Directed By Peter Sohn

Starring – Leah Lewis, Mamoudou Athie, Ronnie Del Carmen

The Plot – The film journeys alongside an unlikely pair, Ember (Lewis) and Wade (Athie), in a city where fire, water, land and air-residents live together. The fiery young woman and the go-with-the-flow guy are about to discover something elemental: how much they actually have in common.

Rated PG for some peril, thematic elements and brief adult language

Elemental | Official Trailer – YouTube

POSITIVES

As is the case with nearly all of Pixar’s profoundly enlightening material, “Elemental” also carries with it plenty more than meets in the form of eye-opening social commentary, proving this film has lots to say about the current state of world affairs. For this installment, it obviously cycles through an immigration story, with corresponding elements of racism that nearly every character is guilty of perpetrating the vicious cycle. Through the experience of its characters, the film responsibly conveys that insight is only gained through interaction, and when that happens in the case of Ember and Wade, helps to conjure one of my absolute favorite love stories of the year, which is an absolute delight to live and learn through, especially since something so valuable and nourishing to these characters makes initial preconceived conflicts feel irrationally silly by contrast, in turn conveying compassion to the child audiences who will hopefully incorporate it to their own lives. It’s not all substance, however, as once again Pixar has rendered a breathtakingly immersive canvas in animation that continuously gives us plenty to feast our eyes upon. The character detailings are impressive, with a rich versatility not only in the colorfuly eclectic vibrancy of the designs themselves, but also in the complexities of texture, which are occasionally so ingrained with realism that it feels like we can reach out and touch them. This is backed fruitfully by the mesmerizing influence of establishing shots of Element City, with futuristic architecture and eye-stretching detail to give the setting an irresistible charm that equally conveys emphasis in the bonds of togetherness that much of the material motivates. The score from iconic composer Thomas Newman also imbeds uniqueness to a score that literally sounds unlike anything that any other Pixar movie has yet to inspire. Newman calls upon rhythmic hymns and tribal instruments to weave something euphoric to the integrity of scenes and sequences with a nuanced sense of reflection to the many growing character dynamics, all with Newman’s wide range of tempos enveloping each of them. Finally, the film is remarkably blessed with an array of talent to its ensemble, which surprisingly doesn’t garner a lot of familiarity towards many of them. Why this is meaningful for their influence here is because it easily allows the audience to coherently see them as the characters they embody, instead of big name actors collecting a paycheck. The most impactful for me among them was definitely Leah Lewis and Mamoudou Athie, who not only exubberate an organic chemistry between them that evolves with experience, but also a duo of infectiously energetic personalities, yet for completely opposing approaches. Aside from them, Ronnie Del Carmen literally and figuratively feels like the coal that much of the movie’s dramatic impulses burn through, with Ronnie balancing the dual sides of a loving family man and determined protector that allows him to dominate any scene that he chooses to accompany.

NEGATIVES

What ultimately keeps “Elemental” from reaching top tier status for an already impressive list of films atop Pixar’s rankings, at least for me, is a surface level screenplay that often feels confined by a brief run time (95 minutes) and various plot holes that clearly didn’t think all of the scenarios within the designs of the characters out. On the former, the lack of emphasis within the desired setting, as well as lingering opening act didn’t start things out in the most compelling of directions, with the hook of the romantic angle not taking shape until around the halfway point of the run time. Because much of the first act is establishing these characters, their tribes, and the dynamics within one another, it doesn’t always make for the most entertaining introduction to this fantastical world, especially since the humor isn’t defined enough to keep youthful audiences invested along the way. On top of this, the overt dependency on puns in the dialogue is a litmus test for how positively one will take to this engagement. For me, I appreciate a good pun or two in a film if they’re done sparingly enough, but the second act moves into focus, and the romance is smothered by these quirky self-indulgences that the movie just can’t get away from, leaving me often annoyed by the lines that the film tried so forcefully to pass off as humor. Lastly, the conflict leads to one of the most impactful moments in the history of Pixar, which is then eradicated by a resolution in the very next scene that competely voids that ambitious bravery. I would have more respect for a movie that challenges youthful audiences in ways that challenge their safety net for fictional cinema, but as it stands the film instead decides to wipe away this benefit for an ending that lands on safely unconfrontational, deviating on everything about Pixar’s biggest films that I applaudingly appreciate.

OVERALL
“Elemental” isn’t quite on the level of Pixar’s most game-changing originalities, but it does garner enough breathtaking animation, profoundly subversive social commentary and stimulating turns from a relatively unknown ensemble who continuously rise to the occasion. It’s a film about the perils of prejudice, but also the levity of love that binds them, which enriches a sweetly satisfying message of the value that each of us brings to our own melting pot society.

My Grade: 7/10 or C+