Up There (2019) Characters, Setting & Themes Explained

The re-start centre is a sterile bureaucratic waiting room where newly dead people undergo counselling and assessments to determine who gets to 'move up' to the next level. This setting functions like a government office crossed with a processing facility, establishing the film's unique take on the afterlife as an organized, rule-driven system rather than a mystical or spiritual realm.

• re-start centre
• afterlife
• bureaucracy
• death

The story primarily takes place in a re-start centre that serves as the bureaucratic hub for the newly dead, along with a seaside town connected to the afterlife's mysteries. Key scenes also occur in a quiet library, bustling urban streets, an all-night garage, and a strip club, showing how the living and dead worlds intersect in familiar, contemporary settings.

• seaside town
• library
• city locations
• afterlife settings

The film is set in the present day, as evidenced by modern vehicles like a Fiat Punto and contemporary urban environments. The afterlife premise is grounded in recognizable, everyday locations, creating a liminal space that feels plausible within a modern world rather than a historical or fantastical era.

• present day
• contemporary
• modern setting
• timeframe

The afterlife functions like a rigid bureaucracy with roles, counselling sessions, and promotions that determine who gets to 'move up'. This structure explores how people cope with death and search for meaning within a system that feels impersonal yet strangely governed by rules, blending existential themes with absurdist office dynamics.

• bureaucracy
• afterlife rules
• system
• processing

Martin's journey centers on his struggle with loss and the ache of unfinished business. He must reconcile his desire to control his fate with the necessity of letting go and accepting closure, a process mirrored by the town's lingering dead, each carrying their own unresolved stories.

• grief
• loss
• closure
• letting go
• unfinished business

Martin's bond with Rash drives much of the plot, blending friction with loyalty as they navigate the afterlife's rules. Their partnership highlights how companionship persists even in a surreal, liminal space and tests their morals as they chase the truth behind Chick's death.

• friendship
• partnership
• Rash
• Martin
• loyalty

Martin is a hesitant, self-deprecating newly dead who aims for promotion to 'up there' but learns to navigate the strange rules of the afterlife. He is pragmatic and introspective, gradually becoming more determined to help others while confronting his own grief and the possibility of moving on.

• Martin
• main character
• newly dead
• protagonist

Rash is Martin's loud and spirited coworker who loves the afterlife's odd freedoms. He embodies impulsivity and a carefree attitude, often clashing with Martin's caution. His antics drive the plot and reveal the consequences of their environment.

• Rash
• coworker
• supporting character
• afterlife freedom

Liz is a living woman encountered by Martin in a library. She can interact with the living as Martin discovers he can read alongside a living reader. She harbors a past connection to a dead man and embodies mystery and a desire to escape the town.

• Liz
• living character
• library
• mysterious past

Chick is the runaway dead man whose death reveals twists about the car involved. He embodies defiance and a need for closure, driving a key arc as his fate intersects with Rash and Martin's goals to uncover the truth.

• Chick
• dead man
• closure
• car death mystery

Dad (David Stifel) is Chick's father, a 'starer' who inhabits the town's dead landscape. He represents the limited agency of some in the afterlife who simply observe life passing by while waiting for their own closure.

• Dad
• David Stifel
• Chick's father
• starer
• observer

The film has a bittersweet tone, with characters achieving forms of closure and acceptance mixed with lingering sadness. The unusual, bureaucratic afterlife setting provides a layer of absurdist whimsy that prevents it from feeling heavy, while the emotional weight deals with grief in a muted, reflective way rather than raw trauma.

• bittersweet tone
• emotional tone
• mood
• style