History Analysis / Up

Charles Muntz, by comparison, serves as a ShadowArchetype for Carl. Both are individuals haunted by past regret, and both have lost something important to them. Carl lost his wife, and Muntz lost his credibility and neither are really to blame for that. They also both have a deep desire to redeem [[MyGreatestFailure their biggest failures]]: Carl wishes to redeem his missed chance to travel to Paradise Falls, and Muntz wishes to redeem his tarnished reputation by bringing back proof of the existence of the Monster of Paradise Falls. The difference is Muntz has spent decades obsessing over Kevin and proving he isn't a fraud, and it has made him paranoid, jealous, and violent. The tragedy of Muntz is situation is (as mentioned on the Fridge page) that the methods by which he was discredited, the measurements and the bone fitting, have been discredited by the time the movie takes place.

Charles Muntz, by comparison, serves as a ShadowArchetype for Carl. Both are individuals haunted by past regret, and both have lost something important to them. Carl lost his wife, and Muntz lost his credibility and neither are really to blame for that. They also both have a deep desire to reddem [[MyGreatestFailure their biggest falliures]]: Carl wishes to redeem his missed chance to travel to Paradise Falls, and Muntz wishes to redeem his tarnished reputation by bringing back proof of the existence of the Monster of Paradise Falls. The difference is Muntz has spent decades obsessing over Kevin and proving he isn't a fraud, and it has made him paranoid, jeallous, and violent. The tragedy of Muntz is situation is (as mentioned on the Fridge page) that the methods by which he was discredited, the measurements and the bone fitting, have been discredited by the time the movie takes place.

Speaking of flying, the soundtrack for getting the house going again is "memories can weigh you down". Which in the end is how Carl and Charles end up separating from each other in a very literal sense. In their final confrontation, Charles is following his obsession to the bitter end, openly resorting to attempted murder to get his deed done. Carl meanwhile is only thinking of protecting what he has now. It's not about preserving what memories he had any longer. It's about helping his new family survive. And in the end, through some visual storytelling, it's Carl who stays up high on Muntz's own ship. Letting the past go so it doesn't control him, and finding new purpose as Russel's surrogate grandfather. While Muntz's regrets eventually led to him plumitting from the sky, his memories failing to support him.

But having reached the goal he always wanted, he soon sees that [[WasItWorthIt he has nothing else to do]]. And that's where his TragicKeepsake of Ellie's scrapbook comes into play. A trick of fate has him finally see and understand that Ellie never held their "failure" against him. Life together was adventure enough, and she'd died happy, only wishing for her husband to "go have another one". And this is enough for Carl to swear to fix the relationships he made, and start flying again.

In ''Up'', the whole opening montage serves as an interesting {{Deconstruction}} of the GoalInLife and ManicPixieDreamGirl tropes. The opening scene before the montage sets it up like the two ''might actually go to Paradise Falls''. But then, life gets in the way. Carl and Ellie live a long, happy life in a nice neighborhood. Paradise Falls, exotic and distant but seemingly achievable, falls by the wayside. When Carl finally thinks about it, both he and Ellie are retired. So he buys some tickets to South America -- possibly as a consolation -- but they never even go. Just as his thoughts turn towards Paradise Falls, Ellie passes away. Then the neighborhood, excepting the house Carl and Ellie built, gets razed. Carl's guilt over the whole thing and lack of a source of happiness turns him into a bitter old man with a TragicDream, and plenty of time to think about WhatCouldHaveBeen. Meanwhile, as everything recognizable around him gets destroyed, he keeps his house identical to the way it was when he and Ellie finished it -- even keeping the chairs. Then, after his trial, he is faced with a choice -- leave behind everything for a retirement home, or cling desperately to his memories of Ellie. He TakesAThirdOption and goes off to redeem MyGreatestFailure.

