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Elio Review
Image Credit: Pixar
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Directed By: Adrian Molina, Madeline Sharafian, and Domee Shi
Written By: Julia Cho, Mark Hammer, and Mike Jones
Runtime: 99 minutes
MPA Rating: Rated PG for some action/peril and thematic elements.
Yonas Kibreab – Elio Solís
Zoe Saldaña – Olga Solís
Remy Edgerly – Glordon
Brad Garrett – Lord Grigon
Brandon Moon – Ambassador Helix
Jameela Jamil – Ambassador Questa
Brendan Hunt – Gunther Melmac
Dylan Gilmer – Bryce
Jake Getman – Caleb
Shirley Henderson – Ooooo
Matthias Schweighöfer – Ambassador Tegmen
Ana de la Reguera – Ambassador Turais
Bob Peterson – Universal User’s Manual
Pixar delves back into the realm of science fiction for its new interstellar adventure, Elio. Although the film is flying under the radar into theaters, Pixar and co-directors Adrian Molina, Madeline Sharafian, and Domee Shi have crafted a visually stunning, entertaining, yet emotionally heartwarming adventure. The film beautifully captures the discovery of space exploration and the possibility of extraterrestrial life.
The story follows young Elio Solís (Kibreab). After the tragic off-screen death of his parents, Elio is adopted by his closest relative, his aunt Olga (Saldaña). Olga works in the military monitoring orbital space debris, but she hopes to become an astronaut. Elio senses that Olga put aside her dreams to focus on raising him. After discovering the Voyager mission at the space center, Elio becomes obsessed with making contact with extraterrestrials so he can travel to the stars.
A collective of peaceful, inquisitive aliens, who dub themselves “The Communiverse,” discovered NASA’s Voyager 1 spacecraft in deep space. They use the Voyager’s Golden Record to send back an introductory greeting to planet Earth so they can meet humanity’s leader. Elio eavesdrops on his aunt’s meeting where the eccentric operator, Gunther Melmac (Brendan Hunt), is the only one smart enough to realize the interstellar significance of the radio frequency interstellar. Elio sends back a greeting to the aliens, and in the process, nearly fries his aunt’s entire base, landing them both in deep trouble. Elio gets banished to boarding school with some angry bullies for two weeks, but he’s saved by the Communiverse, fibbing that he’s the leader of Earth in the hopes of joining their group. Unfortunately, the Communiverse runs afoul of a tyrannical interstellar warlord, Grigon (Garrett), who threatens the Communiverse with annihilation. Along the way, Elio finds his first true friend, and he learns more about himself and his Aunt Olga.
Despite some predictable story beats, the talented cast and crew of Elio executes them with aplomb. The discovery and realization of the Communiverse provide the film’s most wildly fun and imaginative moments. The story mixes the astounding of attending the NASA space center for the first time on a field trip with imagining space travel and alien life. Plus, the directors add a dash of family drama with Elio and his aunt Olga. Their story parallels Elio’s new alien pal, Glordon (Edgerly), an adorable, kind, and empathetic silkworm-type alien of planet Hylurg.
Even at 99 minutes, Elio takes a beat for the narrative to find its best footing. Once Olga realizes her nephew has replaced himself with a clone made of high-tech modeling clay, the story significantly picks up. The third act morphs into a rousingly fun interstellar adventure while capturing the majesty of the possibilities of space travel. Elio marvels at space with a fittingly optimistic sense of awe and wonder. True, humans are just tiny blips in the vast infinite cosmos … but isn’t that kind of awesome? Elio successfully melds a Pixar family movie sensibility with a classic sci-fi literary style.
Many children, and probably some adults too, can relate to the plight of Elio, who will surely become an important gateway character for future Pixar animation fanatics in the years to come. The directors imbue a genuine sadness while introducing the character, who is still mourning the loss of his parents. Pixar filmmakers have always excelled in bringing true-to-life emotions to their main characters, and Elio and Olga are no exceptions. Elio stands out as an exceptionally realized, yet flawed, Pixar protagonist who is allowed to make mistakes and overcomes them. Olga struggles with raising her “spirited” nephew, but she never wavers in her love for him, and it’s a rather genuinely sweet relationship.
Grigon, as the story’s chief antagonist, could have benefited from additional screen time and development. It’s a respectable role for Pixar and animation veteran Brad Garrett. His subplot needed more meat on the bones, especially due to his connection with another character, but it eventually comes to a satisfying conclusion.
Elio tells an imaginative, heartwarming story that stumbles a bit in the first half, but it’s filled with likable, charming characters. The film embraces the concept of science fiction and the possibility of what if, while also providing wholesome family escapist entertainment. It will be a shame if Elio gets overlooked in theaters because it’s genuinely good.
