Since its inception, Pixar has emerged as one of the most consistent and prolific animation studios in the world, and its newest offering, Elemental, is yet another entry on its list of admirable films.
With its very first movie, Toy Story, Pixar began building a formula that all of its films would at least loosely follow. Certain pieces of that formula include inanimate objects becoming sentient, a group of characters aiming to solve problems for another character, jokes that rely heavily on the animation, almost absent parents, and protagonists with very clear goals and arcs. Elemental doesn’t have all of these bits of the formula, but it includes enough of the studio’s tropes to make it an apparent Pixar film.
Elemental’s Synopsis
Elemental follows a girl named Ember, a fire element, who lives in Element City with her parents, Bernie and Cinder. Bernie owns and operates a shop that pays homage to their heritage, and Ember is positioned to one day take over the shop from her father, so long as she learns to control her temper. An error made by Ember while enraged leads her to meet Wade, a water element with a job as a city inspector. Their chance encounter takes them on an adventure in an effort to save Bernie’s shop, all the while learning about themselves and each other, and reckoning with the discrimination Ember and her family have faced since moving to Element City.
Elemental hits all the marks viewers want in a Pixar film: cute characters of substance, fantastic animation, an adventure rife with physical comedy, and an endearing ending. Where it falls short is its plot. Most other Pixar films have a robust story, full of rising action and genuine plot twists. Elemental’s plot is quite basic and a little lazy, relying on its themes to carry the film.
Pixar’s ‘Elemental’
Powerful Themes
But its themes do a satisfactory job of carrying the film. Elemental highlights the discrimination immigrant families face when moving to a new country, finding the courage to follow your dreams, tolerance, and privilege. The themes, though worthy, were bold for a children’s film, but they were presented palatably and authentically to the story.
Other small quirks could have been ironed out to perfect Elemental. Not every detail regarding the physics of the four elements’ interaction quite makes sense, but they’re minor enough to be forgivable, and they don’t detract from the film’s overall impact. Elemental will likely go down as just another Pixar film (it’s a list of stiff competition), but if you’ve got a Disney+ subscription, it’s worth the hour and 40 minutes.
Elemental is streaming now on Disney+.
