The Unfiltered Ramblings of a DVR Addict

I’m not one to get excited about Pixar’s movies.  Which is strange, because I’ve seen them all and I loved each and every one.  Such was the case with Pixar’s newest release Up.  Al that being said, I have to say that UP might have been my favorite movie to come from Pixar yet.

When I was offered the chance to review the Blu-Ray release of Up I jumped at the chance.  Not only was the movie great, Pixar’s DVD releases are unrivaled as far as DVD releases go.  The Blu-Ray edition of UP includes 4-discs.  The first two disc include the movie and TONS of extras that really are worth something.  The second two discs are the DVD copy of the movie and the digital copy respectively.

Of course this movie looks and sounds great on Blu-Ray as you would expect.  It was all the extras that were included that really blew me away.  So often the extras included on a DVD are never worth watching.  This isn’t the case here.  The two shorts included, “Doug’s Special Mission” and “Partly Cloudy” were both good enough to pay for.  Doug was one of my favorite characters from UP, so it was really nice to see the short film with him as the star.

Another one of my favorites are the eight new documentary shorts that go into the creation of the movie.  Each one deals with a different character or aspect of the film.  Great stuff that really allows you to see behind the scenes at Pixar and exactly what goes into their movie making process.  I know a lot of people want a new Pixar movie every year, but when you see just how much goes into the making of these movies, it’s suprising that they release a film as often as they do.

If you are fan of animation or Pixar, Up is a must own.

Here are some fun facts about Up, for your reading pleaseure:

Fun Facts

• During the production of Up, the Animation Department produced an average of 4 seconds of animation a week.

• Paradise Falls is based on the world-famous Angel Falls in Venezuela. Up’s version is 1.8 miles tall or 9,700 ft., which is almost three times higher than Angel falls which stands at 3212 ft.

• To walk from the location where Carl and Russell first arrive on the tepui to the top of Paradise Falls would require a 14.5 mile trek. It’s about 6.75 miles across to the nearest tepui when they look out across the landscape.

• Pixar had a group of live ostriches come to the studio for reference for Kevin. The ostriches belonged to veterinarian Dr. James Stewart. The Art Department took a field trip to his farm where he also kept zebras.

• There are 10,297 balloons lifting Carl’s house.

• Pixar consulted with an architect to learn about home foundations to make the lift off of Carl’s house more believable.

• All of the crowd dogs were actually a single dog based on Beta, tweaked around in shape and groom to look like a pack of 50.

• The Spirit of Adventure is a dirigible, a rigid airship, and not a blimp, which has no rigid frame. It is much larger than any dirigible ever built.

• The Spirit of Adventure is 3,061 ft. long, which is 3.8 times longer than the Hindenburg.

• The knots connecting Russell’s rope between the garden hose and his backpack on the tether are real usable knots.  There is a rolling hitch used to secure the rope to the garden hose, and three-half-hitches connecting the rope to the carabineer on his backpack. Both of these knots would have been something that Russell learned as a Wilderness Explorer.

The #1 Animated Film of the Year!
From the Creators of Finding Nemo and Monsters, Inc.
Comes the Hilarious and Unforgettable Adventure

Disney•Pixar’s
Up

Coming to Blu-Ray™ Hi-Def and DVD with Disneyfile Digital Copy on
November 10, 2009

Burbank, California, August 10, 2009 — An exhilarating, hilarious and heartfelt animated
adventure comes home when Disney•Pixar’s Up arrives on Blu-ray™ Hi-Def and DVD on
November 10, 2009 from Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment.  Blending inspired
whimsy with powerful emotion, the hugely successful feature film is an artistic and
entertaining tour de force for the entire family. Up is available in a four-disc Blu-ray
Combo Pack, and a two-disc DVD, which both include DisneyFile, a digital copy of the
movie that can be viewed on an array of electronic devices, as well as enough bonus
features that keep the fun coming.

Academy Award®-nominee Pete Docter (2008, Best Original Screenplay, WALL•E; 2001,
Best Animated Feature Film, Monsters, Inc.) directs one of the funniest fantasy-
adventures of all time featuring a gifted voice cast that includes Ed Asner (Elf),
Christopher Plummer (Inside Man), Up co-director and writer Bob Peterson (Monsters,
Inc.), Delroy Lindo (This Christmas) and John Ratzenberger (who has lent his voice to
every Disney•Pixar feature film).

Up is the tenth in an unprecedented streak of critical and box office triumphs for
Disney•Pixar that includes four Academy Award® winners for Best Animated Feature—
WALL•E (2008), Ratatouille (2007), The Incredibles (2004) and Finding Nemo (2003)—
as well as Cars, Monsters, Inc., Toy Story 2, A Bug’s Life and Toy Story. Up joined each
of its predecessors in ranking #1 at the box office on its opening weekend.

