Elemental

Elemental
Starring Leah Lewis, Mamoudou Athie, Ronnie del Carmen, Shila Ommi
Directed by Peter Sohn

Pixar is one of cinema's most influential animated studios, and they're especially known for their unique brand of visual storytelling. From "Toy Story" (the first completely computer animated film) to the likes of "Up" and "WALL-E," Pixar continued to re-vitalize the animation genre. The stories they crafted were unique, special, and memorable. They tackled adult issues (the first few minutes of "Up" is still some of the saddest moments in recent cinema, along with the soul-crushing opening to "Finding Nemo"), and they gave birth to unique characters that we've come to know and love. While they resorted to the traditional sequelitis, they really didn't falter in their storytelling - such as "Toy Story 3" and "The Incredibles 2." Although there were some major missteps along the way, such as with "Cars 2" and "Lightyear" - when it came to original ideas, they continued to shine with films like "Soul," "Luca," and "Turning Red." "Elemental" is another original tale from Pixar, but unlike its other outings, it's hindered by a subpar script that resorts its characters to mere caricatures to their obvious conclusion.

In Element City, the four elements - earth, fire, air, and water - all coexist together with vast differences. The Fire element lives in the poorer section of town and are known for being hotheaded. The Water element lives in the wealthier side of town and are prone to get into other peoples' business. Bernie Lumen (Ronnie del Carmen) and his wife Cinder (Shila Ommi) immigrated to Element City to start a new life, and he owns and operates a local convenience store. Their teenage daughter Ember (Leah Lewis) works at the shop, but is extremely hot-headed and prone to losing her temper, which gives Bernie pause about retiring and giving her the family business.

One day Ember loses her temper which causes the pipes to burst, sending water in the basement. It's through here that water inspector Wade Ripple (Mamoudou Athie) arrives, threatening to shut down her father's business for being out of code. She pleads her case to him, which causes the emotional Wade to start crying and they set out to save her father's shop. Along the way the two connect and Ember reveals to Wade that she's concerned about running her father's shop and if it's something she even wants to do, and he challenges her to live her own life and not for other people. As they keep growing closer, Ember worries that their budding romance will never work, because they can never touch - but it could just be because she's worried about what'll come after.


The Good:
Pixar is an expert when it comes to its animation, and "Elemental" is no different. Seven years was spent creating the world of Element City and its inhabitants, and it's a visual wonder to behold. Colors pop out in extreme style, the characters are fluid and vibrant, and everything visual about this is purely wonderful.

Leah Lewis shines as the voice of Ember, giving the character a playful tone while also supplying an undercurrent of regret and dire sadness. Ember wants to please her father to no end, and that includes taking over his business - but her hotheadedness gets in the way. Yet that is just a distraction to what she really wants in life, and serves as her inner turmoil. While she wants to fulfill her father's wishes, she wants to live her own life as well, and the two desires do not intersect.

Mamoudou Athie also excels as the voice of Wade, a character who's as charismatic as he is constantly crying. He draws people to him and has this effortless charm that draws Ember in despite them both knowing that things wouldn't work out between them because they're literally from two separate worlds. Still, Athie's voice gives hope that there can be something there, and it's the main thrust of the story.

"Elemental" tells a story of immigration, living up to your parents' expectations, and pursuing your own passions. Director Peter Sohn based the film around his own upbringing as his family immigrated to America from Korea. His parents didn't speak English, settled in the Bronx, and opened their own grocery store. You can sense the passion put into this aspect of the story, which sadly is often pushed to the back-burner in favor of a typical love story.


The Bad:
"Elemental" is, much like its title suggests, purely elemental in its storytelling. Despite touching on the aspect of immigrant life and how the Lumen family faced persecution, the main thrust of the film is the tried-and-true love story motif. Ember and Wade are literally fire and water, and everyone knows they don't mix: fire extinguishes water, and water douses flame. Yet this is a Pixar film, and one where there's always a happy ending for everyone involved, so of course there was a way for them to find love despite their differences. While not necessarily bad, it's painfully generic, and for a company like Pixar you'd expect a more substantial story.

The film also follows the same beats of recent Pixar films: two different people coming to blows then growing close, have an argument that's essentially a misunderstanding that threatens the relationship, and come back together in a grand gesture that occurs when one needs to save the other. Rinse and repeat, and "Elemental" is one such outing.

That's not saying "Elemental" is terrible, but it's just formulaic and lacking substance. You still feel an emotional connection to Ember and Wade, and their effervescent vocal actors really sell the goods, but at the end of the day it's something that won't be remembered, another in a long line of subpar, medium-level Pixar work.


The Verdict:
Despite charismatic lead voice actors and a beautifully rendered landscape and character design, "Elemental" fails to deliver a unique story to match the visuals and vocals, leading to a safe, predictable, and forgettable outing.


The Score: B+