‘Elemental’ is ‘among the lowest debuts for a Pixar movie’ — but receives positive critic reviews

Hanna Seariac
·3 min read
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A still shot from Pixar’s “Elemental.”
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During its opening weekend, Pixar’s latest film “Elemental” brought in just over $29.6 million, per Box Office Mojo.

This means “Elemental” is “among the lowest debuts for a Pixar movie in the studio’s history,” according to NPR. Pixar — known for films like “Ratatouille,” “Cars” and “Finding Nemo” — spent seven years creating this film, Reuters reported.

What is ‘Elemental’ about?

“Elemental” is an animated film about anthropomorphic elements like Ember (fire), Wade (water) and Gale (wind) interacting and existing together in Elemental City. There are themes of romance and friendship across different elements.

Director and co-writer of the film Peter Sohn said to NPR that he got the idea for the movie when he was studying the periodic table in middle school science. “All I saw were apartment buildings. And these — each blocks and the atomic number and the name to me was like a family or a person that lived there. ... And so they started becoming characters, and, you know, I could only go so far with, like, boron or argon.”

‘Elemental’ box-office ratings

It’s an original film, not a sequel or part of an already iconic franchise, which might contribute to why it didn’t perform as well as other films. Reuters reported, “Audiences have been spoiled by three years of direct-to-streaming releases of original animated features on services including Netflix, Disney+ and Apple Inc’s Apple TV+ at home. These viewers are now more likely to open their wallets at the cinema only for familiar franchises.”

In looking at the top performing movies on Box Office Mojo so far in 2023, there are several movies that are part of franchises: “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3,” “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse,” “Avatar: The Way of Water,” “The Little Mermaid,” “Creed III,” “Fast X” and others.

‘Elemental’ critics reviews

“Elemental” has been getting positive reviews from critics and has a positive audience score. According to Rotten Tomatoes, the audience score is 92% and the critic review score is 75%. The critic consensus is “Elemental may not satisfy as fully as the greatest Pixar pictures, but it remains a solid story told with dazzling visual flair.”

Brian Lowry said in his review for CNN, “However ‘Elemental’ performs at the box office, it marks a solid addition to the library, creating an elaborate world consisting of characters representing the four elements (air, fire, water and earth) living in proximity, though not exactly together, in and around a dazzling society known as Element City.”

Jake Coyle, in his review for The Associated Press, said the film comes closer to “some of the old Pixar magic than some recent entries.” He described the film as “sincere” and the central plot line as “tenderly drawn,” while noting some missed opportunities for references to wildfires in today’s climate or the band Earth, Wind & Fire.

‘Elemental’ parents guide

The film is rated PG for “some peril, thematic elements and brief language,” per IMDb.

Intimacy and Sexuality

  • According to IMDb’s Parents Guide, characters engage in kissing, flirting and holding hands.

  • The two main characters, Wade and Ember, have a burgeoning romance.

  • Ember’s sister has a girlfriend, per IMDb.

  • There is allusion to intimacy between Ember’s parents.

Violence and strong emotions

Profanity

  • No profane words.

  • There’s an allusion to profanity, per Screen Rant.

  • Insults like “stupid” or “jerk” are used, according to Screen Rant.

Themes

  • Discrimination against the fire element people, per IMDb.

  • Romance.

  • Father-daughter relationship.

Is ‘Elemental’ streaming on Disney+?

Not yet, the film has a theatrical run. It released in theaters on Friday.