Charles Muntz, by comparison, serves as a ShadowArchetype for Carl. Both are individuals haunted by past regret, and both have lost something important to them. Carl lost his wife, and Muntz lost his credibility and neither are really to blame for that. They also both have a deep desire to reddem MyGreatestFailure: Carl wishes to redeem his missed chance to travel to Paradise Falls, and Muntz wishes to redeem his tarnished reputation by bringing back proof of the existence of the Monster of Paradise Falls. The difference is Muntz has spent decades obsessing over Kevin and proving he isn't a fraud, and it has made him paranoid, jeallous, and violent.

Charles Muntz, by comparison, serves as a ShadowArchetype for Carl, insanely and single-mindedly searching for the bird of Paradise Falls, which serves as his own MyGreatestFailure and causes him to become paranoid. In an interesting twist, Muntz even ''exploits'' Carl by using the same things that drive him when he sets fire to Carl's house after they meet. Going further, Muntz is completely forgotten by modern society and has completely passed the point of going home to his life as a respected former hero, which ironically seals him in a loop; the ''only'' way to receive recognition in the world and be reinstated into the (probably defunct) Explorer's Society anymore is to find that bird. And the only reason that he's in the loop? He preferred faking success to simply coasting on his other victories (look in Ellie's ''Spirit of Adventure'' and a newspaper reads something along the lines of "Muntz breaks altitude record"). Muntz's stubborn refusal to let things go leads to his being stuck in the place he spent most of his life in as a forgotten, dusty relic.

!! Carl and Ellie's life vs. Muntz's life
In ''Up'', the whole montage serves as an interesting {{Deconstruction}} of the GoalInLife and ManicPixieDreamGirl tropes. The opening scene before the montage sets it up like the two ''might actually go to Paradise Falls''. But then, life gets in the way. Carl and Ellie live a long, happy life in a nice neighborhood. Paradise Falls, exotic and distant but seemingly achievable, falls by the wayside. When Carl finally thinks about it, both he and Ellie are retired. So he buys some tickets to South America -- possibly as a consolation -- but they never even go. Just as his thoughts turn towards Paradise Falls, Ellie passes away. Then the neighborhood, excepting the house Carl and Ellie built, gets razed. Carl's guilt over the whole thing and lack of a source of happiness turns him into a bitter old man with a TragicDream, and plenty of time to think about WhatCouldHaveBeen. Meanwhile, everything recognizable around him gets destroyed, he keeps his house identical to the way it was when he and Ellie finished it -- even keeping the chairs. Then, after his trial, he is faced with a choice -- leave behind everything for a retirement home, or cling desperately to his memories of Ellie. He TakesAThirdOption and goes off to redeem MyGreatestFailure.

Muntz, by comparison, serves as a ShadowArchetype for Carl, insanely and single-mindedly searching for the bird, which serves as his own MyGreatestFailure and causes him to become paranoid. In an interesting twist, Muntz even ''exploits'' Carl by using the same things that drive him when he sets fire to Carl's house. Going further, Muntz is completely forgotten by modern society and has completely passed the point of going home to his life as a respected former hero, which ironically seals him in a loop; the ''only'' way to receive recognition in the world and be reinstated into the (probably defunct) Explorer's Society anymore is to find that bird. And the only reason that he's in the loop? He preferred faking success to simply coasting on his other victories (look in Ellie's ''Spirit of Adventure'' and a newspaper reads something along the lines of "Muntz breaks altitude record"). Muntz's stubborn refusal to let things go leads to his dying in the place he spent most of his life in as a forgotten, dusty relic.

