THR: Thumbs up for “Up”!

Pixar fans, you can breathe a sigh of relief. Despite concerns on the part of so-called movie ‘experts,’ it appears that Up has nowhere to go box office-wise than… well… up. Here’s the first official review — from The Hollywood Reporter:

Winsome, touching and arguably the funniest Pixar effort ever, the gorgeously rendered, high-flying adventure is a tidy 90-minute distillation of all the signature touches that came before it.

Boo-yah! That’s the kind of one-liner we like to see in reviews.

It’s also the ideal choice to serve as the first animated feature ever to open the Festival de Cannes, considering the way it also pays fond homage to cinema’s past, touching upon the works of Chaplin and Hitchcock, not to mention aspects of “It’s a Wonderful Life” “The Wizard of Oz” and, more recently, “About Schmidt.”

Boxoffice-wise, the sky’s the limit for “Up.”

And not just the storytelling, but a deft approach to 3-D:

Meanwhile, those attending theaters equipped with the Disney Digital 3-D technology will have the added bonus of experiencing a three-dimensional process that is less concerned with the usual “comin’ at ya” razzle-dazzle than it is with creating exquisitely detailed textures and appropriately expansive depths of field.

Sounds like a winner!

UPDATE: And the Daily Variety weighs in:

Depending on what you think of “Cars,” Pixar makes it either 9½ out of 10 or 10 for 10 with “Up,” a captivating odd-couple adventure that becomes funnier and more exciting as it flies along. Tale of an unlikely journey to uncharted geographic and emotional territory by an old codger and a young explorer could easily have been cloying, but instead proves disarming in its deep reserves of narrative imagination and surprise, as well as its poignant thematic balance of dreams deferred and dreams fulfilled. Lack of overtly fantastical elements might endow “Up” with a somewhat lower initial must-see factor than some summer releases. But like all of Pixar’s features, this one will enjoy a rewardingly long ride in all venues and formats. Pete Docter’s picture has the privilege of being the first animated film to open the Cannes Film Festival, on May 13.

Another strong review.

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