58
Metascore
45 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 75IndieWireSiddhant AdlakhaIndieWireSiddhant AdlakhaDespite its confused and overstuffed worldbuilding, “Elemental” has enough charming moments to get by, even if its meaning lies less in its ill-conceived immigrant saga, and more in the personal drama that lives a few layers beneath it.
- 75TheWrapBen CrollTheWrapBen CrollWith story beats and character turns that strain well beyond familiarity, Elemental matches formal adventure with storytelling timidity. Here is a new spin on the old formula, livened up by advances in technology and delivered with real artistry. The film is full of complex and volatile parts, all held together in the most elemental of containers.
- 70Paste MagazinePaste MagazineElemental may not rise to the heights that Up soared to, but the ingredients of Elemental combine in ways that are both satisfying and even moving.
- 60Total FilmJames MottramTotal FilmJames MottramA sweet-natured love story, well-intentioned, animated and acted, but lacking the depth of some of the studio’s greatest triumphs.
- 60VarietyPeter DebrugeVarietyPeter DebrugeThere’s poetry and soul here, but both are watered down by how much the movie seems to be multitasking. With Pixar, sincerity is elemental. The rest risks distracting from what really matters.
- 60The TelegraphRobbie CollinThe TelegraphRobbie CollinIt’s the Pixar film that has to remind its audience what a Pixar film is.
- 58ColliderTherese LacsonColliderTherese LacsonNarratives about identity are important, but Elemental lacks the delicate nuance needed to tell these stories.
- 50The Hollywood ReporterJordan MintzerThe Hollywood ReporterJordan MintzerHad Pixar perhaps taken more risks with that plotline, they might have pleased a smaller demographic than such a project requires to be profitable, but they might also have delivered a movie on par with some of their best work. Instead, the elements all fit perfectly into place — so much so that water eventually puts out fire, and we’re left without much of an impression.
- 50Screen DailyTim GriersonScreen DailyTim GriersonElemental contains hints of the studio’s wit and poignancy while lacking the inspired execution that once seemed so effortless.
- 50RogerEbert.comIsaac FeldbergRogerEbert.comIsaac FeldbergPerhaps fittingly for a film that would have more accurately been titled “When Fire Met Water…,” Elemental is combustible enough from minute to minute, but it evaporates from memory the second you leave the theater.