Up: This Time, Pixar Has Gone Too Far

Um . . . Is there a definition of that I don't know about? Hardly fits the likes of Mr. Cricket and Pollyanna.

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Seriously, why the fucked up rant? They make movies, not social commentary. Why the rant? Get fired from the company or something? Oh, and your use of definitions is wrong.

Pixar makes great movies, unloke most of the bullshit coming out of Hollywood.

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If you're looking for serious treatments of social issues and mature filmmaking, I'd suggest NOT going to see films marketed for 8 year olds. These are kids' movies - did you somehow miss that?

And 'Disney's cheesy style' has been popular among kids of all ages for years, so no wonder Pixar is trying to emulate it. More power to them - we need more films I can take my grandchildren to without having to worry about what they're going to see and hear. You come off as incredibly elitist and snobby.

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Really, I expected to find an actual REASON to hate Pixar in the article, considering the title, some kind of social reason or political reason, but no. Nothing at all. Nothing to be upset about at all. Just a movie.

If not for the arrogant, stuck-up attitude of the author, who is obviously "above" Pixar movies, this article would fit perfectly on the front page of Yahoo, with all the other useless drivel.

I can't believe I actually wasted time on a 'progressive' political site reading this trash.

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It was fun.
It was colorful.
It had adventure, excitement, passion.
Sure it was unbelievable---sorta like Dumbo!

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Please, I don't know how this stuff really gets printed but surely somebody is responsible!

Pixar is probably the one light in the entire black hole of decent movie makers. They've been able to transverse age limits and transform the character stigmas. The technology offers limitless possibilities, thankfully Pixar has used it for the good.

Leave them the hell alone!

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I'd hate to find out what you think of "Toy Story" 1 & 2, or "Finding Nemo" or "Ratatouille". Wonderful movies, all of them. What do you expect from a company that makes family films? How about "The Green River Killer Meets Bambi" or "Toy Story 3: Woody Goes Postal"? Would that make you happy? Sheesh.

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and so did my wife and my daughter and my neighbors and every halfway hip intelligent person I know who actually saw UP. Lugubrious is exactly right!!!! And yes, the 3-D detracted from some pretty nice artistry now and again. Especially by muting colors. And yes, this film should NOT NOT NOT ace out Coralline, but probably, disgustingly, will.

And finally, yes about Wall E. The lugubrious sentimentalism around the robots detracted from the terrific parody once we got to the space ship.

Great writing. Put me on your list or tell me how to access your other stuff.

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Wow, Pixar doesn't make movies about waterboarding and war. What is your gripe about happiness anyway? What do you find uplifting? Kicking puppies?
Sheesh, stay away from kids movies then.

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if i was the author, i'd take a look in the mirror...

And, yes, I DO take it personally

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"Eileen, show me on the doll where Pixar touched you."

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Holy crap, but this is one bitter little author! I usually go in for offbeat stuff like The Big Lebowski, but there is nothing wrong with a sweet story. Any film that deals with real human qualities, whether kindly, brutal or off the wall, is worth seeing. "UP" is a heck of a lot more meaningful than the endless loop of death, rape and autopsies my kids and I get to see on prime time TV every night of the week. There are many dark things in this world, and we should expect film to address them, but darkness is not the sole criterion for merit in storytelling.

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I don't understand the Chaplin riff. I thought the protagonist's interaction with the encroaching commercial real estate developers, and the cynical provocation leading to his removal has been overlooked by reviewers--certainly some reality-based shadow there. (You don't think Disney would accuse the courts of being influenced by real estate interests,do you? Or show cynical retirement home employees who have worked in their underpaid jobs too long?)
Anyway, this device acts like the eviction in "Harry and Tonto," forcing the contankerous protagonist into a new adventure. Pretty well done, I thought.
The last part of the film shows a meeting with the protagonist's childhood hero, who has become dangerously unhinged through academic rejection and social isolation. He doesn't actually say "The horror. The horror." as he falls into space, but the implicit treatment of dogs as an inferior race, and the dogs' own pack behavior are pretty sharply drawn.
Disney plays fast and loose with rules of physics and economics (the people are conveniently poor, then rich, etc. as the plot requires), and the Daddy bird is nowhere to be found (did he run off with a hot young bird?). But, you know, it's a a cartoon with artfully drawn characters. I certainly got my money's worth.

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I would suggest reading Henry Giroux's The Mouse That Roared for a critique of Disney's lugubrious 50's-like ignorance about racist and sexist stereotypes.

