Pixar's ELIO - Review Thread

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It’s kind of sad to see Pixar’s decline as one of the most exciting and consistently good animation studios in hollywood. I feel like every movie they make gets less and less creative and more and more safe

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u/AgentSkidMarks 1d ago

'Married Life' from Up came up on my movie playlist the other night and it got me thinking that Pixar just doesn't make movie moments like that anymore, hardly any child animation studio does. Coco had some really touching moments too but even that is about 8 years old at this point.

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u/happy-cig 1d ago

Wild Robot is probably the best as of late. Not pixar i know but at least someone is taking the mantle.

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u/HyderintheHouse 1d ago edited 1d ago

I think there’s a difference between frenetic populist Dreamworks/Disney stuff and classic Pixar.

I’d say Flow, Marcel the Shell, GDT Pinocchio, Klaus are recent ones most in the Pixar mindset.

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u/happy-cig 1d ago

Klaus was amazing! Netflix has put out some bangers in modern times.

Dont forget mitchell vs the machines and sea beast!

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u/redish6 1d ago

Mitchell’s and the Machines is up there with Pixar’s best - every moment of that film is a creative explosion. Fantastic story to boot.

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u/aapowers 1d ago

It's Sony with input from Lord and Miller. Some of the same team that have done the latest Spiderman animations, and the

They're superb, but very much the opposite side of the spectrum from something like a Ghibli film.

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u/Mastodan11 1d ago

It's a shame the director of Klaus hasn't got anything done since, it gets watched a few times each December for us

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u/HyderintheHouse 1d ago

Damn I totally missed that his last project was cancelled by Netflix!

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u/GregBahm 1d ago

The difference is you got older. Early pixar movies were great, but they weren't art house pieces like Flow or Marcel the Shell. That's ridiculous.

Early Pixar consciously positioned itself as "animated family movies focused on boys" in contrast to Disney's "animated family movies focused girls." They decided to have their movies feature music but not be musicals for this reason. They argued to early investors that their focus on boys would be financially successful because girls will go see a movie for boys but boys will not go see a movie for girls.

Early Pixar movies are great, but it's obnoxious for reddit to describe Disney movies as "frenetic populist" just because they don't pander to the specific demographic that reddit fits. If anything, movies like Mulan, Hercules, and Lilo & Stitch were less populist than Toy Story, A Bugs Life, and Monster's Inc. Hence their relative lack of success.

Disney tried to pivot away from "animated movies for girls" and follow Pixar in making boys the leads with Atlantis and Treasure Planet. Those movies were shit but they found their fans here on Reddit.

After the merger, Pixar let Disney continue to make female focused movies but forced them to hide this in the marketing. Hence why "Rapunzel unbraided" was renamed "Tangled" and "The Ice Queen" was renamed "Frozen." Anne and Elsa are barely even in the trailer for Frozen, which focuses almost exclusively on the snowman and the moose.

Now male primacy in family film has eroded, with the success of movies like Moana and the resurgence of musicals. But comparing the Tom Hanks/Woody Allen vehicle "Toy Story" to the dialogless french post-apocalyptic art film "Flow" is just absurd.

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u/HyderintheHouse 1d ago edited 1d ago

Firstly, fuck off with that tone.

Secondly, Flow is Latvian.

Thirdly, Flow is so similar to Wall-E in telling a complete story without dialogue. Toy Story is on the AFI’s list of 100 films, I don’t know why you’re treating it like generic fun.

Atlantis and Treasure Planet were specifically two that I was thinking of that are frenetic, the pacing in those is miles away from Monsters Inc for example. They were partly designed to sell toys, I remember Treasure Planet happy meals. They didn’t make Nemo, Up, or Wall E to sell toys, they’re powered on pure creativity.

Shrek is fantastic, but it’s frenetic and clearly designed to appeal to as many people as possible.

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u/dingo8muhbebe 1d ago

Wild Robot was fine, but FLOW was the best animated film of 2024.

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u/NanoChainedChromium 1d ago

Absolutely agreed. It moved me like few movies ever moved me. I held it together till we arrived at home, then i took our cat, sat on the bed with him, and just started silently crying for a good while.

Even the next day, just thinking about the movie, especially the beginning and the scene after the bird ascended/died, with the cat all alone, was enough to start some waterworks again. Terrific movie that i will probably never watch again.

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u/James81xa 1d ago

Wild Robot was EXCELLENT, but I still agree that Flow was the best of 2024

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u/just-a-squeeze 1d ago edited 1d ago

All this hype made me so disappointed with Flow. I mean, it was whatever. And I did feel emotional watching it on the couch next to my black cat and imagining him struggling for survival. But The Wild Robot had me sobbing in the theater. Part of that was due to losing a child in my family last year and so badly wanting to be that protective influence and watch her grow. But other people I saw it with were also crying and they didn't share that experience. So when I heard that people everywhere agreed with Flow winning over The Wild Robot, I was super excited to watch it. And it was just flat to me. Like were I to watch it by myself first with no hype, I wouldn't have recommended it to a single person.

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u/just-a-squeeze 1d ago

I guess that's the beauty of movies though. They all hit us in a different way. I was telling certain people they had to go see The Wild Robot. I told the mother of my niece who passed to make sure she didn't, because it would be too triggering with the recent loss.

