ELEMENTAL (2023) – Review

When thinking of the animation process, we naturally think of giving movement to characters created by artists using pencil, clay, puppets, and now, most prominently, pixels. Sure, that’s a literal interpretation, to “breathe life” into these renderings. A big part of this art goes beyond the main figures as the talents must create a “world” for them, one that can mesh with their designs and the story itself. With the most recent hit animated feature, we’re taken on an dizzying trip in multiple worlds, many which resemble our home. Expanding on classic cartoon shorts (“Flowers and Trees” certainly springs to mine), the creative minds at Pixar Studios have imagined settings for objects “humanized”, from the motor maniacs of the CARS series to the “interior concepts” of the emotions of INSIDE OUT and the afterlife of SOUL. In this new release, we’re sent into a place without “us”, Instead it’s variations of the “big four”: earth, wind, fire, and water, hence its title ELEMENTAL.

The story begins with a brief history of one part of the quartet, fire. Actually, it’s a “fire family” who arrive at Element City’s version of Ellis Island, where they’re given the name “Lumen”. The couple, Cinder (voice of Shila Omni), who is “with child”, and Bernie (Ronnie Del Carmen) head straight to the Fire Town district and convert a condemned building into “The Fireplace”, a general store/deli for “heat stuffs”. As the years pass it becomes a neighborhood fixture as the Lumen daughter Ember (Leah Lewis) is groomed to “take over the family business”. She’s even put in charge of the big annual “red dot” sale when a burst pipe nearly destroys all the stock in the basement. And even worse, the flooding brings a “by the book” city inspector, the “water-born” Wade Ripple (Mamoudou Athie), who may get the store shut down. Luckily Ember controls her temper and convinces Wade to ask his boss, the big stormy cloud Gale (Wendi McLendon-Covey) to grant a temp reprieve if they can track down the water backup. The duo works together to find and fix (for the moment) a busted overflow reservoir from the flume-like transit train. But as they team up on the repair mystery, the unthinkable happens. Ember and Wade develop feelings for each other. So what will their family think of this forbidden romance? Is there any way to make it work? And will these emotional complications distract them from another possible disaster that could jeopardize the entire city?

As opposed to most of the other major feature animation studios, the filmmakers of Pixar don’t do a lot of “stunt casting”, the practice of getting high-profile “star names ” to voice their creations. Rather, they once again, find those vocal performers that convey the nuances of their roles. That’s the case with relative newcomer Lewis, who certainly brings the “fire” to Ember (sorry), especially as she loses her temper and succumbs to “retail rage” (guessing that’s a “thing”) when trying to run the family “biz’ and wrangle the often clueless customers. But she also delivers a tenderness, and yes, warmth as she aids her loving parents and later as she ignites that spark between her and Wade. As the, at first, overbearingly officious Mr. Ripple, Athie is very funny as the twitchy and easily exasperated “meter reader” who is quick to “turn on the waterworks” (really, the tears careen from his eyes like Niagra Falls). And he undergoes a change after meeting Ember, more than making his fluid fingers boil, as he becomes emboldened and learns to stand tall and fight for his new paramour. The talented animation artist Del Carmen proves quite adept and endearing as the Lumen patriarch, the tough and tender “girl daddy”. As for the Ripples, comedy legend Catherine O’Hara is bubbly (yes) and delightful as Mama Brook. Much of the same can be said of the terrific McLendon-Covey as Wade’s blustery boss who is equally devoted to keeping Elemental City running smoothly and safely and her favorite sports team the wondrous Windbreakers.

Once more the artistic assembly at Emeryville, CA has carefully crafted an amazingly beautiful story set in a marvelously clever and beautifully rendered fantasy world. Elemental City is truly a dream come true, recalling the familiar expanses of the Big Apple while branching out into amusing bits of whimsy (gotta’ get the big coffee table “art of” book to savor all the signage). Oh, and that’s not meant to detract from the astounding character designs and movement. Ember, along with her fire family and friends, recall a flickering flame as her limbs and head are in constant flutter along with her facial features (I would focus on the wavering noses and eyes), all held together by clothing made of a nonflammable material (perhaps a bit of hard leather). Wade and his water world move about as though they were translucent balloons almost bursting with liquid rolling forward on a trickling rolling stream (with interior bubbles always on the move), and given heft by rubbery bits of clothing (he’s gotta; have a nice work shirt and tie). Gale and the gasses float about and burst into smaller clouds before reforming with their outer edges twisting in the breeze. But what about Earth? They’re solid (literally) with heads made of dirt clods with noses and eyes as roots and grass for hair. Without a script it’s all lovely “eye candy”, so the writing quartet has concocted a witty script that tries to capture the themes of lovers who aren’t supposed to unite (lots of WEST SIDE STORY along with other racial/culture clashes) and delivering a not-so-subtle message about xenophobia, as the Lumen family is often treated with fear and anger (“Their kind is dangerous”). These subjects are worthy of tackling in this medium, but it often takes away from the story’s flow as the big “action crisis” is jettisoned for the film’s middle act and feels dropped into the finale to give it a shot of disaster danger (complete with a big chase). After the recent non-stop thrills of the Spider-Verse, the pace may seem a bit too languid, but it’s a big improvement over the lackluster LIGHTYEAR of the previous year. It doesn’t quite have the emotional wallop of many of the Pixar classics, but there are lots of visual delights and clever storytelling to be enjoyed in the bubbly and nearly boiling ELEMENTAL.

3 Out of 4

ELEMENTAL opens in theatres everywhere on Friday, June 16, 2923