What age is Up appropriate for?

Up is rated PG and PopcornCheck recommends it for ages 6+, based on reading the actual screenplay. The opening montage depicting Carl and Ellie's life together — including their infertility and Ellie's death — is emotionally heavy content that may distress very young children, and villain Muntz shooting at Carl's house with a rifle, deploying dog planes armed with poison darts while Russell hangs from a hose, and ultimately falling to his death from the dirigible add genuine peril beyond typical animated fare.

Does Up have swearing or bad language?

Up has Very Mild language. The film contains only two mild words: 'hell' (used once) and 'damn' (used once)

Up has Mild violence. Carl strikes a construction worker with his cane, causing the worker to fall and bleed slightly — the most direct act of human-on-human violence in the film and the trigger for Carl's court hearing

Is Up scary for children?

Up has Mild scary scenes. Ellie's death sequence and the montage of Carl's grief-stricken loneliness afterward is the film's most emotionally disturbing content — depicted without graphic detail but with quiet, affecting sadness that may upset younger children or those who have experienced loss

Is Up OK for Kids?

Name: Up
Director: Pete Docter
Genre: Animation, Comedy, Family, Adventure
Released: 2009
Duration: 96 min
Cast: Ed Asner, Christopher Plummer, Jordan Nagai, Bob Peterson, Delroy Lindo

AnimationComedyFamilyAdventure

PG⭐ 8.3 / 102009 · 1h 36m

Pete Docter● Script verified

Where to Watch

United States

Stream

Rent

Rent or Buy on Amazon

Streaming data by JustWatch

What's In It

Based on the actual screenplay

🗡️Violence

Moderate▼

Moments in the script, mildest → most intense

Cartoon / Comedic

Action & Peril

Injuries & Death Shown

Graphic & Disturbing

Carl strikes a construction worker with his cane, causing the worker to fall and bleed slightly — the most direct act of human-on-human violence in the film and the trigger for Carl's court hearing
Villain Charles Muntz shoots at Carl's house with a rifle during the aerial confrontation, destroying balloon strings and putting Carl and Russell in direct danger
Dog-piloted planes strafe Carl's house with poison darts while Russell hangs from a garden hose beneath it — a sustained action sequence with a child in genuine peril
The bird Kevin is attacked by dogs multiple times throughout the film, and Alpha bites Kevin on the leg, causing a visible injury that affects her ability to return to her chicks
Muntz falls from his dirigible to his death after becoming entangled in balloon strings — the death is shown but not graphically; he falls out of frame
Carl and Muntz engage in a sword fight in the trophy room amid collapsing display cases — played with some energy but between two elderly men
Slapstick cartoon injuries occur throughout, including Russell being hit by a tent pole and Carl throwing furniture out of the house — these are played for laughs with no lasting harm
Violence overall is action-adventure in tone — no gore, no prolonged brutality, with most serious moments resolved quickly and consequences kept age-appropriate

💬Language

Very Mild▼

Moments in the script, mildest → most intense

Mild Words

(damn, hell)

Moderate

(ass, b**ch)

Strong

(sh*t)

Extreme

(f**k)

The film contains only two mild words: 'hell' (used once) and 'da**' (used once)
No moderate, strong, or extreme profanity of any kind — no s**t, f**k, a**hole, or slurs detected
No creative insults or near-profanity beyond the two instances above — language is otherwise entirely clean

👻Scary Scenes

Extreme▼

Moments in the script, mildest → most intense

Mildly Tense

Startling Moments

Genuinely Scary

Deeply Disturbing

Ellie's death sequence and the montage of Carl's grief-stricken loneliness afterward is the film's most emotionally disturbing content — depicted without graphic detail but with quiet, affecting sadness that may upset younger children or those who have experienced loss
Dozens of dogs surround Carl and Russell at the cave entrance in a genuinely threatening pack — the scale and aggression of the scene makes it one of the more overtly scary moments for young viewers
Carl and Russell hide from Muntz and his dogs inside a cave in a prolonged tense sequence with real stakes
Russell hangs from a hose beneath the floating house while dog planes attack — a sustained peril sequence involving a child character that may be frightening for sensitive viewers
The giant bird Kevin first appears in a way that looks threatening before her friendly nature is established — a brief startling moment
Russell appears suddenly on Carl's porch while the house floats in the clouds — a startling but quickly comedic moment
The house slides off the dirigible's tail fin with characters inside — a tense sequence that plays out multiple times
Scary scenes are generally resolved with characters surviving and the tone returning to adventure — the film does not dwell in fear