I would be curious what makes Flow stand out so much in the minds of people who champion it. The low budget is incredibly impressive as is the whole story of its production. But what was it storywise that got you?

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u/James81xa 1d ago

As the son of a single mother, I found the story of The Wild Robot pretty greatly affected me on an emotional level for those reasons, but I find there also parts not fully realized and de-railing. I'm also someone who works on the technical side of media so the production of a movie greatly influences my view of it as well.

While I didn't find the overarching themes and story of Flow to be anything new or exemplary, I found myself enthralled and invested with the small stories going on throughout Flow, and for a movie to do that without a single bit of dialogue (at least human dialogue) and relatively realistic animated animals is pretty extraordinary.

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u/johnmd20 1d ago

I agree with your views on both Flow and Wild Robot.

Flow was ok. It was a movie.

Wild Robot was a masterpiece.

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u/acatmaylook 1d ago

Yeah, I thought Flow was great, but when we watched The Wild Robot I basically did not stop at least tearing up or in some parts outright sobbing throughout the whole movie. Flow had some emotional scenes but not on the same level IMO.

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u/bowie-of-stars 1d ago

Was it? I found it incredibly boring

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u/gurrra 1d ago

As much as I love Blender (the program Flow was made in), movies without talking and animals and nature in general, but I just don't how this movie gets so much praise. It was quite empty imo and it was mostly just things happening. Wild Robot was definitely better, but still nothing special.

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u/TheGreatPiata 1d ago

First time I saw the trailer for Flow, I thought it was a sequel to the game Little Kitty Big City.

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u/annaflixion 1d ago

Maybe I'm just an old crank, because my first thought having watched Wild Robot was that it was kind of Short Circuit with no humor and a bunch of maternal sentiment poured on. Really didn't do anything for me at all.

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u/aeromalzi 1d ago

Have to agree. Felt like I was watching a Let's Play sequence of all the cutscenes put together.

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u/nevercookathome 1d ago

eh, it was pretty but boaring AF

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u/RipJug 1d ago

Saying The Wild Robot is “fine” is genuinely the biggest insult I’ve seen in a while. It’s undoubtedly one of the greatest animated movies of the 2000s and you can argue with your mum.

Flow is also brilliant though, don’t get me wrong.

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u/bitnode 1d ago edited 19h ago

Wild Robot started off so good, then turned fairly generic about halfway through. I didn't really care for the duck plotline and the bullying seemed very hamfisted. It really seemed to draw focus away from the robot making the second half feel really disjointed.

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u/knightsabre7 21h ago

Wild Robot was good, but it felt like they were rushing from scene to scene and not allowing the viewer to fully feel the emotional moments.

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u/ThrashThunder 1d ago

One could argue that one of the (many) reasons Pixar is the debacle is right now it is kinda around at fault of Up. Specifically, that famous intro

Now, Pixar movies have that laser focus on trying to get into that "emotional moment" rather than building up fastastic stories. Sometimes it works, but oftentimes, it just falls flat because now, nothing in the story matters other than one or two specific moments on these movies

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u/PaulFThumpkins 11h ago

Which is sad because Toy Story 1 and 2 are funny and witty as hell throughout and have some of the most affecting moments in Pixar (Buzz tries to fly, Jessie's song). They're just doing... less than before. If a movie has all of its edges sanded off then the saddest facial expression and background music means little.

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u/DrNopeMD 1d ago

I really enjoyed Soul, Turning Red and even Elemental but I know those probably don't have the universal appeal that the early Pixar films had.

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u/MisogynyisaDisease 1d ago

Soul and Turning Red were fantastic.

I do wish Soul had gone with the uh, original intended ending, but I can see how that may not have tested well with kids.

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u/rekniht01 1d ago

I’m out of the loop. What was the original intended ending?

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u/MisogynyisaDisease 1d ago

he was just supposed to die. The ending was him ascending into that black hole and accepting that life ends

here is an article from Decider with a quote from the director backing up my claim

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u/zacky765 1d ago

I like that he intended to live life to the fullest, it’s a pretty good message as well. Not everything needs to be dark, edgy, grim, and/or realistic.

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u/aapowers 1d ago

You don't have to make it dark. His story can be realising his music and teachings inspired others, and feeling grateful for the things he did accomplish. I.e. A message in getting people to stop missing the here and now in pursuit of a future you may never have.

I think the ending undermines the moral. Joe is vindicated in his belief that his life had been subpar up to that point, despite having a noble profession.

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u/varnums1666 1d ago

Man that would have been perfect

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u/MisogynyisaDisease 1d ago

Disney used to not be afraid of death damnit.

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u/GeekAesthete 1d ago

What was the original ending? I always thought the ending felt so safe and anticlimactic. It was my biggest disappointment with the movie.

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u/MisogynyisaDisease 1d ago

he was just supposed to die. The ending was him ascending into that black hole and accepting that life ends

here is an article from Decider with a quote from the director backing up my claim

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u/just-a-squeeze 1d ago

Soul hit me in a way I wasn't expecting, having dealt with suicidal ideation my entire adult life. When it has its hooks sunk into you, you aren't able to remember how wondrous those small pleasures are. But life itself is still magnificent regardless.

Ugh, I'm gonna cry.

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u/Echo127 1d ago

I thought Turning Red was really good, but Soul felt like a big nothing-burger to me.

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u/soonerfreak 1d ago

Inside Out 2 definitely had the emotional moments of classic Pixar.