I realize a critique of Disney or Pixar is dangerous territory. The gates of Disney's perceived purity are guarded by every apple pie american escape junkie. They love Disney because it confirms their deep seated racist and sexist natures.

peace

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Why is this person hating on Charlie Chaplin?!?! I know all about the under age girls thing but are they also calling him a right wing bastard?!? I just don't get it. Can some of you help me out with this one, please.

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...I mean, yeah it was sort of sticky from time to time, but hell, at least it showed the consequences of a trashed planet. I guess some people can't see a message unless they're hit over the head with it (but come on-how many times can you watch Darwin's Nightmare or Flow..).

Besides-the girl robot was hawt! I guess this makes me lugubrious. Or something.

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There's a certain kind of film critic, typically found in the local weeklies that you don't have to pay for, who strives to be the first one to trash a movie that is enjoyed or admired or beloved by just about everyone else. These critics climb over each other, scrambling to be the first one to apply the flamethrower to a film, sometimes even before it's popular, just on the suspicion that it might end up to be popular.

Popular doesn't mean good, but a lot of times something that's really good on many different levels can thrill the masses and even thrill the vast majority of critics--and still be really good. I wouldn't waste a minute trying to explain to Eileen how and where the writing, the script, the comic timing, the visual artistry, and the seamless blend of several different themes combine to exhibit Pixar at it's best.

I don't think this review has nearly as much to do with "Up" as it has to do with the reviewer. I'd recommend that she steer away from films that don't promise to be dark and edgy enough to suit her tastes. She wasn't going to like this movie and she knew it going in.

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I simply do not go see cartoons made with computers. The short trailers or occasional ads I've seen are enough to show me there is nothing there I could sit still for. No need to put it in a political or ethical context, though all that has always bewn there in the disney style of so called entertament... I think it is indoctrination and propaganda too!

I do sound and recording professionally, and have a certain clique of associates who do film sound design, but hardly ever hear their work as I do not go see hollywod style films or cartoons, no matter how fine the sound (which is usually too loud anyway!)...

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Haven't seen "Up" yet but had to stop reading when you started on Charlie Chaplin's sexual proclivities. I have really enjoyed every Pixar film I've ever seen. Don't know why you're so negative but didn't want you to ruin the movie for me

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how is this AlterNet material?

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This anti-Pixar rant is among the stupidest things I have read online.

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First, I'm really glad Joshua Thompson mentioned the encroaching development and thuggish developers, among the other things he mentioned.

I'm sorry you were so put off by 'Up', Ms Jones, but your passion does seem rather out of proportion, as many others have pointed out.

Pixar movies are creative, beautiful entertainments (usually with a worthy message and a lot of grown-up humor worked in) for the family - but I am a grandmother of sophisticated tastes and I enjoy them for myself, very, very much.

I do not remember seeing a 'beautiful golden-haired girl selling flowers' in 'Up,' But I definitely DO remember that the young boy has a live and at-home mother - mentioned by him several times and shown with Doug-the-Dog in the end of the movie watching the boy receive his last 'badge.'
Wonder how you missed her existence?

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Is there not a more serious issue to hang your gifts on?

What's wrong with displaying for 10 year olds awash in Terminators and Transformators some graphic values of empathy and love and responsibility? I wonder how many fatherless kids related and were comforted of some deep shame in having a grandma or grandpa show up for their performances when dad didn't. Get a heart!

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This review totally misses the mark. That a cutesy cartoon can elicit tears from adults AND the teenagers around me is a significant accomplishment. That the 3D was done WITHOUT crudely swinging things out at your face repeatedly, is exactly why this is so effective, and not a failing at all. The story twists and layers will have kids asking questions long after the show... and that is cool engagement. Finally, for now, there was not a single belch, fart or poop joke. The upcoming guinea pig movie wallows in those.

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Lighten up, Francis.

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and reputation, but it is 180 degrees from Walt Disney who brought us animations of some of the best fairy tales _and_ nature films that are still classics. Walt Disney was a minority (Gentile) struggling to make films in Jewish owned/run Hollywood (check the statistics out if you doubt this). After Disney died, his family sold out to the "opposition," and the caliber of films dropped to its present low level. Now we are bombarded with politically correct, formula films that the public devours, not realizing that "Uncle Walt" has been gone for decades, and he wouldn't have touched most of them with a very long pole. One thing about Hollywood that anyone with half a brain can realize is that there is not much innovation. If Chainsaw 1 was great, then Chainsaw 2, 3, 4, etc. will be better. If Mission Impossible was well received, then why not repeat it (with slight variations) in M.I. 2, 3, 4, to the nth power. I quit going to the movies years ago except for truly great films like the Tolkien trilogy and some films with a real message like Blood Diamond. The majority of Hollywood offerings, in my opinion, aren't worth viewing for free, certainly not worth spending good money to see.