💕Romance

Moderate▼

Moments in the script, mildest → most intense

Crushes & Holding Hands

Kissing & Dating

Suggestive

Sexual Content

Young Carl and Ellie share a kiss at their wedding — brief, sweet, and entirely age-appropriate
Carl kisses Ellie on the forehead in the hospital — a tender, emotional moment of spousal affection
The life-together montage shows Carl and Ellie dancing, sharing intimate everyday moments, and building a life — warmly suggestive of a loving adult relationship but nothing sexual is shown or implied explicitly
No sexual content, nudity, or adult romantic situations of any kind

🍺Substances

Mild▼

Moments in the script, mildest → most intense

Mentioned in Passing

Shown Casually

Featured Prominently

Glorified or Abused

Prohibition-era paddy-wagons are briefly referenced in a newsreel — historical context only, not shown or glorified
Champagne is casually referenced at Muntz's dinner table — mentioned in passing, not focused on or consumed on screen in a notable way
Prune juice is mentioned when Carl pours it into a developer's gas tank as a prank — played entirely for comedic effect
No substance use is glorified, depicted approvingly, or shown as having consequences — all references are incidental

⚡Stimulation

Moderate▼

Moments in the script, mildest → most intense

Gently Engaging

Exciting

Intense

Overwhelming

The film opens with a quiet, emotionally rich montage but escalates to action sequences that include rapid editing, loud sound design, and back-to-back peril
The storm sequence with the house being tossed through clouds and thunder is a sudden and loud shift in tone that may startle younger or sensory-sensitive children
The final aerial battle on the dirigible features gunfire, collapsing structures, multiple characters in simultaneous peril, and the house sliding off the edge — the most intense sustained sequence in the film
Chase sequences through the jungle with Kevin, Dug, Carl, and Russell are fast-paced and exciting without being overwhelming
The house lifting off with thousands of balloons is a visually exciting, high-energy sequence — thrilling rather than distressing
Sensory-sensitive children may find the storm sequence and the final dirigible battle difficult; the rest of the film is more gently paced

Up — Heads Up for Parents

Despite its family-friendly reputation, the opening ten-minute montage — showing Carl and Ellie's infertility, the loss of their baby, and Ellie's death — is genuinely affecting adult emotional content that consistently moves grown viewers to tears and may confuse or distress children under 5 who have no context for it; parents should be prepared to pause and explain before the film has even reached its adventure premise.

About Up

Up is a Pixar adventure about Carl Fredricksen, a grieving elderly widower who ties thousands of balloons to his house and flies to South America to fulfil a lifelong dream he shared with his late wife Ellie. He is accidentally joined by Russell, an eager young Wilderness Explorer, and together they encounter a rare giant bird, a talking dog named Dug, and a legendary but dangerous explorer named Charles Muntz. The film balances genuine emotional depth with comedic adventure, making it both heartfelt and entertaining for families.

👨‍👧

Best watched together

The opening depiction of Ellie's death and Carl's grief, the genuinely scary sequences of dogs surrounding Carl and Russell and the final aerial battle, and the emotionally complex themes of loss and redemption make this best experienced with a parent present for children under 8 — older children from age 8 upward are likely fine watching independently

Family Takeaways from Up

What it gets right

✓The film depicts grief with rare honesty for an animated movie — the opening montage of Carl and Ellie's life, including their inability to have children and Ellie's death, gives parents a natural, moving entry point to discuss loss with children in a safe context
✓Carl discovering that Ellie filled her Adventure Book with photos of their ordinary life together is one of cinema's most effective illustrations that the people we love are more important than the goals we pursue — a message children and adults both need

Up Cultural & Values Guide

Cultural & Values Guide

Values & Themes

●Traditional family values

The opening sequence establishes Carl and Ellie's lifelong marriage commitment as the emotional foundation that drives the entire story. Their enduring love and Carl's devotion to fulfilling his promise to her exemplifies traditional marriage values.