The Up Series

[Embiggen]

I've been on an Up Series bender over the last week or so thanks to Netflix having a lot of the movies available streaming online, and I can't recommend them highly enough. I've never seen a documentary as ambitious or moving, and I haven't been able to stop thinking about the people covered in the series. As I watch the movies I'm also constantly in awe of the fact that in the span of a few hours a person can watch the entire lives of fourteen strangers unfold before them. It's one thing to write about the life of a person, or to ask them to remember their own life through the imperfect lens of their memory, but to see someone's life progress before your eyes, and see their perspective change, seven years at a time, while the viewer doesn't have to age at all is mind-boggling. No generation before this has ever had the benefit of being able to analyze an entire life like this. Chances are that none will again, because any attempts at re-creating a series like this would undoubtedly be more affected by the presence of the camera than this series was, as we're becoming an increasingly media-savvy culture.

Sorry for nerding out on this so much, but it's just blown me away. Are there any other people on AST who love these movies as much as I do? Are there any participants you're especially fond of? Any moments in the movies that stand out?

[Darryl]

I've been on an Up Series bender over the last week or so thanks to Netflix having a lot of the movies available streaming online, and I can't recommend them highly enough. I've never seen a documentary as ambitious or moving, and I haven't been able to stop thinking about the people covered in the series. As I watch the movies I'm also constantly in awe of the fact that in the span of a few hours a person can watch the entire lives of fourteen strangers unfold before them. It's one thing to write about the life of a person, or to ask them to remember their own life through the imperfect lens of their memory, but to see someone's life progress before your eyes, and see their perspective change, seven years at a time, while the viewer doesn't have to age at all is mind-boggling. No generation before this has ever had the benefit of being able to analyze an entire life like this. Chances are that none will again, because any attempts at re-creating a series like this would undoubtedly be more affected by the presence of the camera than this series was, as we're becoming an increasingly media-savvy culture.

Sorry for nerding out on this so much, but it's just blown me away. Are there any other people on AST who love these movies as much as I do? Are there any participants you're especially fond of? Any moments in the movies that stand out?

Hey, the UP series is totally entirely worth nerding out over! I have seen them all, and own a couple. I have the rest in my Queue. Absolutely fascinating, enthralling, funny, tragic, and insightful. Anyone who is interested in human nature, culture, film making, or life should check them out. Thanks for bringing it to peoples' attention.

[AggroCrag]

I zipped through the Up Series not long ago and I can't wait for the next one. I was fascinated the most with Neil, Suzy, Jackie and Tony. Every 'Up' movie you see beyond '7 Up' has that initial shock of when you see them for the first time, seven years later. I think the biggest surprise was seeing Neil in 21 Up and beyond. '28' and '35' are almost hard to watch. In '35', when Neil is being interviewed inside the church, it looks like he is on the verge of tears.

Suzy was interesting because she seemed to defy the environment she was brought up in the most out of all the participants. She goes from being a pampered child to a bratty, bitter, chain-smoking young adult in '21' to a rich suburban mom with a successful marriage in '28'.

[Dr. Feelgood]

Yeah, I like Suzy too; it sucks that she's dropping out. The only thing about the Up Series that is slightly annoying is the amount of catching up they do with each new installment - they should just assume we've seen the previous ones. I'm a little tired of Tony at 7 saying "jockey" over and over like a crazy person... though I would miss Bruce saying "My heart's desire is to see my daddy, who's 6000 miles away."

[Berliner]

This is something I've heard about for years but have never seen. It'll probably be interesting for me to watch them all at once in a gigantic marathon.

[Embiggen]

This is something I've heard about for years but have never seen. It'll probably be interesting for me to watch them all at once in a gigantic marathon.

Definitely. Just make sure to watch them in order, and don't watch any of the previews for the later ones or even look at the DVD covers. It's fun to be surprised at what everyone looks like.