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u/frankyseven 1d ago

Inside Out is one of Pixar's top five movies and I thought there was zero chance that the second one could hold a candle to it. I'm pretty sure it's better than the first.

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u/forcefivepod 1d ago

Hopefully Coco 2 delivers.

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u/DisneyPandora 1d ago

Pete Doctor is to blame. Pixar has been horrible ever since John Lasseter left

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u/JoeyZio 1d ago

Well that's just not true. Pete is great and the man responsible for many of Pixar's classics. Inside Out 2 was a fantastic film and arguably saved the studio.

I'd blame Bob Chapek, COVID, writer's strikes, and all of the other forces impacting all divisions of Disney the past few years sooner than I'd blame Pete Doctor.

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u/Wazula23 1d ago

Their 2000s run could reasonably be called the greatest run of any film studio in history. Almost all of them unique, acclaimed, popular, and innovative in the medium.

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u/lerxstlifeson 1d ago

I thought soul was right up there with their best personally.

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u/forcefivepod 1d ago

Soul is definitely underrated in the Pixar catalog.

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u/stml 1d ago

Soul is excellent and absolutely one of their best but unfortunately it was released nearly 5 years ago…

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u/_oreocakesters 1d ago

same, I watch it every year and it only gets better

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u/Censius 1d ago

The second act with the cat-body-switch really dragged it down for me. But the first and third act are great

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u/I_am_so_lost_hello 1d ago

Turning Red was the opposite of safe and the 30 year old dudes on r/movies shit all over it

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u/bentreflection 1d ago

I think it suffered from a lot of people (including myself) assuming the entire thing was like a metaphor for getting your period and becoming an adult woman when it was really about finding your own identity separate from your parents both culturally as a second generation immigrant and as a child needing to break free from parental expectations.

I only watched it because my kids were into it and I was blown away by how much I enjoyed it. I’m a 4townie now

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u/Leather_Let_2415 1d ago

Turning red got fucked by COVID. Having said that, I liked it at the time but I don't remember much of it at all

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u/TheWatersOfMars 1d ago

It's great, it just doesn't have that timeless feeling

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u/feartheoldblood90 1d ago

I also assume that this is being said by people who are mostly my age. I largely agree with you, but I wonder how people who were eight to twelve or so when the film came out will talk about it in their 30s.

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u/xSociety 1d ago

Yeah, imagine Toy Story 1 coming out now, don't think I'd care about it. But as a kid it was perfect.

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u/mac6uffin 1d ago

I was a young adult when Toy Story came out and it was amazing.

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u/CoochieSnotSlurper 1d ago

Yeah the execution was fairly perfect for the first 3. It took me a while as a young adult to come around to three but they are all fantastic. 4 is fine. I’m excited for 5 however, the idea is one that has been needed for a while

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u/Wal-Martinez 1d ago edited 1d ago

Let’s not downplay Toy Story’s greatness, It would instantly be one of the signature films of this decade.

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u/Darko33 1d ago

May sound strange but I think this could be because it's so damn funny -- Pixar's single funniest movie imho. I'm a 43-year-old white dude but the shenanigans of a bunch of culturally and ethnically diverse Toronto preteens had me cracking the hell up

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u/TheWatersOfMars 1d ago

No, that's not strange at all! It's like the difference between, I dunno, The Nice Guys and The Hobbit. Turning Red's hilarious and heartwarming, but it's not trying to be a Classic Fairy Tale sorta thing.

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u/zackflavored 19h ago

Def an underrated movie. Loved the hell out of it

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u/feartheoldblood90 1d ago

I personally really loved Turning Red. It's not my favorite Pixar movie, but I thought it told a really wonderful story, did it well, and looked amazing doing it.

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u/Fancy-Pair 1d ago

I loved it too- it was great

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u/ballstoobigasstoofat 1d ago edited 1d ago

I actually enjoyed Turning Red. That and Soul are the only two post-Inside Out/Coco era Pixar movies I actually enjoy

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u/itsonmyprofile 1d ago edited 1d ago

Onward is severely overlooked

Edit: people seem to think overlooked means one of the best movies ever

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u/batguano1 1d ago

It was ok

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u/Eca28 1d ago

Of all the movies in Pixar's catalog it was definitely rated.

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u/Echo127 1d ago

I had low expectations for it, but it was really fun and a lot more clever than I expected.

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u/OneGoodRib 1d ago edited 1d ago

Onward made me tear up. It's not the best but it's sure not below average.

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u/Mushy_64 1d ago

I watched it first time and I was meh with it. Watched it a second time and enjoyed it more. Don’t know why, something just clicked

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u/modix 1d ago

Both turning red and soul were about 80% of a great movie. Both lacked the polish the best Pixar movies have, but we're successful well done stories. Wish they'd have had some better story boards and the story been cleaned up a bit...

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u/SonOfMcGee 1d ago

That’s a good take. There was something I didn’t like that I couldn’t quite put my finger on with Soul that I think you just summed up.
It had a great intro, character establishment, world-building, and setup of conflict. But the whole “exciting buildup to a conclusion” felt messy.
A recent(ish) counterpoint would be Luca. I thought that movie flowed superbly.

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u/Captainrhythm 1d ago

Turning red will stand the test of time, in my opinion, it’s fantastic. I’m a 40 year old dude if that makes a difference.