In ''Up'', the whole montage serves as an interesting {{Deconstruction}} of the GoalInLife and ManicPixieDreamGirl tropes. The opening scene before the montage sets it up like the two ''might actually go to Paradise Falls''. But then, life gets in the way. Carl and Ellie live a long, happy life in a nice neighborhood. Paradise Falls, exotic and distant but seemingly achievable, falls by the wayside. When Carl finally thinks about it, both he and Ellie are retired. So he buys some tickets to South America -- possibly as a consolation -- and it gets ambiguous whether they even went. Just as his thoughts turn towards Paradise Falls, Ellie passes away. Then the neighborhood, excepting the house Carl and Ellie built, gets razed. Carl's guilt over the whole thing and lack of a source of happiness turns him into a bitter old man with a TragicDream, and plenty of time to think about WhatCouldHaveBeen. Meanwhile, everything recognizable around him gets destroyed, he keeps his house identical to the way it was when he and Ellie finished it -- even keeping the chairs. Then, after his trial, he is faced with a choice -- leave behind everything for a retirement home, or cling desperately to his memories of Ellie. He TakesAThirdOption and goes off to redeem MyGreatestFailure.

Muntz, by comparison, serves as a ShadowArchetype for Carl, insanely and single-mindedly searching for the bird, which serves as his own MyGreatestFailure and causes him to become paranoid. In an interesting twist, Muntz even ''exploits'' Carl by using the same things that drive him when he sets fire to Carl's house. Going further, Muntz is completely forgotten by modern society and has completely passed the point of going home to his life as a respected former hero, which ironically seals him in a loop; the ''only'' way to receive recognition in the world and be reinstated into the (probably defunct) Explorer's Society anymore is to find that bird. And the only reason that he's in the loop? He preferred faking success to simply coasting on his other victories (look in Ellie's ''Spirit of Adventure'' and a newspaper reads something along the lines of "Muntz breaks altitude record"). Muntz's stubborn refusal to let things go leads to his dying in the place he spent most of his life in as a forgotten, dusty relic.

In ''Up'', the whole montage serves as an interesting DeConstruction of the GoalinLife and ManicPixieDreamGirl tropes. The opening scene before the montage sets it up like the two ''might actually go to Paradise Falls''. But then, life gets in the way. Carl and Ellie live a long, happy life in a nice neighborhood. Paradise Falls, exotic and distant but seemingly achievable, falls by the wayside. When Carl finally thinks about it, both he and Ellie are retired. So he buys some tickets to South America -- possibly as a consolation -- and it gets ambiguous whether they even went. Just as his thoughts turn towards Paradise Falls, Ellie passes away. Then the neighborhood, excepting the house Carl and Ellie built, gets razed. Carl's guilt over the whole thing and lack of a source of happiness turns him into a bitter old man with a TragicDream, and plenty of time to think about WhatCouldHaveBeen. Meanwhile, everything recognizable around him gets destroyed, he keeps his house identical to the way it was when he and Ellie finished it -- even keeping the chairs. Then, after his trial, he is faced with a choice -- leave behind everything for a retirement home, or cling desperately to his memories of Ellie. He TakesAThirdOption and goes off to redeem MyGreatestFailure.

Muntz, by comparison, serves as a ShadowArchetype for Carl, insanely and single-mindedly searching for the bird, which serves as his own MyGreatestFailure and causes him to become paranoid. In an interesting twist, Muntz even ''exploits'' Carl by using the same things that drive him when he sets fire to Carl's house. Going further, Muntz is completely forgotten by modern society and has completely passed the point of going home to his life

!! Carl and Ellie's life
In ''Up'', the whole montage serves as an interesting DeConstruction of the GoalinLife and ManicPixieDreamGirl tropes. The opening scene before the montage sets it up like the two ''might actually go to Paradise Falls''. But then, life gets in the way. Carl and Ellie live a long, happy life in a nice neighborhood. Paradise Falls, exotic and distant but seemingly achievable, falls by the wayside. When Carl finally thinks about it, both he and Ellie are retired. So he buys some tickets to South America -- possibly as a consolation -- and it gets ambiguous whether they even went. Just as his thoughts turn towards Paradise Falls, Ellie passes away. Then the neighborhood, excepting the house Carl and Ellie built, gets razed. Carl's guilt over the whole thing and lack of a source of happiness turns him into a bitter old man with a TragicDream, and plenty of time to think about WhatCouldHaveBeen,

In ''Up'', the whole montage serves as an interesting DeConstruction of the ManicPixieDreamGirl trope.