MOVIE REVIEW: ELEMENTAL

In a city where fire, water, land, and air residents live together, a fiery young woman and a go-with-the-flow guy discover something elemental: how much they actually have in common.

Director: Peter Sohn

Cast: Leah Lewis, Mamoudou Athie, Ronnie del Carmen, Shila Ommi, Wendi McLendon-Covey, Catherine O'Hara, Mason Wertheimer, Joe Pera, Matt Yang King

Release Date: June 16, 2023

Genre: Animation, Adventure, Comedy, Drama, Family, Fantasy, Sci-Fi

Rated PG for some peril, thematic elements and brief language

Runtime: 1h 42m

Elemental is a charming romantic comedy disguised as a children's movie which shows that Pixar can still deliver the kind of emotional resonance that makes their films special.  Peter Sohn delivers a beautifully animated journey into a fully realized world of anthropized elemental that's simply dazzling to look at.  The animation packs a mindboggling amount of detail into each frame that's its almost impossible to catch every bit of it in one showing.  The character designs themselves are wonderfully crafted with each elemental given a distinctive look and feel.  Story wise it does feel like it might lean a bit older since the central plot is a rather sweet romance pair with a not so subtle immigrant subplot which will likely go over younger kids heads.  Its a straightforward story done with believable and personal stakes that makes you invested in the story.  A major reason the story resonates is the voice work turned in by film's leads Leah Lewis and Mamoudou Athie.  Lewis and Athie make a believable and likable onscreen pair with both turning in strong vocal performances that really shine throughout.  Lewis, in particular, provides a nuanced level of emotional range that makes Ember all the more memorable.  Together they share a special kind of chemistry which works in the film's favor.  The subplot involving Ember's immigrant father and his wish to have her run his story is the film's secret weapon and sure to elicit a tear or two by the time the film ends thanks in large part to a heartfelt turn from Ronnie del Carmen.  Elemental may surprise people who haven't been impressed with some of Pixar's more recent offering because it delivers the kind of emotional heft that makes you forget your watching a kids movie.

A-

MOVIE REVIEW: UNDERWATER

Disaster strikes more than six miles below the ocean surface when water crashes through the walls of a drilling station. Led by their captain, the survivors realize that their only hope is to walk across the sea floor to reach the main part of the facility. But they soon find themselves in a fight for their lives when they come under attack from mysterious and deadly creatures that no one has ever seen.

Director: William Eubank

Cast: Kristen Stewart, Vincent Cassel, Jessica Henwick, John Gallagher Jr., Mamoudou Athie, and T.J. Miller

Release Date: January 10, 2020

Genres: Action, Drama, Horror

Rated PG-13 for sci-fi action and terror, and brief strong language

Runtime: 1 h 35 min 

Review:

Some films pull inspiration from classics while others unabashely rip elements from them and while repackaging them with enough variety to keep them legally clear.  Underwater is a classic example of the latter.  It's not a terrible movie, director William Eubank delivers some impressive set pieces builds suspense throughout, but anyone who's ever seen Ridley Scott's Alien will notice some striking similarities.  The setting changes from space to underwater but the it all feels very familiar even if you don't get a chest busting or cat rescue sequence.  Eubank doesn't seem to care if you notice all the cross contamination so he just runs with it like a modern day Roger Corman.  The film taken on it's own rights is decent enough even if everything feels fairly routine and predicable.  The cast of character's runs the gamut of disposable fodder with each meeting a predictable although occasionally gruesome fate.  Kristen Stewart leads the film as quietly as humanly possible, her character isn't all that interesting but then again nobody else is either.  The rest of the cast is made of recognizable faces who do their best to give their characters some meat even though they all written in terribly one dimensional fashion.  The film does excel in creature design and setting, using both to maximum effect.  It keeps the film engaging during it's lean 95 minute run time while making the equivalent of cinematic sci-fi fast food.

C+