Posted in: Movies, Review | Tagged: disney, elemental, pixar

Elemental Is A Sweet Film, And Exactly What Pixar Needed {Review}

Elemental is a sweet film that may not reach the heights of some of the classic Pixar films, but it is more than worth your time.

Elemental is a sweet film, with two excellent lead performances by Leah Lewis and Mamoudou Athie. The first ten minutes are a bit all over the place, but when the film finds its groove, it zooms by and produces the emotional viewing that we all expect from a Pixar film. After the emptiness many felt with Lightyear, Elemental was the right film to counter with and a metaphor for the studio itself. It is a shame that many may miss some of these wonderful visuals on the big screen, instead opting for Disney+ like Bob Chapek trained them to.

Elemental Deserves Better

This film is in such a tough spot. The expectations heaped upon it after the failure of Lightyear at the box office are unfair. As is the notion that this has to be the film to "save Pixar." Pixar doesn't need saving. Its last four movies- Onward, Soul, Luca, and Turning Red before Lightyear were all fantastic and well-loved films, but as a theatrical brand, three of those went straight to Disney+. Bob Chapek, someone with no business making this decision, trained the public that Pixar is now a streaming brand, as he did with Star Wars. That decision should shoulder way more of the blame for Lightyear's failure, and now, Elemental will pay the price. Throw in a release date surrounded by severe competition in a crowded June and less marketing than any Pixar film you could remember, and it is all there to set it up for failure before anyone steps in the theater.

Which is a shame. Granted, this is not an easy film to market. Featuring major themes like immigration, parent-child expectations and relationships, class systems, and all kinds of different self-esteem and mental health struggles. That is not an easy film to sell to someone to get them to see it. The focus should be on the outstanding lead vocal performances that bring Ember (Lewis) and Wade (Athie) to life. Both are excellent, with Lewis especially bringing an incredibly nuanced performance to Ember. Her character starts all over the place, but Wade coming into her life provides the right kind of chaos in the film that balances out, and they become a classic Pixar pair. Really, a lot of the supporting cast doesn't make an impression, which is an issue, but if you don't buy into the Ember and Wade relationship, you won't buy into Elemental. All of their tender moments feel completely earned and are very endearing to watch.

There seems to be just a bit too much story here for one movie. Director Peter Shon does an excellent job telling us all we could ever want to know about the Fire people in Element City, but it would have been nice to get more about the other three groups. The first ten minutes are a bit of a mess as they try to show us a smidge about living in the city, with plenty of little jokes here and there. After that, once the story settles in, we barely get a real look at anything else besides the Fire people. The issue is that while we are getting a straightforward enemies-to-lovers story, it is set in this supremely interesting world that we want to know more about but never do. It gets a little frustrating.

Even the animation in spots looks insanely pretty but feels off-putting simultaneously. It is an interesting watch in that regard because, for all intents and purposes, they really did make a romantic animated film for adults. All of the focus and storytelling are bottled up in the two leads and Ember's family, but not at the expense of that story. It may be to the film's detriment at the end of the day, as they don't flesh out many of the issues they touch upon in the first half, letting them fall to the side a little too quickly.

Still, this is as sweet a time as you will have at the movies this summer. Elemental has enough heart at its core to sweep you up, and you will more than enjoy your time as you watch. It is afterward that you may pull it apart and will do nothing to slow the nonsense talk about Pixar being "over." But as a singular viewing experience, it is worth your time.

Elemental

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Review by Jeremy Konrad

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7/10

Elemental is a sweet film that produces one of the best couples in a Pixar film. It doesn't reach the heights of some of their classics, but it is more than worth your time.

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