Today I finally got around to seeing Up, the latest Disney/Pixar release.
I have to admit that I knew next to nothing about the flick prior to actually checking it out, except that: 1) It was Pixar, and therefore a “must see”, and… 2) …about two dozen people have called or e-mailed me telling me that Emily and I needed to see it.
Sometimes it’s sort of fun to go into a movie not at all knowing what to expect. This was one such occasion.
All it took was the first fifteen minutes actually. By then I was completely and utterly emotionally exhausted.
Without giving away the entire plot, there is about a five or eight minute segment there at the beginning that chronicles a lifelong relationship between a man and a woman (Carl and Ellie) as it should be.
Now if you’ve seen any Pixar production before, you are already well acquainted with their fanatical attention to detail. The rat-trap pizza delivery truck in Toy Story with “YO” on the tailgate comes to mind, as does Sally The Porsche’s insanely accurate low-RPM engine note in Cars. Only a 911’s legendary flat-six sounds like that. And as women go, she’s all 911.
And without giving too much away, let’s just say Pixar continued the tradition with great dignity in Up…particularly in that first segment.
It’s far from a comprehensive treatise on relationship management, or anything. But whoever wrote the screenplay and whoever animated it had clearly been in love before.
What’s more, they must have been in love and been in a healthy long-term relationship before.
Every little nuance jam-packed in that brief stretch of film is mind-blowing. It’s a rapid-fire animated depiction of how two people who genuinely love and respect each other live their lives together.
If you have any emotion in your soul whatsover, you are left breathless afterward. Emily was in tears, clutching my hand firmly as she sobbed. And if you know her, that’s not typically her style.
I’ll admit I was fighting back the water works myself. Pixar just flat-out gets it.
Simply put, any man who believes that spending one’s life with one great woman is for sissies might want to see this flick, unless he’s dead-set against changing his opinion. Then he needs to make it a point to skip it.
And furthermore, any wannabe PUA types out there who think the ultimate goal for their relationships with women is to notch their bedposts as many times as possible might want to avoid seeing Up also…lest they come face-to-face with what depth looks like in a long-term relationship.
But if you are in a relationship that matters to you–or aspire to–do yourself a favor and go see Up. Walk out after fifteen minutes for all I care. But see the beginning.
Now granted, if you’ve seen the movie Pixar indeed plays a dirty little trick on you over the course of the rest of the movie. At the beginning sequence you’re supposed to believe that something was actually missing from Carl and Ellie’s life together…and that the opportunity to fulfill on it was tragically taken.
Yes, I fell for it. I silently ruminated upon the fact that I’m glad that Emily and I have made it a point to go on “adventures” together, particularly insofar as traveling and seeing the world.
But at the end, Pixar takes the overall message to a whole new level by demonstrating that love in itself is the adventure. It’s what life is all about. And it’s not to be missed.
And neither is Up…if you think you’re man enough to handle it.
Be Good,
Scot McKay
Most depressing first 15 or so minutes of any movie I’ve ever seen….that aside: AMAZING!
Ah…but you see, I think the MORE depressing part would have been had they NOT had each other throughout their lives.
Pixar’s point was to show how partnership between a man and a woman makes life all the more worth living…all the more of an “adventure” in and of itself.
And all that holds even in the context of how short life really is.
I thought it was great. There really isn’t a better addition to a guy’s life than the right woman…assuming the guy is solid and has a strong foundation that can withstand a healthy long term relationship.
Nate, I think you’re right on. Both the man and the woman need to be one half of a great relationship.
The more I look at that pic of Ellie above, the more she starts looking like Hermie from “Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer”.
Thanks for this post, Scot. It made me finally go watch the damn thing…
Keep up the quality material my friend!
Alex