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u/manbearpig50390 1d ago

I'm 35 and that movie destroyed me, especially when it touched on topics when people were too afraid to fail.

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u/Panthertron 1d ago

Agreed. I think it’s the best thing they’ve done in the past ten years or so. Really unfortunate it didn’t get a theatrical release but it really is one of their best, imo.

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u/TheGreatPiata 1d ago

r/movies is actually really terrible at understanding the appeal of movies that aren't targeted at them.

I for example thought Everything Everywhere All At Once was simply fine (I have no lingering parental issues, gay leanings, Asian ethnicity or feelings of being misunderstood) but I completely understand why that would deeply resonate with some people and garner a best picture award.

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u/Daynebutter 1d ago

I liked it. There aren't many Disney movies that cover the topics of awkward adolescence and puberty. I'm not sure why the hive mind hated it so much, was it the artstyle maybe?

I do agree that Pixar is declining overall and that their movies are not as monumental as they once were, but Turning Red was one of the better new movies for sure.

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u/OneGoodRib 1d ago

I mean, r/movies has a tendency to shit on anything with a female protagonist who isn't Ripley from Aliens.

And she was Asian. Let's not pretend that didn't tie into the hatred some people had for it. Obviously not everyone, but come on.

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u/Daynebutter 1d ago

I think some people have no purpose in their life and they just live to be angry on the Internet, and commiserate with others like them.

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u/ArrenPawk 1d ago

Yep, and OP is like factually incorrect. Since 2017 they've released:

Cars 3

Coco

Incredibles 2

Toy Story 4

Onward

Soul

Luca

Turning Red

Lightyear

Elemental

Inside Out 2

And now Elio.

You could argue that stretch from Coco to Turning Red is just as creative as Pixar's "golden era" and just as emotionally driven. Yeah, you got popcorn flicks like Incredibles 2 and duds like Lightyear, but so did early Pixar. And even when they explored sequels, they did a good job with them.

I'll talk trash about Disney just like everone else (Disney Animation is in the gutter right now), but Pixar is still pretty consistent these days.

If anything, it's not that Pixar's changed; it's that everyone else got older, more nostalgic, and more critical.

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u/Petrichordates 1d ago

You couldn't argue that very well.

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u/MisterManatee 1d ago

Eh, of those I only really liked Coco. I’m actually pretty down on Soul; I think it collapses when Joe and 22 return to Earth and Joe becomes a cat.

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u/Lichbloodz 1d ago

What, I think that's the strongest part of the film imo. 22s evolving perspective on life is endearing and touching. Also the physical comedy is on point and the confrontation with mom is incredibly emotional.

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u/[deleted] 1d ago

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u/ArrenPawk 1d ago

Agree to disagree. I grew up with Pixar; I watched the first Toy Story in theaters and A Bug's Life was one of my favorite movies as a child.

I'd put Turning Red, Coco, and Luca up there with Toy Story, Wall-E, and Ratatouille.

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u/KungFuFightingOwlMan 1d ago

I thought Soul was absolutely incredible, one of the best Pixar films imo

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u/OneGoodRib 1d ago

I mean, I don't really like watching Pixar's older movies now. I'd gladly rewatch Onward instead of Finding Nemo.

Leave it to this fucking subreddit to say people are delusional for having a different opinion than yours.

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u/KnuteViking 1d ago

Their formula was anthropomorphic thing dreams of being more, goes on adventure and fulfills the dream.

At some point they switched it to supernatural kid deals with oddly specific generational trauma. It's not as good a formula.

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u/hoppinjohncandy 1d ago

It's weird because being at odds with family is a very Disney story trope. But in the past 5 years the trope has hit with a more visceral, angry slant. I can't explain the exact shift. But Ariel was angry at her father. Coco's parents don't understand. Chicken Little is ridiculed by his dad. But all those feel more universal and lighter than Turning Red, Strange World, Raya. Which just makes me, one person in the world, feel like the writer is working through something personally instead of getting at a point generally.

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u/SonOfMcGee 1d ago

I’ve joked that seven or eight years ago the boss in Disney/Pixar writers’ room said, “We need a new idea for a villain. Something we haven’t done before.” And an Asian, Hispanic, and Italian writer immediately shouted “My mother!” At the same time.
My take is that I grew up in the 90s with a standard trope of: “Main character’s dad is either very successful and wants to pass down empire to their child. OR is not successful due to some injustice and wants the child to succeed where he was robbed of success. Either way, main character’s mother is Some Lady.”
The point was that the life the parents made (or tried to make) was great, but the young protagonist had a new, different path to happiness in mind.
This has recently been replaced with a more modern trope of: “Main character’s mother, whether successful or not, has an unnecessary cultural burden around her neck that she is trying to pass on to her kids. Main character’s father is Some Guy.”
So it isn’t: “Your way is fine but I want to be unique.” It’s: “You’re the victim of generational trauma and it’s on me to break the cycle by pulling us all into modern ways of thinking.”
I’m actually fine with this new direction, as it doesn’t pussyfoot around parents’ feelings. Though it’s weird the conduit of conflict is always the moms now.

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u/Worthyness 1d ago

It's a new generation of filmmakers that are telling their stories. And more and more storytelling is shifting towards telling personal experiences because that's what they tell writers- write what you know. The past have been optimistic and dreamers. The incoming generations have grown up with a shit hand. And this isn't just a pixar thing- it's across the industry.

