| Movie DescriptionCarl Fredricksen (Edward Asner) is a shy and quiet boy who idolizes renowned explorer Charles F. Muntz (Christopher Plummer). He learns, however, that Muntz has been accused of fabricating the skeleton of a giant bird he had discovered in Paradise Falls, South America. Muntz vows to return there to capture one alive. One day, Carl befriends an energetic tomboy named Ellie (Elizabeth Docter), who is also a Muntz fan. Detailing her ambitions in her personal scrapbook, she tells Carl her desire to move her "clubhouse"—an abandoned house in the neighborhood—to a cliff overlooking Paradise Falls, making him promise to help her. Carl and Ellie eventually get married and grow old together in the restored house, working as a toy balloon vendor and a zookeeper, respectively. Unable to have children, they repeatedly pool their savings for a trip to Paradise Falls, but end up spending it on other obligations. An elderly Carl (Edward Asner) finally arranges for the trip, but Ellie suddenly becomes ill and passes away, forcing him to cancel the trip.
Years later, Carl's house becomes surrounded by urban development, but he refuses to sell his property. He then ends up in a tussle with a construction worker over his broken mailbox that he and Ellie made, and is forced by a court order to move into a retirement home. However, Carl comes up with a scheme to keep his promise to Ellie: he turns his house into a makeshift airship, using thousands of helium balloons to lift it off its foundations. A young Wilderness Explorer named Russell (Jordan Nagai) becomes an accidental passenger, having pestered Carl earlier in an attempt to earn his final merit badge for "assisting the elderly" and become a Senior Wilderness Explorer. He was sent by Carl on a snipe hunt the day before when he attempted to offer Carl some assistance. |
