In their 2009 film Up, Disney Pixar pushes the boundaries of how powerful musical themes can be through its signature pantomime opening sequence. Michael Giacchino, the composer of the score for the film, displays his talent in composition throughout the score as he successfully manipulates a number of the musical elements throughout different scenes in order to enhance the story of the film, and create contrasting moods and emotions depending on the time and scenario of the scene. The score of this film received positive reviews across the board from music critics, and was even nominated for a number of awards, including two Grammy Awards (which the film won). The reason is clear for Up’s unanimous acclaim in the first ten minutes of the film, showing young Carl Fredricksen’s fascination with exploration and his meeting a girl, Ellie, who shares this same interest, seguing into a five-minute song presenting a montage of the pair’s shared life together, famously named “Married Life.”
Instrumentation
With no dialogue, a heavy weight is pushed on the orchestration and instrumentation to hold the audience’s attention, which I believe is where this song shines. The nostalgic instruments expertly chosen by Giacchino reflect the time period the couple lived in. Giacchino states in an interview that he thought many times about “what styles of music must [Carl] have lived through” and how he could use this to give the audience an a deeper insight into the character (Suatrilha, 2009). For example, the song opens with iconic 1930s instruments such as muted horns, jumpy piano and dancing strings. The first shift in instrumentation occurs when images of Carl and Ellie struggle through the fact the couple cannot have children. The section features a solo piano, emphasizing the forlorn feelings the couple shared. Shortly after, the upbeat horns and strings come back, symbolizing their revitalized spirits after Carl suggests the trip to Paradise Falls. These feelings and instruments are once again cutoff by the untimely passing of Ellie. At this point, the solo piano returns and escorts Carl on his lonesome journey home for the first time without his adventure partner.
Tempo
The tempo remains relatively upbeat and driven throughout the song, excluding the slower middle and ending sections. This light and buoyant theme of tempo depicts the love and incredible optimism the couple displayed for each other and their future. There is a strong pulse on the first beat of each bar, giving the music its distinct waltz feel. Adding to this dancing sensation is the fact that the majority of the score of this song is in ¾ time, once again reflecting the music Carl and Ellie would be accustomed to hearing during their lives together. Halfway through the song the tempo halts abruptly, with the news that Ellie is unable to have children. After hearing this news, life comes to a standstill for the main characters, leaving this slow in tempo to be a direct translation of the authentic emotions the characters were feeling.
Melody
“Married Life” (along with the entire film) holds a musical identity through one single chord: an F major seventh. Listen to it here. Giacchino chose this chord to represent a sense of onward adventuring, while still reaching back and remembering those who aren’t with you anymore. This chord takes shape in a catchy piano riff, and ultimately becomes the backbone for the tune known as “Ellie’s Theme”. This theme surfaces multiple times throughout “Married Life”, and continues to arise throughout the movie long after Ellie left Carl, each time instilling a sense of adventure and hope in the main character. “Married Life” keeps a consistent melody throughout the entire segment that changes shape to match the stages of life and the circumstances Carl and Ellie experience throughout their marriage, with its tune being bouncy and ‘toe-tappable’ at some points, with brasses and strings whose sounds immediately recall a glorified version of a bygone time in history. At other moments the music is extremely somber and beautifully slow, aided by the simplicity of its arrangement with instruments such as a single piano.
The most noticeable quality of this tune is its ability to tell a self-contained story that spans nearly 60 years without ever using a single line of dialogue. I feel Mike Duquette said it well in his review of the song when he wrote score “The tune is perfectly humble, and is the perfect illustration of visual music.” Through its simplicity, the song “Married Life” becomes a sequence that embodies the brilliance of the film to follow – one with inventive humor that induces laughter, compelling characters who evoke relatable connections, and a resonating message that instills a reminder that life can always be an adventure if approached with an open attitude willing to share it with others.
References:
MUS 200 Explorations in Music 
Very well written post! It is interesting how much visibility and success movie UP got, in spite of the fact, that it is pantomime. I like how clearly you describe the elements of music in this song. I agree that “Married Life” does good job with instruments to keep the song interesting and harmonic. My favorite thing of the music scene is how well it describes the life through music and how realistic it is in sense of providing emotions and sympathy toward the characteristics. Actually. it is easier to focus on enjoying musical elements when there is not spoken words or singing. Do you know any other movies from 21st century that offer a great musical experience without spoken words?
I am impressed by your detailed and elaborated analysis.
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Up is one of my many favorite Disney/Pixar movies. Every time I watch Up I think that’s how I want my life to be like when I’m older. I think that this is just a sweet movie and the music that is just being played after Carl and Ellie meet just plays an important role in the film. Professor Kljaich shared this video on the content link for Music and Fictive Dream assignment. This video talks about the music in Up and how it plays an important role during this movie. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i8HePfa7WYs
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Honestly even through this was a really good movie, I really feel that UP is severely underrated. This scene literally makes me tear up every single time watching it. I wholeheartedly agree with you that the orchestration of this song really captures the viewers attention of the audience. It puts the emotions of the characters into the viewers in a really powerful way, hence why it makes me tear up every single time I watch this scene. Believe it or not I found a peer reviewed article on this scene ( research.shu.ac.uk/aces/enquiry/index.php/enquiry/article/download/42/45 ). I goes over why this scene is so successful. They even have an entire section devoted to the “sound” of this scene. I HIGHLY suggest you take a look at this because it takes a somewhat scientific approach analyzing this piece. One thing I’d like your opinion on though is that during this scene I feel like its like a full length movie. Not that I feel like its dragging out, but because I feel like I’m put into the shoes of Carl and Ellie. Do you feel the same way? If so, how much do you think is due to the music of this scene? I don’t thing its 100% but it has a huge impact on me. Anyways thank you for sharing!!! I really enjoyed it.
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Thank you so much for examining this gorgeous scene! I quite agree that this has to be one of the most touching, heartfelt and lovely scenes in Pixar and Disney history.
I love the way that you break up the different components of the music. This post has inspired me to do better in my own posts.
Thank you so very much for this, Robbygsanders.
Also, I know that I have posted this before, but this scene from UP reminds me alot of the the scene “Waltz for Peppy” from the film “The Artist”
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Such a nostalgic post. I watched that movie at least 50 times growing up but never even thought about how the music played a role. The music is everything in that scene. It basically puts words in the characters mouths and a feeling the audiences body about what is happening in the movie. You explained the chosen elements very well I just wish there was another piece of music from the movie to show another example of how the composer worked. Overall this blog genuinely made me happy to read, great job. Here is another example of how the background music describes action and basically tells the story if you would like to watch it. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jKzmUQuo9ls&feature=player_embedded
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I loved the Up movie!! You have a very well written blog. After reading, I decided to google information about the music work “married life”. I found the rotoscopers.com website. (Which after I noticed was also one of your sources haha) I really enjoyed what Blake Taylor had to say. For example he stated, “The difference between a good film and a great film is its ability to transcend the screen and allow audiences to see reflections of themselves in its characters and story.” The music and slide show type of scene in the being of the movie does just that! The music takes the watcher/listener on a journey and allow for them to create a relationship with the content of the movie.
(here is the link to the website again: http://www.rotoscopers.com/2014/05/06/how-the-married-life-opener-elevates-up-to-animations-greatest-heights/ )
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