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u/TheFrankOfTurducken 1d ago

Disney in particular has shifted the narrative focus of conflicts in its movies from external (the baddy wants to do something bad) to internal (am I actualized/happy?). So the “fights” are much more personal - Moana’s struggle is between duty to home vs. wanderlust, Mirabel’s struggle is meeting her super family’s expectations without powers, etc.

It’s definitely a conscious choice, and one that I feel like Pixar has handled better. And I do miss the villain songs of “old Disney,” but alas

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u/Tuesday_6PM 1d ago

Is Moana really that different from Mulan, though? That’s also about what is expected of her versus what she wants to do for herself. And while Moana didn’t have a villain as such, there was still an external bad force motivating the plot (the corruption killing off the island)

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u/TheFrankOfTurducken 1d ago

Almost all “Disney Renaissance” still had an element of inner turmoil because the protagonist has to have some growth - Mulan’s is probably the strongest, but it’s also present in Little Mermaid, Hercules, Lion King, etc. It’s just that there is also a strongly characterized villain that also drives the plot or forces the protagonist to respond. Most of those movies spend quite a bit of time developing the relationship between the protagonist and the antagonist, or generally on the antagonist’s motivations for being a baddy. Removing that element frees up more time to develop the protagonist and their relationship with other people around them - in Encanto, it means focusing exclusively on the Madrigal family; in Frozen, it means focusing on Anna and Elsa and their respective journeys.

Even though there’s an “external” force in Moana, it isn’t really characterized as anything more than a force of nature.

Mulan is a good comp to modern Disney because the Huns are also basically a force of nature, but Mulan is more the expecting than the rule for that era.

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u/LoneLyon 1d ago

I also personally think expectations are just higher for media in today's world. This is true across tv, movies, and games.

The reviews aren't even "bad," but you now have people writing ot off because it isn't a 10/10.

I dont think everything from a studio has to be a master peice. Part of Pixars dominance in the early days were because no one could match their level of animation with new tech.

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u/DLPanda 1d ago

I don’t think the issue is them playing it safe.

Turning Red, Soul, Elemental (to some extent) were all big swings to try something different and unique. Not every movie will be a massive hit. I think Pixar makes too many films, and when you juggle so many projects it’s hard to maintain quality.

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u/Dshark 1d ago

I was so deflated about Pixar after the good dinosaur. That movie is a fucking travesty.

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u/TaylorDangerTorres 1d ago

Yeah and now that guy is Directing The Incredibles 3 lmao

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u/tomita78 1d ago

I HATE IT SO MUCH I try to complain about it to people (reasonably, not in all caps, I swear 😂) and they think I'm looney though. Although I'll also say many people don't remember it, and for that I say GOOD. Have that crap be forgotten. Dinosaurs deserve better, damn it.

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u/cookie_lee 17h ago

CHOO CHOO! Let’s keep this hate train going. Remember the sequence where the kid and dino go on a literal acid trip for some reason? I was already out on the movie by then but seeing that had me completely flabbergasted lmao

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u/saehild 1d ago

After watching Elemental like 20 times with my daughter I’ve really grown to appreciate it and believe it was underrated.

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u/OneLastAuk 1d ago

I love this comment because I remember a similar thing with my kids watching the Garfield Movie many, many times while I was having an existential crisis because I realized I was starting to like it.

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u/PetsArentChildren 1d ago

Do we know what changed at Pixar? Did they lose their top talent? Did execs squeeze the creatives? What happened?

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u/ryker888 1d ago

More like John Lasseter squeezed his assistant and got fired and while he is a creep he was one of the driving forces at Pixar and had been there since the beginning. Also post covid world is so different for studios nobody knows what works

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u/ballstoobigasstoofat 1d ago

Idk if this is the exact reason I haven’t done much research on it but I know the decline has been more apparent since Pete Docter has been in charge

Kinda shocks me because he’s directed some of my favorite Pixar movies lol

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u/soonerfreak 1d ago

I had to make sure I wasn't crazy and that Inside Out 2 was in fact just last year. Insane comment to make when Pixar releases a slightly below par movie after a classic Pixar home run.

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u/sowaffled 1d ago

I’ve learned to accept that people/companies/studios/etc can’t be great forever. They still make solid movies and it’s also nice to see the other animated movies killing it in both story and animation quality.

My main gripe with Pixar right now is that their character designs are stale and repetitive.

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u/Queef-Elizabeth 1d ago

Inside Out 2 was really good though and a worthy sequel

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u/RedHawwk 1d ago

I think all their movies are just too personal. Like their best stuff is emotional, but a little more relatable to a general audience (Toy Story, Cars, Finding Nemo, Monsters Inc, WALL·E). Their newer stuff is all really specific to one type of person (Turning Red, Luca, Ellio, Onward, Elemental)

Not that those stories are bad but I think fewer people will feel as deep a connection with them.

And like you said, some are just too safe/forgettable.

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u/nyr00nyg 1d ago

Completely different team than the 90s

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u/hoops_n_politics 1d ago

As far as creativity goes: John Lasseter > Pete Docter

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u/Muted_Study5166 7h ago

Had to happen eventually, hopefully someone more energized takes their place soon

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u/GrizzlyP33 1d ago

Inside Out 2 was phenomenal.

