The Mayo News

Take a ride in this beautiful balloon


Cinema
Daniel Carey

THERE’S an episode of ‘Blackadder The Third’ where the eponymous character played by Rowan Atkinson rigs a parliamentary by-election. It’s not that difficult, since apart from the single voter, the population of the constituency he has targeted consists of three rather mangy cows, a dachshund named Colin, and a small hen in its late 40s.
There is no dachshund named Colin in ‘Up’, the new animated feature from Disney-Pixar. But there is a female bird named Kevin (yes, female), various talking dogs, a crazy explorer, a talkative boy scout and a 78-year-old who attaches thousands of balloons to his house in order to fly to South America. And it’s brilliant.
‘Up’ is the best animated picture to hit our screens since … well, certainly since the last Pixar efforts – ‘Wall-E’ and ‘Ratatouille’. For those who won’t get to see ‘Toy Story’ in 3-D, viewing what’s probably the movie of the year so far isn’t a bad consolation prize.
It tells the story of Carl Fredericksen (voiced by Ed Asner), who has dreamed since he was a child of emulating adventurer Charles Muntz (Christopher Plummer). He marries Ellie, who dreams of settling in a place called Paradise Falls in South America. Life gets in the way of their plans, however, and there’s a wonderful sequence where the story of their life together is told.
There are no words, just piano accompaniment, and the effect is by turns humorous and poignant. It’s the best part of the whole shebang – although it’s likely to strike a stronger chord with adults than children, whose patience may be tested, as it was during the largely silent first act in ‘Wall-E’.
Fast forward to the present day. Carl, now a grumpy widower, is fighting a losing battle against developers who want to tear down his house.
But he hasn’t given up on the dream, and heads for the hills, and above, with the help of some helium. The lift-off is a wonderful moment, destined to become iconic.
Carl is joined on his trip by Russell (Jordan Nagai), an eight-year-old wilderness explorer whose endless chatter prompts the older man to turn off his hearing aid.
When they touch down, they meet an exotic flightless bird and a bunch of talking dogs.
There are nice visual gags – a frog is inadvertently used as an alarm clock, and a bullying canine’s fortunes take a turn for the worse when he is forced to wear a ‘cone of shame’. But it’s not all comedy by any means. At no stage is style allowed to trump substance, and at the heart of ‘Up’ is the developing friendship between the boy and the old man.
Director Pete Docter (who co-wrote the screenplay with Bob Peterson) manages to combine moments of real pathos with great action. It’s an utterly original piece of work, while carrying faint echoes of ‘King Kong’ and (I kid you not) ‘Apocalypse Now’. The characters are well drawn, and even the fact that the dogs can talk English (to humans, not just amongst themselves) begins to make a kind of sense.
Many people got a sneak preview of ‘Up’ on National Grandparents’ Day on September 27, when children were invited to bring a grandparent to see the flick for free. Since I was working in Ballina that day, it would have been a bit much to ask my grandmother to make a two-and-a-half-hour round trip from Shrule. But now that it’s on general release, it’s definitely worth a look – no matter what age you are.

Rating 4 out of 5

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