Unless something went horribly wrong in that last half, having already seen the first 45 minutes of Pixar’s “Up,” it seemed incredibly apparent that the Pete Docter-directed animated picture was poised to be a winner.
Two trade reviews are in and it appears that Pixar has another slamdunk on their hands for tomorrow’s Cannes debut.
Variety suggests its almost perfect, “depending on what you think of ‘Cars,’ Pixar makes it either 9½ out of 10 or 10 for 10 with ‘Up,’ a captivating odd-couple adventure that becomes funnier and more exciting as it flies along.”
The Hollywood Reporter says the film is joyously buoyant and transcends any potential 3D gimmickry. “Winsome, touching and arguably the funniest Pixar effort ever, the gorgeously rendered, high-flying adventure is a tidy 90-minute distillation of all the signature touches that came before it.”
Two more reviews via the Carpetbagger. Emanuel Levy calls it “visually inventive, emotionally compelling.” Time’s Richard Corliss notes the film’s “deft comic underplaying and a style the Pixar people call simplexity.”
Both are essentially effusively glowing reviews. Due May 29 in theaters, it sounds like the animation studio has already knocked this one out of the park. We personally want to know how it stacks up against, “Wall-E,” a beautiful animated film, but perhaps not quite the chef d’oeuvre that some claimed it to be. The main voices in “Up” are Edward Asner (who was wonderful) Christopher Plummer and of course, like every Pixar film, John Ratzenberger.