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Stay away from any article that has the pseudo-word "anyhoo" in it. They can't be taken seriously.

The reviewer probably hates old people as well from the bile she pours out on this movie.

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There are far worse movies than the ones Pixar makes that are certainly worth complaining about. "PIXAR HAS GONE TOO FAR!?!"...seriously? Do you even hear yourself? This is the most cynical thing I have read in a long time. God forbid something pull at your heartstrings you ice-y bitch. Buy a kitten or something and get over your shit.

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I happen to think that the author here was off-base with the analysis. I have young kids. Everything on TV these days has some form of cussing and inappropriate situations for young kids, and I don't have cable for the kids channels. So when I want to treat my kids to a movie, the Pixar movies are a great choice. There are all sorts of topics that I can discuss with my kids on their level with these movies (Finding Nemo: Why do parents make rules about where you can and can't go? Toy Story: Appearances aren't everything. Monsters, Inc: The people at the top sometimes lie cheat and steal to stay in power :P) So there's no way I'm going to bash Pixar, other than I wish they had stayed independent rather than serving themselves up to Disney on a silver platter.

What I find interesting is that all the comments that disagree with the author have ratings of 3 or less. It's like someone went down the line of all the comments and rated them negatively for the direction of their argument, not its content or substance. I expect more from liberal websites, to tell the truth, not a "party line" mentality. Leave that to the right-wing-nuts.

And I truthfully found this article to be empty. I was expecting something meaty that whether I agreed or disagreed, I could still entertain the ideas. Didn't happen here. This was fluff, and I can't figure out why it made it to Alternet as some kind of daily top story.

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I don't need this article to tell me that Disney sucks. I knew that when I was a fucking kid.

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Of course he's eight and therefore too young to judge...............or perhaps, just perhaps, he's part of the target audience. Mind you, he doesn't wilfully use inappropriate words: once corrected, never repeated.

As a doting granma, I would much rather he watched something with a happy ending because eight years old is just too young to be constantly reminded that life can be a crock of shit.

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You liked The Happening and panned Up?!

Lady, you're not very good at this.

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Because if you're just gonna rant, I don't give a shit.

Please tell me what's so bad about Pixar... a company who pays it's people well (the bottom not just the top) who made The Mouse's feature animation division a tolerable and tolerant work place after decades of corporate craptasm. Oh they make happy happy for kids... oops, mea culpa, how tragic!

Eileen, go back to school and stop fucking up Alternet with rants.

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As I read Ms. Jones' fluff piece, a disdain for humans filled my lugubrious internal monitoring system.

Why must the Ms. Jones of the world continue to insist that our collective selfishness can't expand to absorb even more Pixar dirtshards?

It's become everclear to me that much as an old tycoon will smear honey across the creamcakes of almost any scone for a fastbuck, journalists and the subjects of their placid tirades work together to funnel our mindbeams into their nebbish filters.

It caught me this time because I was feeling distracted because I got a stomach ache this morning when my master-slave left me for an older system. I wasn't able to keep up the blinders one must have in place more and more these days to stop them getting in through your filters.

I eat trash and so do all of you. We're not any better than this sad piece of writing gussied up to be real Quality, like in the old Quaker days.

Love,
Wall-E

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People who want art and entertainment to constantly be edgy social commentary, rooted in the dark side of human existence...those people scare me. There is enough pain and suffering in this world without turning every creative outlet we have into a reflection of only that. Especially when it's aimed at children, who already lose their innocence too fast.

I mean, why not escape reality for a few hours? Reality sucks!

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I'm puzzled why no one has commented on the remarkable similarity of recent Pixar characters, in both background and foreground, to their exalted chief of creativity, John Lassater; the same shiny egg-like corpulence, the same permanent imbicilic grin, the same propensity for moronity

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Wow!

Somebody got up on the wrong side of the bed the morning they went to see a cartoon!

That's right! It's a cartoon. Not even a biting social satire cartoon like The Simpsons, nor is it boundry-pushing, in-your-face shock value cartoon like Family Guy or South Park. It's just some light family entertainment done with style and wit. God forbid we should have any more of that!

Only someone who has never truly seen the light in a child's eyes or has forgotten their own inner child could rant on a film such as this. Or Wall-E, for that matter. Schmaltzy, perhaps. At times. But name a classic film that doesn't. Gonna bag on Casablanca, Close Encounters, or a Capra film now are we?