BONUS FEATURES FOR UP
• Commentary by director Pete Docter and co-director Bob Peterson.
• Dug’s Special Mission – An all new original short film that follows the
misadventures of Dug as he attempts to complete his “special mission.” The
short is directed by Up Story Supervisor, Ronnie Del Carmen.
• The Many Endings of Muntz – Many ideas were hatched about how to dispose
of the film’s arch villain, Muntz, and now viewers can see the many alternate
endings proposed during story development.
• Partly Cloudy –The hilarious short film that preceded screenings of Up.
Everyone knows that the stork delivers babies, but where do the storks get the
babies? The answer lies up in the stratosphere where the cloud Gus is a master
at creating “dangerous” babies, which prove to be more than a handful for his
loval delivery stork Peck. Directed by Pixar story artist, animator and voice actor
Peter Sohn.
• Adventure is Out There – This action-packed documentary tells the story of the
filmmakers’ own trek to the tepuis mountains of South America to research the
design and story of the film.

And, only on Blu-ray Hi-Def, hours of features, and behind-the scenes bonus features,
including:
• Cine-Explore – A visual montage of concept art, clips and documentary
coverage that illustrates the directors’ commentary.
• Geriatric Hero – A character study of Carl, from research to realization including
art and design, rigging, animation and story. It focuses on the issues of aging,
“simplexity”, shape-language and compelling character arcs.
• Canine Companions – For anyone who ever wondered where CG puppies
come from, an introduction to the design, behavior and language of dogs.
• Russell: Wilderness Explorer – A character study of Russell from inspiration
and design to finding the character arc and authentic voice for this wilderness
ranger.
• Our Giant Flightless Friend, Kevin – Find out how avian research and
development at Pixar helped bring a mythical, 13-foot tall iridescent bird to life.

• Homemakers of Pixar – Carl and Ellie’s house is an important “character” in the
film. Fans follow the development of the house from story to art to its ultimate
realization in the computer.
• Balloons and Flight – Carl’s house and Muntz’s dirigible presented the
filmmakers with two different problems—how could they make a physical
impossibility possible? And, in the case of the dirigible, how would they unearth a
fallen giant and let it soar?
• Composing for Characters – Composer Michael Giacchino returns to score his
third Disney•Pixar feature film. See how the Up filmmakers collaborated with
Giacchino to create the memorable score and compelling musical themes.
• Married Life – The original story concept that became the powerful “Married Life”
scene, showing Carl and Ellie’s love story.
• Global Guardian Badge Game – Players try to locate countries, states and
capitals around the globe in a multi-layered BD-Exclusive geography game
enhanced by BD-Live.

Synopsis:
Walt Disney Pictures and Pixar Animation Studios take moviegoers up, up and away on
one of the funniest adventures of all time with their latest comedy-fantasy. Up follows the
uplifting tale of 78-year-old balloon salesman Carl Fredricksen, who finally fulfills his
lifelong dream of a great adventure when he ties thousands of balloons to his house and
flies away to the wilds of South America. But he discovers all too late that his biggest
nightmare has stowed away on the trip: an overly optimistic 8-year-old Wilderness
Explorer named Russell. Their journey to a lost world, where they encounter some
strange, exotic and surprising characters, is filled with hilarity, emotion and wildly
imaginative adventure.

Up has a suggested retail price of $39.99 SRP (US) or $44.99 SRP (Canada) for the 2-
Disc DVD, and $45.99 SRP (US) or $52.99 SRP (Canada) for the 4-Disc Blu-ray Combo
pack.  A 1-Disc DVD is also available at SRP $29.99 (US), $35.99 (Canada)

STREET DATE: 11/10
Direct prebook: 9/1
Distributor prebook: 9/15
Pricing: 2-Disc DVD:  $39.99, 4-Disc Combo: $45.99
Feature run time: 96 minutes
Rated: PG
Bonus Materials Not Rated in US
Technical specifications may only apply to feature.
Aspect ratio: DVD: Widescreen 16×9
Sound: SD: 5.1 Dolby Digital, BD: Dolby Digital EX 1080P
Languages: English, Canadian French, Spanish

Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment, a recognized leader in the home
entertainment industry, is the marketing, sales and distribution company for Walt Disney,
Touchstone, Hollywood Pictures, Miramax and Buena Vista product, which includes
DVD, Blu-ray Disc™ and electronic distribution. Walt Disney Studios Home
Entertainment is a division of The Walt Disney Studios.