UP is part love story, part adventure story. In it, we follow Carl Fredricksen through the circumstances of his life that lead to the journey of a lifetime. When Carl finds himself widowed, and alone in the home where he and his wife had dreamt of adventure and excitement, he begins to lose control and is forced to make a change in his life. But Carl, ever the inventor, decides to make that change in a drastic and surprising way. Harnessing the power of thousands of balloons, Carl embarks on a new adventure, and where he ends up is a destination he never imagined. In UP, Carl Fredricksen completes his Hero’s Journey when he fulfills the dream he shared with his wife before she died, and he is tested when he discovers that a young boy has accidently been drawn into his adventure. When he must decide whether to take a different path of adventure or choose to stay in Paradise Falls with only his memories to sustain him, he ultimately finds the road that leads him to happiness and freedom.
Carl Fredricksen and his wife Ellie had an amazing life together. They chased one particular adventure since they were kids—they wanted to follow their childhood hero and get to Paradise Falls in South America. Unfortunately, as…show more content… The first is a picture of Ellie hanging on the wall of their home. Throughout his journey, Carl speaks to this picture, looks upon it, and even touches it lovingly. Another talisman Carl has with him is Ellie’s scrapbook. After Ellie’s death, Carl spends many hours leafing through this scrapbook always stopping on the page were Ellie had written “Stuff I’m going to do” (UP). The final talisman Carl brings with him is the pin that Ellie gave him when they were children. It was the cap off of a bottle of grape soda, which she had attached to a safety pin. Now, it signified to Carl the unique relationship he’d had with Ellie and what they meant to one another: “You and me, we’re in a club now”