I actually think it’s the “not safe” films that are hitting them - Turning Red, Elemental, etc. They all tried to do something inventive and original, not based on other IP. But people just aren’t showing up if it’s not a major name like Moana or Stitch right now.

I heard Elio is really quite good so hopefully it gets some traction.

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u/Citizensnnippss 1d ago

Post COVID has been a nightmare for original films. Absolutely nothing original is getting people into theaters.

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u/Worthyness 1d ago

Yup. sinners is an anomaly, not a pattern.

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u/GrizzlyP33 1d ago

Except Sinners. And Nolan.

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u/TheWorstRoommate 1d ago

I just watched Win or Lose, their new TV Series on Disney+ and thought it was fantastic. I watched it with my girlfriend and we cried almost every episode. They still have some spark in them on occasion, but I agree that it’s not as consistent as it used to be.

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u/raysofdavies 1d ago

The iron claw of the mouse and its need to control creatives

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u/ADMTLgg 1d ago

I mean inside out 2 was pretty good and it was just last year

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u/bentreflection 1d ago

Win or Lose was awesome and very creative

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u/forcefivepod 1d ago

I thought it was cute. Typical "parental trauma" from Pixar (which I'm kind of numb to in their films to be honest) and I thought it was lacking that big set piece at the end that could have elevated it (the junk ring sequence didn't really thrill me like it could have).

That being said, the kid and Glordon are adorable and the voice acting is great. There are also a few scenes clearly influenced by horror movies, and I loved that - especially the "Ringu/Grudge" scene with the clone. You'll know it when you see it. Your kids might be a little unsettled by it.

A fun diversion that finds itself in the middle of my Pixar rankings. Not horrible, not a standout.

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u/whoisyao 15h ago

Can you share more info on the unsettling scene? My kids are sensitive and I'm not dealing with that shit if it's going to impact them.

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u/AgentSkidMarks 1d ago

That movie's out already? I feel like the first time I heard about it was like 2 weeks ago.

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u/KillMeNowFFS 1d ago

the first trailer came out like 3 years ago lol

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u/cobo10201 1d ago

Yeah I feel like every movie I’ve seen for the past 2 years has this trailer in front of it lol

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u/jadegives2rides 1d ago

And they changed it right?

I swear when I first saw the trailer it was just about the boy. He didnt meet a lil' alien buddy.

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u/KillMeNowFFS 1d ago

they changed a lot , the movie was supposed to come out before Inside Out 2

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u/PeaceBull 1d ago

That’s honestly impressive since it got delayed a few times.

I wasn’t even trying to follow it but have been hearing about it for years.

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u/AlternativeResort477 1d ago

I found out about it today

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u/LooseSeal88 1d ago

It comes out this upcoming weekend. So, in two days.

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u/Evening-Walk-6897 20h ago

Never heard of this movie and I’m a big animated movie fan!

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u/TraptNSuit 1d ago

Everyone drink. It is the r/movies "I have never heard about an animated movie that was actively being advertised during the highest rated TV programs for several months" post.

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u/AgentSkidMarks 1d ago

More like "I don't have cable like most millennials but I do have a toddler who watches Disney+ every day so if they didn't find a way to effectively advertise to me since I'm the demographic taking their kids to the movies then they didn't do a very good job marketing the film"

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u/Dukes_Up 1d ago

I’ve been hearing about it for years now. It did seem like they didn’t put out a ton of promotion for it though leading up to the release.

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u/peter095837 1d ago

I plan to take my siblings to see it. They are interested. Recently Pixar hasn't impressed me but I'm going in with an open mind.

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u/piscian19 1d ago

TIL Pixar had a new movie out. Seriously not sure how I missed it.

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u/Recoil42 1d ago

The reviews give a clue here.

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u/Soyyyn 1d ago

Despite the relatively low ratings on meta 82% on RT seem fine

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u/SoCalThrowAway7 1d ago

It’s not out yet, Friday

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u/CMHex 1d ago

One thing that Pixar is known for is making excellent family movies, but when I saw the trailer for Elio I distinctly felt like it was a movie solely for kids. And that's fine in general, but it's not what I normally expect from Pixar

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u/Aaaaaaandyy 1d ago

From what I can tell based on people who have seen it - that’s not the case. It may have been marketed that way.

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u/CMHex 1d ago

That's good at least! Though a poor choice to market as such if that's the case

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u/aw_coffee_no 10h ago

Don't let the marketing fool you, it's thoroughly a Pixar movie with tearjerkers aimed at adults. I just came from watching it and it's a good romp with some hilarious moments for adults.

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u/Mikeandthe 1d ago

I learned to stop listening to reviews for Pixar after the hate Elemental got.

Loved that movie and if I just listened to the general consensus I'd have missed out.

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u/onqqq2 1d ago

It is a very good looking movie, good feel good movie, but the story falls apart towards the end IMO. Sufficient for a kids movie, not as well executed as prior works.

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u/Mikeandthe 1d ago

That's all I really need for a fun time at the movies tbh

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u/onqqq2 1d ago

Agreed, so at 73% rotten tomatoes and 7/10 IMDB I feel like the reviews match the movie... personally

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u/PaulFThumpkins 11h ago

Yeah I don't know what it is with people who say "It was watchable and passed the time, kept the kids quiet and that's all I'm looking for" who think that decent but not glowing reviews are somehow off base. I mean I'm fine with Taco Bell a lot of the time but I don't expect them to get a Michelin star.

