Up – the joy of married life

Pixar is a great, great movie studio. Before we move on talking about Up, please comprehend that Pixar is the one responsible for the amazing creativity and craftsmanship of Up, Toy Story, Wall-E, Finding Nemo, The Incredible etc. These are not Disney movies!!!!! They are only there to back them financially. To whom honor, honor.

That said, let´s look at Up. In this delicious movie, an elderly man comes up with the fabulous/insane idea of using hundreds of balloons to fly his house in order see the places he always dreamed of going with his wife Ellie. The couple, at different times in their lives, saved money for their dream trip to Venezuela, but it never happened; life´s situations always seemed to get in the way. With Ellie dead, Carl is just going through the motions while waiting for death himself. Until one day he decides to make a tribute to his love and life partner by going bonkers with a flying house, a hilarious boy scout, a talking dog and an ultra-exotic bird unironically named Kevin. The film is, delicious as well as heart-breaking/warming. Let’s consider one aspect of the movie more fully, the issue of the joy of married life.

This week a giant friend of mine began a great series of posts about the joy and challenge of preserving masculine virginity till marriage. You can read the first part here. This is complicated in a world that preaches that happiness and virility consist in sleepeing with as many girls as possible instead of comitting to marriage. The movie with its tender depiction of Carl and Ellie’s love shows us the beauty of monogamy. The issue is about much more than simply sex. It is an issue of seeking something way deeper than mating, but seeking a life mate, a covenant companion. Carl understands that life is more and better because he belongs to Ellie. In her honor he will do what they always dreamed of doing. People at times think that marriage is like oil and water, two can be together, but never mingle. In fact, marriage is like two different colors uniting to become a new and fresh one, shades of the former colors can be seen, but it is something new and unique that is created in that specific blend of character, personality and experience.

The amazing musical theme of Up is called, what else, married life. Far from boring or repetitive, understood correctly it is one of the greatest forms of joy this side of heaven.Here are five of my favorite minutes in cinema ever.

Isn’t it lovely that it is precisely marriage that the Bible uses to illustrate the relationship of Christ and his church? He as the loving, self-sacrificing head that does all that it takes to purify and protect his bride. The church is his loving companion that accepts his loving leadership in humble submission and deep affection.

Married life is not for the faint of heart.  Doug Wilson explains that some people foolishly compare being married to listening to the same CD for your whole life. In fact, the true comparison is with playing an instrument; at first it is difficult and awkward, but it gets better, more interesting, more creative and more rewarding with time. Stop being such an idiot, it is time for you to enjoy life; this means getting married. Growing old. Loving your wife as Christ loves the church. Making plans, having your plans frustrated. It is altogether lovely. Enjoy it.