| 10+Cautions: some slang, mild comical pain, some violence and intensity, a confused understanding of the afterlife, and mild ethical confusion
Up is a delightfully fun movie that bounces around in the little-explored frontier between cliché and off the wall, earning an almost instant classic status with its unusual and yet familiar characters, and its fresh and yet timeless plot. Barring some surprisingly intense scenes, Up is an excellent comedy for viewers of almost any age.
2009 | Pete Docter / Bob Peterson | 96 min Watch Trailer
Some Slang
Jiminy Cricket
Jiminy Cricket
Oh my gosh
golly
darn
darnedest
For the love of Pete
Mild Comical Pain
A little boy ends up with a broken arm from a brief incident that is portrayed somewhat humorously. A couple of other very minor hurts are portrayed as mildly comical. There is a short and somewhat off-topic joke about a squirrel that dies.
Some Violence and Intensity
The violence and intensity in Up ranges from animals being hurt to human deaths.
Two human characters die off screen in non-sensational but potentially emotionally-intense ways. Other, past human deaths are implied. A villain tries to kill the main characters, once with various weapons, from swords to shotguns, and one of the main characters nearly falls to his death.
Some mildly intense scenes involve a wind and lightning storm with flying debris, and a brief scene of the main character’s house being set on fire. At the beginning of the movie, the main character strikes an innocent man with his cane, and is frightened at his own action.
There are several scenes with a large pack of dogs threatening the main characters, including some chase scenes. A friendly animal is bitten by one of the dogs, and some blood is shown.
Confused Understanding of the Afterlife
After the main character’s wife dies, he begins talking to her occasionally, looking generally up. As the movie goes on, he begins addressing the house almost interchangeably with his wife, until the ending, where it is implied that he has finally let go of his wife’s imaginary influence. The afterlife, and the fate of the wife’s soul, is never brought up.
Mild Ethical Confusion
The main character, Carl, lies to other characters near the beginning of the movie, though this is not necessarily portrayed positively, because the main character is not especially likable until later in the story. In a similar way, Carl’s disrespectful words and actions toward annoying side characters, and the anecdote about his having poured prune juice into one of their gas tanks, are not necessarily positively portrayed.
As a little girl, Carl’s wife Ellie climbs into his window to visit him (presumably without his or her parents’ knowledge). She brazenly admits to having ripped a page out of a library book.
There is a very mild disapproval of capturing wild animals, though the reason given is that the animal has to take care of its babies.
Note:
The main character places some emphasis on crossing his heart to solemnize a promise.
Some people may find the personality of the main character’s wife (as a little girl) a bit bold for their personal ideal of girlhood.
There is a brief, mild bathroom joke.
Wine is poured for characters, but they never drink it.
In the end credits, the main characters are seen outside a theater that is playing Star Wars.
