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“Elio”

Pixar Animation

Directed by Adrian Molina, Domee Shi and Madeline Sharafian

Starring Yonas Ascunsion, Zoe Saldaña, Remy Edgerly, Brad Garrett and Jameela Jamil

Rated PG

 

3 Stars

 

I am an enthusiastic fan of Pixar Animation, but while their first movies were generally wonderful, they have been a little more hit-and-miss over the past few years.

Pixar has a new film, “Elio,” out in theaters this weekend. Will it be an acclaimed hit, or another forgettable miss?

I think it’s a bit of both.

Elio tells the story of a young boy (Yonas Ascunsion) who is obsessed with outer space. He spends his evenings lying on the beach and hoping that extraterrestrials will come and abduct him. He even sends a recorded message out into the cosmos, inviting the aliens to stop by and pick him up.

Elio gets his wish and is beamed up to a spaceship where a coalition of alien creatures mistakenly assume that this young boy is actually the leader of the earth. Elio is too excited to correct them, but things take a dire turn when Elio is asked to help stop an intergalactic warlord (Brad Garrett) who is bent on planetary domination.

This being an animated family adventure, the warlord’s plans are never truly scary. That’s a good thing, as Elio isn’t a particularly good ambassador, but he gets a helping hand when he meets the warlord’s young son, an awkward worm-like creature known as Glordon (Remy Edgerly).

The two boys form an immediate bond, and their friendship provides the movie with its most appealing moments. There’s something charming about watching two kids bumbling their way through a grand space adventure.

I also appreciated Elio’s human relationship with his aunt (Zoe Saldaña). She is raising him because Elio’s parents died in an accident. I think the story initially struggles to explain why Elio is so unhappy with his aunt, who obviously loves him. The relationship is confusing, especially as it’s the reason that Elio is determined to run away from home. Yet that odd start aside, there’s no denying the emotional impact of the final moments where Elio finally learns the value of home. You should never doubt that Pixar knows how to deliver a feel-good ending.

I also loved the character animation here. Pixar is obviously known for their visual style, but “Elio” deserves extra credit for the creative alien creature designs. It’s no small feat to turn a giant space worm with teeth, like Glordon, into a cute and cuddly creature that begs to be turned into a plushie.

  If the film has a downside, it falls back upon its story. In addition to the odd start, the space adventure is fun, but it doesn’t really have any stakes. At no time did I think that the warlord was going to win, so I didn’t have to pay much attention to Elio’s efforts. Sure, it’s a lot of fun, but also too inconsequential to really grip the audience’s emotions.

Therein lies the rub. The best Pixar movies are undeniable works of impressive creativity, but the important thing is that they are founded upon exceptional stories, with characters we love and adventures to truly matter within their world. “Elio” simply doesn’t rise to that level.

Credit the filmmakers for shooting for the stars here (literally) but the movie never quite leaves orbit. “Elio” is a lot of fun, especially for young boys, but it’s simply not one of Pixar’s masterpieces.

 

Movie reviews by Sean, “The Movie Guy,” are published each week in The Port Arthur News and The Orange Leader. Sean welcomes your comments via email at sean@seanthemovieguy.com You can get more of Sean’s reviews by subscribing to the 2 Movie Guys podcast.