Review of Elemental (2023) by Jluis_001 — 02 Jul 2023

Disney made a mistake with its streaming service because it taught its viewers a lousy lesson when it comes to its movies, especially the animated ones: ''Don't go to the theaters, wait for their release on Disney+.

Call it whatever you want but even though people like Guillermo del Toro keep saying that animation is not just for kids, the majority of the mainstream audience still sees it that way. As a minor genre.

It's not a good thing, but it is what it is. Elemental may not have the quality of the best films that Disney/Pixar has made and that gave it all its prestige, but personally it remains a very interesting and entertaining installment.

The animation is top-notch and the story is adequately balanced in terms of humor, fun, fantasy and romance, and that's quite independent of the opinion and vision others may have about its themes. Perhaps there's nothing original about it, but there's a very long distance between breaking new ground and telling a quality story in spite of some of its plot shortcomings.

This film is not a missed opportunity, but it has become all too evident that Pixar has lost its spark of brilliance and above all better quality, and that for better or worse translates into films that fail to bring genuine excitement to the viewers.