Malay Mail, 21 August 2009

It took three attempts and a lot of nervous chatter from a radio personality with a fear of heights but in the end, it was a colourful and uplifting Saturday afternoon at Tropicana City Mall.

The new mall was the venue of the 'Up, up and away with DJ Ean of hitz.fm!' event which was held in conjunction with the release of Disney/Pixar’s Up.

With his mother present in the crowd (for moral support), Ean, along with his partner-in-crime JJ entertained spectators both young and old in the lead-up to the main event with Q&A sessions to give out preview screening tickets to Up and goodie bags with premium merchandise.

Free ice creams (courtesy of Magnolia) served well to keep spirits up in the sweltering afternoon heat.

For those wondering exactly how many balloons did it take to lift Ean up, it was quite a huge number.

"Thank you mum for making me such a fat and heavy boy," Ean quipped as his dreaded journey upwards was delayed while the crew added yet more balloons.

The final tally stood at a whopping 910, 2ft balloons (courtesy of Balloonooi), earning Ean the grandiose title of being the first man lifted up by rubber balloons in Malaysia. After JJ was also coerced into joining the "up" club, members of the public were invited to take a ride themselves - and organisers had an abundance of willing volunteers.

For those who missed out on watching Ean go up or get lifted up themselves, don’t worry, you can always watch the movie Up to get your fill of uplifting moments.

Now screening in cinemas, Up tells the story of Carl Fredricksen, who spent his entire life dreaming of exploring the globe and experiencing life to its fullest.

But at age 78, life seemed to have passed him by, until a twist of fate (and a persistent eight-year-old Wilderness Explorer named Russell) gave him a new lease of life. For details, log on to www.cinema.com.my/up.

From now, one can check out the latest Pixar Animation Studios animation movie, Up, in digital 2-D, digital 3-D and 35mm in selected GSC cinemas (Mid Valley, Pavilion KL, Berjaya Times Square, 1 Utama and Gurney Plaza).

Tickets for Up in digital 2-D will be priced at RM13 at GSC Mid Valley, while tickets pricing for the digital 3-D version which includes usage of 3-D glasses are as follows:

• GSC Mid Valley: RM17 (adult), RM11 (children) for a normal seat; twins seats - RM19 (adult).
• GSC Pavilion KL: RM18 (adult), RM12 (children) for a normal seat; twins seats – RM20 (adult).
• GSC 1 Utama: RM16 (adult), RM11 (children) for a normal seat; twins seats – RM18 (adult).
• GSC Berjaya Times Square: RM16 (adult), RM11 (children) for a normal seat.
• GSC Gurney Plaza: RM15 (adult), RM10 (children) for a normal seat.