Part of A House Next Door’s Pixar Week, Jonathan Pacheco finds similarities between Pixar’s Up and Miyazaki’s Howl’s Moving Castle:
“Many similarities between the two stick out to anyone with a pair of eyes. Each film features a spectacular traveling domicile that houses an old, old, protagonist. Beyond the protagonist, Up’s principal characters and their designs mirror Howl’s Moving Castle. Docter’s Russell the Eagle Scout resembles the magical disguise of Miyazaki’s Markl the boy wizard; the exotic bird Kevin takes her cues from the hopping scarecrow, Turnip; Dug the talking dog can easily be linked to Calcifer the fire demon, the nearly catatonic but strangely adorable Witch of the Waste, or, of course, the rasping dog that follows her.”
Up featurette about Dug the Dog.
The dogs were easily my favorite part of the film, which is chock full of amazing moments.
The Slashfilm bloggers and readers compiled a pretty comprehensive list of the hidden easter eggs and nods in Up. (Contains some spoilers for the film, but not many)
