Focusing on the themes of grief and loss through space exploration, Elio brings back that feeling of classic Pixar while making sure to bring new life into the field of animation.

Elio was a film that caught my attention from the first trailer and was upset when its original release date was pushed back.  It seemed to have a lot of the classic things from Pixar Studios that everyone can love – an adorable protagonist and otherworldly beings – and knowing how this has worked in the past for the studio, I was itching to watch it.  Coming from someone who has very much enjoyed nearly everything Pixar has ever put out, including the most recent releases, Elio feels very much like what I fell in love with as a child when it came to their original creations.

After the death of his parents, Elio is placed in the care of his aunt Olga, an Air Force major working on monitoring space debris from hitting Earth satellites.  She has given up her dreams of being an astronaut to care for Elio, who do not have the best relationship as she struggles to take care of him.  After bringing him to a space museum, Elio stumbles upon the idea that extraterrestrial life exists outside of Earth and wants to be captured by aliens.  His wish comes true as a spaceship, thinking he is the leader of Earth, abducts him and asks him to join their leadership.  Elio has to prove his worth to the aliens in order to stay, something he is desperate to do, never wishing to return home to Earth.

One of the immediate things we are hit with is the idea of feeling alone and wanting to escape.  This is not something that is done subtly, but the main focus of why Elio is so excited that there is life outside of the planet he calls home.  As he is being zapped up into the spaceship, he is giving remarks of glee and happiness because this is what he has been wanting for the longest time.  He feels as though he is a burden to his aunt and he has no friends.  No matter what he does, he is alone.  His parents died and he thinks that they were the only people on Earth that actually cared about him. Why would he want to stay in a place where he doesn’t belong?  Even though this idea is not subtly put into the plot, I think that having this is a great way of showing kids that it is okay to feel alone.  It is a natural feeling especially when you have gone through great loss, to grieve in your own way and have a want to find a place where you belong.  This is where I feel as though the film shines as classic Pixar – making sure their audience, no matter what age, has some kind of connection to the material that allows the plot to move forward. 

That being said, Pixar usually does a great job in the past of being able to feel like anyone of any age could watch it at any time and enjoy it completely.  While I would not say Elio is “childish”, it definitely feels as though this was made with the intention of appealing to children first and adults second.  I’m sure that is the approach Pixar has used from the beginning, but it felt more apparent in this film than any of their others. While I enjoy children’s films a lot when done well, there were moments that I felt as though the only reason a scene or a line was put in was because it would make a child laugh.  Again, not necessarily a bad thing, but more noticeable than Pixar has done in the past.

Halfway through the film, Elio meets a child alien who just wants to be a kid like him and they become instant friends.  Their adventures together make for sweet moments throughout as you are just rooting for Elio to be happy.  While he is not a flawless character, seeing him genuinely happy around these aliens, especially when forming his friendship with Glordon.  This makes for the most heartwarming parts of the film that allow both characters to just be themselves.  Everyone needs a Glordon in their life.

The only main issue with the film is the ending.  The way it wraps up brings together plot points casually dropped throughout is fun but feels rushed.  The filmmakers wanted to make sure we brought back nearly every character and their quirk back for the ending, and while this is nothing new in films with children audiences, it just felt like they were putting them in to be like “hey remember that guy!”, adding nothing more to the story.  How everything gets solved does not make sense and comes out of nowhere, pulling back from the true meaning of what the film was going for just to add a fun chase-like scene.  This is a small feature but something that bothered me a lot.

Overall, Elio offers great themes for children who may not know how to express themselves after a great loss, reminding many of some of the original films to come from Pixar studios.  And even if it felt more childish than their past films, it is still enjoyable for those of all ages.

Grade: B+

Oscar Prospects: 
Likely: Best Animated Feature Film
Should be Considered: None

Where to Watch: In Theaters