc Edition,” “Pray the Devil Back to Hell,” “Sesame Street: 40 Years of Sunny Days,” “Spread,” “Three Stooges Collection, Vol. 7”

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