The format for the Oscars Best Film has changed a bit this year - it's now TEN films nominated rather than the usual 5. Which means the decision is going to be even more difficult in the Oscars Fest is going to be even more tricky.
The curliest of all those contenders thrown in is Up. Not just nominated for Best Animation, but also 'up' (teehee) for Best Film. Wow. Has to be a pretty awesome film in its own right, right?
What with the insanity of this last twelvemonth - both in a good/fun and and manic/work kind of way - I missed Up at the cinema. Lucky Sparky has such a similarly avid addiction to DVDs as I do, so his collection has come to the rescue.
The English Teacher in me screams "BELONGING TEXT!!!!". It begins with the love story of Carl Frederickson meeting his childhood sweetheart, and later wife Ellie. Their childish obsession with adventure and exploring unites them immediately, and keeps them together throught the duldrums of suburban life until her death. And that is all in 15 minutes.
Retired baloon-seller Carl is alone and eldery, and disconnected from the escalating skyrises around him, and he's feeling the pressure to shut himself into a retirement home to make way for the urban sprawl. He hatches a plan to use his house as a blimp to sail to South America - powered by helium baloons.
He reluctantly collects a band of followers - a boy-scout named Russell who happened to be on the porch of the elevating house, and who is lacking a father figure in his life. They also find Kevin, an exotic local bird and Dug, a hunting dog empowered with speech.
I would hope that my Year 12 boys could see the messages of Belonging in there - That Our Relationships and Friendships Are More Valuable Than Our Possessions. That Finding A Sense of Belonging Gives A Sense of Purpose & Identity. That The Places And People We Feel We Belong To Are Not Always The Only Choices We Have. But I am not holding my breath. Hopefully they will get there by November...
It is a brilliant animation. And a very good film. But it isn't going to get my pick in the Oscars Fest.
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