Up, or Tackling the Spoiler-free Review

To even hint at the events of Pixar's Up would be doing it a great disservice. The pre-release trailers were coy on the details for good reason - it's quite possibly the freshest animated film since Studio Ghibli's Spirited Away.

So how to approach an informative review of a movie you should go into cold? Well, for one, let's compare it to Pixar's previous efforts: Up, more than any of their past films, succeeds at being everything at once. From Toy Story to Wall-E, Pixar has defined "for the whole family" cinema. Their stories attempt comedy, insight, antics, and maturity in varying degrees, but almost always enough of each to keep everyone satisfied. With Up, they may have achieved their finest balance of these varying elements.

Up is at once goofily hilarious and gut-wrenchingly truthful. It carries an intelligent message without the tonal shift of Wall-E. It tackles the soaring visual styles of Ratatouille with more substance. It even includes some loving commentary on nature without the gimmicks of Finding Nemo or A Bug's Life.

As ever, Up is a visual masterpiece. The movie plays with color in a fascinating way. They may not sweat the details in quite the same way they did with post-apocalyptic earth in Wall-E, but Up's rainbow-colored palette is still a work of art. The colors pop like so many balloons, inspiring the spirit of adventure that the plot captures so succinctly.

And there you have it: a spoiler-free recommendation for Pixar's Up. Avoid the TV spots, cover your ears, and run to the theater as quickly as you can, because Pixar has raised the bar once again.