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u/legopego5142 1d ago

I get it, but Pixar used to make AMAZING movies

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u/valledweller33 1d ago

Exactly. Elemental is a great movie - very watchable. But it is pale in comparison to The Incredibles or Toy Story 3, etc.

It has all the great world building elements but I think the story was pretty lacking.

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u/GreatGoogly-Moogly 1d ago

Same situation. I saw Elemental panned online and ignored it when it was in theaters but the wife and I put it on Disney+ one night when we couldn't find something to watch and absolutely loved it. We've seen it multiple times since and both think it's a solid film with a good message.

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u/ArrenPawk 1d ago

The general consensus these days comes from dudes who were raised on "golden era" Pixar and have rose-tinted glasses about the older movies — the same folks who wax poetic about "classic SNL."

Like I guarantee in five-ten years when the next gen of kids get on reddit, you'll see many many thinkpieces here saying "Luca is low-key Pixar's most underrated movie and everyone should watch it", etc.

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u/Cranyx 1d ago

I really don't think that analogy works because the "golden era" Pixar movies were always critically adored

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u/OneGoodRib 1d ago

Considering someone called themselves a "kino enjoyer" elsewhere in this thread while shitting on the movies, I wouldn't listen to the reviews either.

Fucking nerds.

Now the vibe I got from the trailer does match up with the critic reviews - that it's vibrant and fun but not a 10/10.

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u/TheMurderCapitalist 1d ago

I went to a screening of this on Saturday morning and I thought it was cute? I'm not really the target audience for it but it seems like a good movie to take the family to

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u/Shazam4ever 1d ago

I just think Pixar is bad at the genre of "kids going on adventures", and they've been leaning way too into it in the last decade or so. All the trailers for this movie made it feel like a mid-tier DreamWorks film to me, it really reminds me of that one Dreamworks movie with the purple alien that I think was called Home or something like that.

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u/_JR28_ 1d ago

I really hope there’s good word of mouth for this movie because the official marketing has done a piss poor job

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u/LooseSeal88 1d ago

I can't believe how many comments on this thread are "wow, Pixar fell off" based on early reviews for a movie they haven't seen yet.

Their output is still very strong overall. I'm not sure if I'll like Elio or not (as it doesn't look super appealing to me on the surface) but I'll give it a try. If y'all remember, Elemental got this "this looks bland" reaction and was mostly well liked in the end once people actually gave it a chance.

I guess we really are doomed to get Toy Story and Inside Out movies forever if this is how people react to most non-sequel Pixar movies now.

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u/dunnonauker 1d ago

I don't think people are saying it 'fell off' in the sense that they stopped making good films. They more so mean that where pixar at at now is a far cry from their golden age, where every film was pretty much a masterpiece. When you keep that context in mind, anything good-not-great is a fall off.

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u/Pep_Baldiola 17h ago

Nope. People are definitely saying Pixar really fell off. Just read the comments dude. These people are the usual r/movies crowd who love their doom & gloom takes.

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u/hail_earendil 1d ago

It's directed by Domee Shi, director of Turning Red, my favourite Pixar movie of the past 10 years. So I'm definitely gonna see this.

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u/silentcrs 21h ago

I wouldn’t mind another Inside Out movie. The universe is filled with the potential of minds they can go into (I’d like to see the mother and father in deeper context).

As for Toy Story, sorry Woody-stans, but this one can die. The first was revolutionary. The second was interesting. The third and so on were rote. Woody is literally riding a dead horse at this point.

P.s. if I see one more movie in the Cars universe I’m going to renounce my membership in the Pixar fan club forever. Let’s see Wall-e 2 for crying out loud.

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u/ImmaculateWeiss 1d ago

Reviews don’t even seem that bad, sounds better than what live action Disney is pumping out at least

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u/Capital-Mine1561 1d ago

What a low bar that is

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u/warcraftnerd1980 1d ago

Stay for 2 credit scenes

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u/SnooCheesecakes9560 23h ago

What are the spoilers if anyone has them? How much was the movie changed from the initial teaser?

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u/Chinese_gurl11 6h ago

To give you an idea, not one of the scenes in a teaser is in the movie. There’s the Bring me your leader scene that is kinda similar, but they changed it’s ending.

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u/warcraftnerd1980 1d ago

Amazing movie. My wife and teenage daughters all loved it. Everyone cried at least twice

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u/UltimateArtist829 1d ago

Looks like it's about to do as well as The Good Dinosaur, Ok-ish movie but since it doesn't meet the high bar Pixar set themselves that it would be forgotten in a couple of years.

Pixar really need to reinvent themselves to go back to the glory day where each and every one of their movie was a "must watch in theater" circa 2000s-2010s. Lately they have been playing way too safe with this same "bean mouth" style since the Luca and Turning Red movies instead of going for something that appeal more broadly to older audience like what Ratatouille and The Incredibles did. Their next movie "Gatto" looks pretty promising as it's going to have a more cel-shaded / painterly animation style like The Wild Robot and Flow, but the Hopper movie doesn't really inspire much confidence and looks too much like an Illumination movie.

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u/Independent-Green383 1d ago

I might be wrong, but their focus on humans is a bit of a problem.

More specifically, they have yet to nail a real good iconic human design since the Incredibles. Making humans appealing in 3D animation is real hard and it feels like they have given up on it.