Say what you will about Disney films (and sometimes I might even agree with you), but as a parent I can at least rest assured that they'll never slip in completely inappropriate humor like the Shrek films have. Is a 'family film' really a place for a joke about oral sex like the first Shrek film had? Does 'adult humor' have to mean smutty, instead of merely a reference that only an older viewer would get?

At least Disney can be counted on for never 'going there'......

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You ever notice how sexist they are? Name one good female protagonist in any of their movies. You can't.

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I'm sorry you've completely lost touch with Child in you...

:o(

Poor, poor you...

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Seriously...it's OK to have some Pollyanna films out there for those of us who have spawned and don't want our young children watching adult content paraded around as a kid's film.

Do you also trash Carebears, Thomas the Tank Engine, Bambi, Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, The Last Unicorn, Mary Poppins and other movies like those? Do you stalk Barney?

This stuff is for kids, it's supposed to be sugary sweet. They can't watch South park or Family Guy type animation until they get a little older.

Sheesh.

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Whatever did Pixar do to you? Did they refuse to offer you a job? Sheesh.

I'm all for people with dissenting opinions on The Things We Hold Dear, like Pixar, BUT this rant was barely blogworthy. WTF, Alternet? Quality control?

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Warning: the title to this comment uses "big words"(tm). If you are easily offended, please do not read it ("he used a thesaurus, blah blah blah, whine, whine whine")
---------------------------------------

Pixar. They make cheesey, didactic, ovverrated movies. Their view counts are high because their audiences are the same heroes who took home equity loans in order to buy a do-it-yourself reaming kit.. like.. you ever see that South Park episode where Steven Spielberg and George Lucas raped Indiana Jones? Yea, you saw that, and you liked it. Well, Pixar's like that, only they rape the originals instead of the sequels.

The same people who like Pixar movies are always the first to cannibalize each other when they're stranded with a cliche on an island.

I'm cynical and bitter? Maybe it's from having to carry around all the money I saved by not subsidizing hacks.

Go home Yanqui!

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"Coraline was a better animated movie." When I finally read the last line of your vitriolic rant, I could only sigh, "Oh! That's what was buggin' this guy!"

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'Another word of advice: when somebody tells you it’s "filmmaking at its purest," hit the exit. Impure cinema is the kind you want.)'

thank you. here i was..thinking that i knew what i wanted out of a movie. you know what i want/need..which is impure cinema. got it.

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Pouncing all over this poor author for her opinions and movie tastes.

We're all about diversity and tolerance here at AlterNet, because we're all very Progressive, liberal, and open-minded.

This is bordering on pure hate-speech. You should be ashamed.

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Get a LIFE!

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dude yer way to critical to make movies at alternet,whOOm do ya think they are ,you,hmm,anyway i kinda liked it , the remarks that is,a little fuzzy around the edges yet still "i thought i knew who i am when i left "the propaganda dome,yeah maybe it was" the commercials that got ya down brother,i wish i was in the land of cotten lOOk away Look away,beats the hell outta brainwashing,.YER children,look away LOOKaway " rated PG by ban hammer

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sorry,,,really i was gonna say/text,more about cartOOns and propaganda,ye don't have kids do ya_?,judas krisis,think about it , it's cold and frozen wet JANuary ? 9th , whatta ya gonna do,mommee i want some candy aaaahhhh,soon the target audeince could be even younger,OO,ok,ok not quit as gOOd as say Rob Zoombie,hey give em a chance ,they might grow up and discover the war machine some day and figure out whair it's all coming from,doalive,,,out

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tri part triumph elephant,,,i'd like to thank alter whatever,just kidding,and now the award for best fake tears,i love this part,i brought a couple notes if ya don't mind,,,OO,uhmm hmm aqhmm,hey did ya all see that American Broadcast thing about earth without human capitalist civilazation 6-3-09 i think it was,huh,the nazi's first, no offense Germany,i think they/them moved on (over to _._.c.),foul-penalty,ya'll have to exscuse me i'm on a comcast/msm-media thing,,,"cartOOns' commercials,propaganda,green cheese ,,,the snot of the biles,what else ya wanna argue about,Dick Cheney,the elusive flap dragon,? ,the slim on the living rOOm flOOr,oo,doa out

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Dear author,

I hereby sentence you to: Writing the lyrics of "When you wish upon a star" 100 times on the blackboard. :)

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This review illustrates exactly why you are not supposed to write with the thesaurus on your lap. Big words do not make a good read. High-minded comparisons with Charlie Chaplin do not make a good read. Feckless whining does not make a good read. Next time, actually SAY something.

