19 Februari 2010

Top Five International Film of 2009 – Up (1)

Internationally his was a great year for comedy, with films that mixed face-splitting humor with poignant humanity. While some critics pointed out the lack of essential viewing earlier this year, by December, we’d had films such as “The Hurt Locker,” Inglourious Basterds” and “Star Trek,” all of which constituted quality entertainment, but which just missed the cut for our list.

Of course, there was also plenty of pointless escapism in the form of “Transformers 2,” “X-Men Origins: Wolverine,” “Dragon Ball: Evolution” and “GI Joe” – the kind of films that cater to the lowest common denominator.

1. Up (Disney/Pixar Studios)

Like most of Pixar’s creations, “Up” is not only a visual delight, but a mature and poignant story that had audiences in for its full 96-minute running time. The first 15 minutes of “Up” make for perhaps the most heartbreaking scene ever created for a commercially released animated movie.

The relationship between the two main protagonists – a young and chatty Boy Scout named Russell and Carl Fredricksen, a stereotypical grumpy old man with a tragically romantic past – raises the bar even higher (remember “Cars” ?) for the almost invicible Pixar, whose 2008’s “Wall-E” was the pinnacle of artistically courageous and emotionally fulfilling animation.
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Image/sources: Jakarta Globe