The reviews for Elemental suggest that the studio missed its chance for a redemption movie.
Pixar Animation Studios was hailed as the genius of CGI animation, with the studio’s name synonymous with “quality,” producing hit after hit and being Disney’s “golden child” for many years.
But after the release of Toy Story 3 in 2010, Pixar seemed to begin a slow decline, with some of the studio’s projects being of average quality, and the situation only getting worse over time.
Of course, there have been big hits like Inside Out (2015), but audiences have become significantly less warm to the studio, which has become evident in recent years.
The studio’s last two films, Turning Red (2022) and Lightyear ( 2022), became massive box office flops despite moderately positive reviews, and there seems to be no sign of improvement yet.
Elemental, a computer-animated romance drama, had its world premiere at Cannes on May 27, 2023, and could have been a redemption film for the studio, but apparently failed to return it to its former pedestal.
Judging by the early reviews, the film is visually pleasing, which is true of most of Pixar’s work, but otherwise mediocre.
They say that the message is blatantly clear, the story is nothing special and even boring at times, while at the same time it is somehow overcomplicated.
Fans are not eager to judge the film based on early reviews, saying that it looks good and may end up being quite decent, as has been the case with many other films that have been panned by critics.
However, some admit that Pixar has lost a lot of its magic over the years, and some of their recent projects have been rather underwhelming.
While Elemental may not be the most mediocre movie ever made, the problem is that it doesn’t look like a hit from the studio’s glory days.
The reviews for Lightyear, for example, weren’t entirely negative, but that didn’t save the movie from being a financial flop, and apparently Elemental has a good chance of suffering the same fate.
The movie will be released in US theaters on June 16, 2023.
Sources: The Hollywood Reporter, Deadline, Variety, Reddit
