By tying thousands of balloon to his home, 78-year-old Carl Fredricksen sets out to fulfill his lifelong dream to see the wilds of South America. Right after lifting off, however, he learns he isn’t alone on his journey, since Russell, a wilderness explorer 70 years his junior, has inadvertently become a stowaway on the trip.

Pixar takes to the skies again, this time with buddy-story specialists Pete Docter and Bob Peterson bringing the charm to us in 3D (in “select” theaters, anyway). These days, I support anything that strips away my senses of irony and sarcasm, and Up’s teaser trailer (located above) is wonderfully restorative. At Comic-Con last year, Docter described how the movie was influenced by an unreachable range of Venezuelan mountains, and a septuagenarian ’s wish to fulfill the dreams he made with his now-departed wife when he was a younger man. I got misty. Plus, Docter went on to say that his movie will have some easter eggs for upcoming Pixar projects. More news as Pixar/Disney leaks it.

Rated PG for some peril and action.

Director: Pete Docter Bob Peterson
Stars: Edward Asner, Jordan Nagai, John Ratzenberger
Studio: Buena Vista Pictures
Release Date: 29 May 2009 (USA)
Genre: Animation, Action, Adventure, Comedy, Family

As Hannah Montana’s popularity begins to take over her life, Miley Stewart, on the urging from her father takes a trip to her hometown of Crowley Corners, Tennessee to get some perspective on what matters in life the most.

If one takes into consideration this story’s thematic elements and combines them with Miley’s real-life trials and tribs, one might assert that the young star is boxing up her alter ego and preparing for the next chapter in her career. Affirming this notion is the fact that novelist Nicholas Sparks (he of Notebook fame) is customizing his first-ever screenplay to suit Ms. Cyrus, and the project is tentatively set to arrive around the time of her 18th birthday. Aiding the transition here is adult-fare specialist, director Peter Chelsom (Shall We Dance).

Director: Peter Chelsom
Stars: Miley Cyrus, Emily Osment, Billy Ray Cyrus
Studio: Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
Release Date: 10 April 2009 (USA)
Genre: Comedy | Family | Music

Based on the books “Confessions of a Shopaholic” and “Shopaholic Takes Manhattan” by Sophie Kinsella. Rebecca Bloomwood (Isla Fisher) is a 25 year old who lives with her best friend Suze (Krysten Ritter) in Suze’s flat (paying her friend rent that is well below market value), in a trendy part of town. Rebecca has a very boring job writing for a financial magazine. She has a shopping addiction and her crap job doesn’t pay enough. Her bills are piling up, so she tries cutting back (complete fiasco), then she tries making more money (another fiasco). Eventually, Becky discovers a story that she is truly invested in. Exposing the story gets the attention of a colleague that she hasn’t quite figured out yet. Some drama ensues as she snags the guy, and she attempts to pay off her ever-growing debt.

It’s a chick-lit showdown this month, with Isla Fisher in Shopaholic and a clutch of serious contenders that is the principal cast of He’s Just Not That Into You. We love an underdog, especially one as otherworldly beautiful as Ms. Fisher (when will she and Sacha Baron Cohen tie the knot?), but Shopaholic descends from the massively popular novels by real-life financial journalist Madeleine Wickham (pen name: Sophie Kinsella), whose Undomestic Goddess is being developed by Robert De Niro and Jane Rosenthal. The trailer is a bit of a puzzle — as in, just because someone is good at slapstick, that doesn’t mean you have to incorporate it into your script. Also, we can’t tell if the tone is supposed to be highbrow, low, or just kinda all over the place.

Rated PG for some mild language and thematic elements.

Director: P.J. Hogan
Stars: Isla Fisher, Hugh Dancy, Krysten Ritter
Studio: Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
Release Date: 13 February 2009 (USA)

A young girl (Fanning) walks through a secret door in her new home and discovers an alternate version of her life. On the surface, this parallel reality is eerily similar to her real life – only much better. But when her adventure turns dangerous, and her counterfeit parents (including Other Mother [Hatcher]) try to keep her forever, Coraline must count on her resourcefulness, determination, and bravery to get back home – and save her family.

Director Selick (the unsung hero behind Tim Burton’s A Nightmare Before Christmas) finally gets his chance to shine, or at least step out of Burton’s shadow and with the perfect material for him. By perfect, we mean super creepy. And by unsung, we mean he directed Nightmare not Burton (look it up). If you’re a Burton fan or thought the underwater claymation scenes from The Life Aquatic were the best part of that movie, then Selick’s solo work is for you. If you’re a fan of 3-D stop-motion animation, then the LA Times’ behind-the-scenes photo gallery is just for you.

Rated PG for thematic elements, scary images, some language and suggestive humor.

Director: Henry Selick
Stars: Dakota Fanning, Teri Hatcher, John Hodgman
Studio: Focus Features
Release Date: 6 February 2009 (USA)

Insp. Jacques Clouseau teams up with a squad of International detectives who are just as bumbling as he is. Their mission: Stop a globe-trotting thief who specializes in stealing historical artifacts.

Ooh, they pulled a Rachel Dawes here and replaced Kevin Kline with John Cleese in the role of Chief Inspector Dreyfus. Shawn Levy passed on the sequel in order to helm Night at the Museum 2, making way for Agent Cody Banks director Harald Zwart (we’d like to hear Martin-as-Clouseau say his name). That must have saved the production beaucoup dollars. All of this switcheroo neatly conceals the plot, which sounds like Clouseau hunting down Nic Cage in National Treasure. Luckily, this one has even cuter support staff, with a band of inspectors that includes Andy Garcia, Aishwarya Rai, and Alfred Molina.

Rated PG for some suggestive humor, brief mild language and action.

Director: Harald Zwart
Stars: Steve Martin, Jean Reno, Emily Mortimer, Andy Garcia, Alfred Molina
Studio: Columbia Pictures
Release Date: 6 February 2009 (USA)