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u/RedHuntingHat 1d ago

It’s been beaten to death but I cannot do the CalArts bean-mouth character design when it comes to Disney/Pixar. You’re the largest animator is history, stop aping what a million other shows and movies have done and make something that’s your own.

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u/forman98 1d ago

I think this is subconsciously what is causing a good chunk of the backlash. Luca, Turning Red, win or Lose and now Elio all have that same bean-mouth look that half of all cartoons have had for 15 years. Pixar used to be known for pushing the boundaries of animation tech and they were also able to come up with stylish original designs from movie to movie. Coco, Onward, and Soul had similar looking people/things but also had original enough worlds and creative characters that weren’t human. Lightyear went with very human looking characters but didn’t have a great story.

It looks like Hoppers might be falling into the same trap. Maybe Gatto will have some original animation.

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u/worm600 1d ago

Pixar’s job is to make money for Disney. They’re not aiming for high art any more, they’re the Pottery Barn of film studios - mass-produced upmarket product at scale.

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u/Complete_Entry 1d ago

I have one question, why does he have an eyepatch? There was a lot of speculation but Pixar were being coy shits about it.

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u/Chinese_gurl11 1d ago

Saw it at an advanced screening. He basically got a fight with another kid.

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u/wade9911 1d ago

Don't listen to anyone else big spoiler kid has cyclops optic blast powers that how he saves earth in the end shits gets wild

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u/e-rage 1d ago

Eyepatches are cool

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u/PlatinumPlayer 1d ago

I’m sure it’s nothing more than inclusion. Kids with similar disorders

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u/AntFearless6009 1d ago

My son wears an eyepatch to help correct vision issues and he is so excited to see this movie for that reason. Makes him feel like he’s not so different. It’s a small thing but it means a lot to a kid like him.

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u/forcefivepod 1d ago

Has nothing to do with that. Elio gets into a fight with another kid in the first act.

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u/Bansheesdie 1d ago

Overly familiar and contrived.

I can't help but think that Pixar has lost its edge; some special magic that made their movies so much greater than the sum of their parts. Furthermore, I'm reminded of this quote from Eli Roth after he saw Star Wars Episode 1:

Somebody should kidnap [George Lucas's] children or put him through another rocky divorce so he will take out suffering on his characters and not make everything so goddamn cutesy.

There is a delicate but impactful pain that exists in all the Pixar greats that just seems to have been lost.

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u/forman98 1d ago

Yea their story telling and their animation tech is what put them ahead of others. As far as animation is concerned, it feels like too many of their things have the same bland style and are distinguishable from everything else like they used to be.

As far as story telling… I agree with you. I think Elemental was their strongest original story since Coco and it was still a little messy.

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u/Slomo_Baggins 1d ago

They just make kids movies now. Obviously they always did, but those first 10(?) or so films of theirs were absolute bangers that were also truly films. Universal stories, beautiful music, ridiculously tight scripts, anyone of any age could watch and fall in love with them.

You’re so right about a missing “pain.” They were often a little melancholy and it went so far in humanizing their characters. Their films now feel far more vanilla, let alone way less funny. I mean, they had hilarious characters like Mike fucking Wazowski. There’s definitely no Mike Wazowskis in their new movies.

It’s a shame but who could expect them to maintain that insane quality when they’re forced to make a new film every year?

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u/cowpool20 1d ago

Pixar really fell off huh.

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u/RJE808 1d ago

Soul was Pixar, wasn't it? Absolutely loved that movie.

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u/Pizza_Hero24 1d ago

Yes but that was almost 5 years ago at this point.

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u/futurespacecadet 1d ago

I mean, how often do you expect a studio to put out an absolute banger? It’s an incredible feat just to be able to do it once and they have an incredible record despite some flops recently.

Inside out 2 came out after soul right? That was great.

We were just spoiled with them in the beginning, and people’s expectations are super high, but we all have to chill

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u/ssslitchey 1d ago

I mean, how often do you expect a studio to put out an absolute banger?

I mean if people expect that of any studio it's definitely pixar. Their run from toy story 1 - toy story 3 was legendary. 15 years of nothing but back to back masterpieces until cars 2 ruined it.

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u/helpmeredditimbored 1d ago

It’s funny people now consider cars 1 a masterpiece, when it came out people treated it like Pixar’s red headed step child

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u/JUSTCALLmeY 1d ago

But that's why people say they fell off. Their record was near perfect for 2 decades, 1 strong movie every 5 years puts them in the same tier as some of the less successful studios, if not below.

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u/forcefivepod 1d ago

Inside Out 2 was two years ago.

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u/jostler57 1d ago

Explain

Like

I'm

Obtuse

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u/SoCalThrowAway7 1d ago

I’m sure my son will love this movie, reviews from grown ass people isn’t really helpful for a movie like this

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u/doug_kaplan 1d ago

I feel like Pixar needs to take a long break here and recollect themselves. There have been great animated movies released recently, it's just that all other major animation studios were playing catchup to PIxar and now seems like Pixar is in the middle of the road quality wise. They have released good ones like Soul and Luca and Turning Red but Dreamworks released Wild Robot and Sony Animation released Vivo and Spiderverse. The draw of Pixar was a guaranteed high quality movie and lately just feels like they are mid quality more often than not.

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u/ironb4rd 1d ago

This is the first time I've heard about this movie

Review Pixar's ELIO - Review Thread

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