Pixar's Take on Immigrants and Romance (Disney Pixar's Elemental - review)

 

After years of Pixar being shunned as Disney Plus releases, they return to the big screen with Elemental. Directed by a lesser-known Pixar veteran, this feature focuses on a story between polar opposites... literally. In a city where inanimate elements roam as sentient beings, Pixar introduces another original world that proves itself that it is still the animation studio to beat. They might have little competition with the ambitions of Spider-Verse and the juggernaut that is Super Mario Bros, but the one thing Pixar never loses, no matter the project, it is the ability to strum heartstrings. 

Elemental was (barely) marketed as the romance between Ember, made of fire, and Wade, made of water. A kind of Romeo and Juliet-like story where the two are not meant to be together because they are not only different elements but elements that cancel each other out. Going past the surface of what audiences thought they were watching, Elemental is mostly an immigrant story, where the Fire people are venturing into a new society, facing discrimination, and are treated as minors. Ember faces this when she is pressured to carry on her father's legacy of a business that helped cater to the rise of their culture in Element City. 

Of course, in the process, she meets Wade who opens up the ability for her to see others differently. She also starts wondering if she had ever thought of what she wanted to do with her life other than carry on the sacrifice her father made when he moved to Element City. This tale of self-discovery is a love letter to anyone who grew up in a conservative community that made a life for themselves through blood, sweat, and tears and brewing an expectation for the children to carry on this achievement and not let it go to waste. 

Director Peter Sohn himself comes from a family of Korean immigrants, making this a very personal project for him. This is his way of showing gratitude to his parents that traveled far for him to gain better opportunities. The feature is meant to be universally relatable to any parent who had to uproot to make a name for themselves and to any child that was conditioned to carry that opportunity that unfortunately seemed like a burden. With that comes the clash of backgrounds between the protagonists, as Ember grew up to hustle, work hard and accept what is in front of her while Wade was taught to be kind and compassionate due to his privilege. 

Why these two lovebirds don't cancel each other out is they are perfect together. Other than the palpable chemistry of two animated inanimate characters, they are right for each other. They make each other better, connecting past their more jarring differences. There are some hints of a more adult take on this romance that the dialogue ensues in this film, like most Pixar movies that try to entertain the parents as well as their kids but it is fair to say that despite being an animation company, Pixar is more mature than one might think. That could be the problem why kids aren't big of a fan of Elemental but it is still as memorable as most of Pixar's classics. 

The animation still proves that Pixar is still reinventing itself. Most of the designs are 3D which is no surprise but nothing was more mesmerizing than when Ember is onscreen. From her being angry to when she feels sad and vulnerable, her flames react and move in ways that only an animator's wildest imagination can bring to life. The way the Element people use their abilities to get through their daily lives is clever and inventive and luckily, the film showcases a number of them. This does not even cover the amount of world-building that was thought of. A lot of it feels slightly inspired by Disney's Zootopia but even if you are reminded of that movie several times in this plotline, you are still either whisked away by the stunning visuals or invested with these characters. 

Elemental is more of a date movie than a family-friendly one, but with the audience I had for this movie, I would say it does not matter. Elemental is not Pixar's peak excellence, but it is surely one of their greatest hits that should be getting more credit than it is given. From its animation style and well-thought character dynamics, Elemental is fun and warm that should interest most Pixar enthusiasts. 

SIDE NOTE:

Before Elemental starts, there is short ,movie starring Carl and Dog from Pixar's UP that will make fans of that particular Pixar classic very happy, so stay tuned and get into the cinema early if you want to catch that.