‘Elemental’ review: Predictable Pixar film still worth a watch for its feel-good moments
- Directed by Peter Sohn, the film is the studio’s first original theatrical release since the Covid-19 pandemic and opened to poor box office numbers before gaining steam
- Leah Lewis from Netflix’s ‘The Half of It’ and Mamoudou Athie from ‘Jurassic World Dominion’’ lend their voices to this love story
Ember (Leah Lewis) and Wade (Mamoudou Athie) in “Elemental”. Photo: Disney/Pixar/TNSElemental, Pixar’s first original film released in cinemas since Covid-19, has had an interesting road since its release in mid-June. The film, which cost more than US$200 million to make, took home a disappointing US$29.5 million in domestic ticket sales its opening weekend, the lowest of any Pixar film in its nearly 30-year history. However, it has held steady in cinemas and made around US$251.9 million globally. It is now the first original animated movie of the decade to earn more than US$100 million in US ticket sales, according to Gizmodo.
People have high expectations of Pixar films, which are famous for being sentimental. But terrible initial reviews, a predictable plot, and a lack of marketing meant movie-goers weren’t as excited for this new film as previous Pixar flicks.
The film takes place in the metropolitan Element City, where water, air, earth and fire elements all live together – but still separately. Second-generation immigrant Ember Lumen (voiced by Leah Lewis, best known for her role as Ellie Chu in the 2020 Netflix film The Half of It) works in her father’s convenience store, mainly selling traditional food to other immigrants from Fireland. Her father, Bernie (animator and voice actor Ronnie Del Carmen), wants to hand his shop over to Ember when he retires but says she must learn to control her temper first. One day, Bernie allows Ember to run the shop on her own, and she becomes overwhelmed by uncooperative customers. Her temper makes her erupt into flames, bursting a water pipe and flooding the basement of her father’s shop.
This summons City Inspector Wade Ripple (Mamoudou Athie from the 2022 Netflix horror series Archive 81 and Jurassic World Dominion), a water element who was travelling through the pipes and investigating a flood. Unfortunately, Wade must report the bad plumbing to his superiors at city hall, which will shut the shop down. Desperate to save her father’s business, Ember makes a deal with Wade’s boss Gale (Wendi McLendon-Covey); if she and Wade can find the source and stop the flood, the shop can stay open. But as fate has it, their turbulent journey to save the city fosters a forbidden romance between them.
How Disney and Pixar went through fire and water to animate Elemental, a film about tolerance
The two are star-crossed lovers: Ember, a fire element, will evaporate Wade, a water element, who will extinguish Ember’s fire if they touch each other. They also need to deal with Ember’s father, who has a venomous hatred for the privileged Wade and draws a distinct line between them. Can these two overcome the pressure from society – and their families – and find their happily ever after?
It’s not hard to see that the film is an allegory for immigrant life in the US: Korean-American director Peter Sohn has explained how he based elements of the plot on his own experiences as the son of immigrants in New York City in the 1970s and marrying outside his culture. The elements represent different races: as a water element, Wade is more privileged, and the city is built to benefit him. The city’s grand canals allow water elements to commute quickly and freely before returning to their luxurious penthouses.
Meanwhile, the less privileged Ember lives in the secluded Firetown and faces prejudice from other elements, who perceive her as dangerous. Ember and Wade’s love breaks the stereotype that “elements don’t mix” and promotes the theme of unity and cultural acceptance.
The ending probably won’t come as a surprise, and most of the movie was fairly predictable. It incorporated every Pixar cliché, from the importance of family to the weight of emotional baggage. But it’s still worth a watch since it’s a feel-good movie with a touching lesson you can enjoy with your family.