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Both Wall-E and UP have a heart warming story line. Both posing social commentary while still being entertaining.

Upset about the 'quick' setup as to why the Ed Asner character is the way he is forgives the complaints you would have dished out if the movie took Tooooooooooo Looooooooong to explain the plot. My wife and I (57 and 61) loved it, our son and daughter-in-law (in their 30s) loved, and our grand-daughters (nearly three now) loved it.

That's what it is all about. Entertainment and in this case without sex or overdone violence.

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Ignore this sour hater; Pixar knows how to make a film. Up is tight, beautifully paced, funny and moving.

What an ugly, ugly rant.

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John Dolan, are you "Eileen Jones" - or, rather: "Eileen," are you John? I love your work, Dolan, and feel that I would recognize you anywhere (not least under another pseudonym in eXile)

Myself, I despise Pixar more than I can say. That they traffic in mawkish and maudlin is the least of their sins. I'd rate their ever-reliable penchant for plagiarism to be their worst.

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there is no reason to start calling each other or the author names. Yes, she missed the whole point of why people like Pixar, and the article was poorly written, and she seems to have a permanent case of the "Mondays", but dang people!

Ms. Jones, as you have most probably read in the many, many comments, only about 10% or less of the readers agreed with what you had to say. Those that didn't seem to be jaded by cartoons or cinema in general and had not seen the movie, so what they had to say was not very interesting.

In no particular order, here are some crucial things you should consider before going on a rant such as this again: if you know you're not going to like a movie before you even sit down, please do not write a review on it; the 3D was some of the best I'd ever seen and I personally think Pixar should be applauded for making a movie around a plot, not around a cinematic gimmick, it was a mere enhancement; if you don't agree with what other reviewers have to say than attack the reviewers, not the subject they are reviewing; if you're going to review a movie then do so, if you're going to review Pixar as a company, then please, include all of the work they have done, not just the 2 most recent films; and just because you didn't like a movie, doesn't mean you need to put it down in a way that makes someone who did enjoy it feel stupid for doing so.

I also wanted to address the Chaplin tanget you went on. Lady, if you have ever seen a Chaplin or Keaton film then you will recognize that that is exactly what they were striving for with Wall-e, and I think they hit upon it as well as anybody could with an animated robot. If you have a character that can't speak, then you're going to try and recreate what made the silent film era actors so great. Quit being so quick to judge and try to appreciate what you're actually viewing for a change.

Lastly, I wanted to say that I am a young professional, with no intention of ever having children, and both my boyfriend (33) and myself (29), really enjoyed this movie. There is enough "real" going on in the world for us to take 2 hours to indulge in something fantastic and carefree every once in awhile.

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It's difficult, indeed unethical, to assign blame to anyone for wanting to 'get away', to 'escape', from the drudgery, routine, and constant conditions that beset most of us in these times of dire straits.

However, it must be said. Pixar is one, only one, of the numberless and uncountable firms engaged in providing entertainments for the masses, the public, the consumers... . And they do well, very well. For it costs, there's a price for this, and it is not only money.

What actually occurs when 'experiencing' or 'watching' or going to any particular movie like the one in this article? Being meant for enjoyment and pleasure, the viewer becomes 'absorbed', 'engaged', 'lost' and 'enthralled' or 'entertained' in the watching. There are legal words that can describe an experience such as this: Incorporation, for instance. Or there are moral words such as 'rapture'. Or there are New Age, scientistic words like 'metempsychosis'. What happens to the viewer? He or she is not there, they are in there! Lost in the body of the spectacle....

This is not meant in a 'negative' way. There are a host of experiences like this that are valuable and fulfilling and serve to give meaning and depth to living. Not all of them however. In times like these, it's worth thinking about.

What is has been happening in real life over the last 40 years or so has been the reduction and the suppression of the actual individual citizen (Tom, Amber, Lakeesha, Sally, Ray...) in favor of an elevation of primacy to the Fictive, Artificial Individual (Pixar, IBM, GE, Blackwater, MGM....). It is they, these 'brands' that are the Actors, the Movers, the Shakers, and the basis of our social, economic and political order. We individuals, Tom, Amber, Lakeesha, Sally, Ray, are becoming utterly and completely fungible -- especially before the Law.

Enjoy any films you like, this is the least we can get in times like these. But take a few and think about it! There's more than a ticket-price at stake.

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