Elemental

Gentle and humane but never raw or vulnerable.

There are tonal parallels with Pixar’s Inside Out and Zootropolis, but while it has a peppy visual energy, Elemental lacks the wildly inventive storytelling of the former and the laughs of the latter.

A bit like Inside Out meets Zootropolis – but not as fully worked out as either – it’s a movie of lovely, radiant moments.

Busy, zany and sincere, the movie does a perfectly good job with the stuff of urban culture clash. But it is also fatally unfunny, and gets more so with every weird contrivance it whips up.

The problem is that there’s not enough storytelling muscle here for the allusion to really land.

Surely a reality where the elements are in charge should be more inventive, not limited by the trappings of capitalism and gender norms?

Baby's first immigrant story and interracial relationship courtesy of … Disney/Pixar? I jest because, honestly, ELEMENTAL is cute and does work on that social level.

An anthropomorphic immigrant romance combines into a mixed metaphorical mess... a Pixar film built on “plussing” instead of being enhanced by it... hoping the rapid fire nonsense will gloss over the lack of cohesion.

Pixar always had something new up its collective artistic sleeve. And yet here they are, coming out with a film as dull-witted and syrupy as Elemental.

Stunning animation sparks this cross-cultural, high-concept 'Romeo & Juliet' romantic comedy, inspired by the periodic chart of elements that one recalls from science class.