Up, Up And Away!

Let me start by saying Pixar's latest animated film "UP" contains some of the most beautiful sequences I've seen in any movie this year.

An old man- Voiced by Ed Asner- decides to escape the big city by attaching balloons to his house and floating away to the South American paradise he and his late wife had aways dreamed about. But an overenthusiastic wilderness explorer in need of a merit badge inadvertantly hops along for the ride.

The first third of the film gives a perfectly executed snapshot of a life from boyhood to old age with true love, marriage, and then heartbreaking loss in between.
Its tender and sweet without being sappy, and as long at the film stays in the air, it soars to heights few films can match.

Once he actually gets to his destination though, I found the story got bogged down, and the plot went from exceptional to ordinary. A team of talking dogs with translators literally steals the show in the meantime.

That helps lighten the mood until UP gains altitude again for its thrilling conclusion.

"UP":B+