FYI no Peter Sohn did not take inspiration from Avatar the Last Airbender

Elemental is Pixar’s 27th film and there first original theatrically released film since Onward. Elemental takes place in a city named Elemental City where all beings made of different elements such as water, earth, wind and fire live together. The main character is a fire person named Ember who dreams of taking over her father’s store. However, she after losing her temper she accidentaly breaks a pipe in the basement which leads to her meeting a water person named Wade. Both go on a journey throughout the city to fix the problem.

Pixar is usually a pro at worldbuilding even in their worst films and Elemental is no exception. Element City feels like a city that was made for elemental people and the ideas of how the city works are very creative. The opening which shows four ships for each element is a brilliant way to establish how these people work. What also makes the city look amazing is the animation which like most Pixar films have never hold back on their animation. Each type of element has their very own unique animation, design and culture. Fire Town is probably my favorite of the locations in the movie.

I was surprised how much I really liked the relationship between Ember and her father. I was sort of mixed on Wade though. While he is likeable and his relationship with Ember is nice, he cries a bit too much. I don’t think Sadness from Inside Out cried as much as him. I will admit the crying game he plays with his family is funny. Also, Clod kind of sucks, just wanted to get that out of the way. Spoiler: My main problem with this film is the third act. There is a cliche third act break up which is common in most romantic comedies. The climax involving breaking of the damn felt forced. It also has the “Disney death” trope where Ember thinks Wade is dead but he’s not.

Elemental isn’t exactly one of the strongest of the Pixar films it’s still a nicely done film from the studio. It really felt like a personal story that Peter Sohn really wanted to tell. Props to Pixar for trying to do something different in terms of genres. It has a great location with creative world building and a touching theme about love and family.

Verdict:

+Animation

+Element City

+Ember and her father

+/-Wade

-Clod

-Weak third act

Score: B+

All right let’s do this one last time

Spider-Man into the Spider-verse is one of my top 5 favorite movies of all time. It was a great love letter to the Spider-Man mythos with the addition of great animation. So, I was very excited to learn that the sequel would also be a two-parter. Across the Spider-verse takes place a year after the first film where Miles Morales faces off with a new villain called the Spot while also reunited with Gwen. Now Miles and Gwen must stop the Spot by traveling “across the Spider-verse” while also finding out that he is destined to suffer lost like all the other Spider-Men. I love that this film deconstructs the whole fighting fate cliché. All that stuff I said was great about the first film are all stepped up here. Sony Animation did not have to go this hard.

Each new universe we visit such as Gwen’s universe and Mumbattanare beautiful and unique. I would love Insomniac to make a DLC for Spider Man PS4 where you can explore these universes or better yet their own game. The new Spider Men in this film are also great especially Pavitr Prabhakar and Spider-Punk. Every Spider-man we see has their own animation style and unique design and personality. Also the design of the Vulture is GOAT. There’s literally a scene involving a lego universe that was animated by a kid. The Spot is also a great villain that starts as a typical villain of the week but turns into a really creepy and powerful villain. If you thought the first film had a lot of references, this film is full of a lot more. It really felt like that people that worked on this film love and respect the character. There are even cameos of other famous Spider-Men like the animated Spectacular Spider-Man and the PS4 Insomniac version. I think Daniel Pemberton’s score is a huge improvement from the first film. It has a much darker tone than the first which is fitting for a darker sequel. It reminds me a lot of the score from Tron Legacy.

Spoiler Warning for the beginning and end: You know how Up (my favorite movie) had those great first 10 minutes that could be its own short. The first 15 minutes of Spider-Verse 2 which focuses on Gwen Stacy are so great it honestly feels like a short before the film. Everything great about the film from the animation, score, and writing is all here. Spider-Gwen has pretty much become my favorite character in this trilogy and her character arc is very tragic and well written. When they said this was the “Empire Strikes Back” of animated films, they were not joking. The film ends with Miles accidently ending up in a universe with no Spider Man and gets captured by a Prowler version of him and his deceased uncle. It’s very refreshing to see an animated film end on a cliffhanger and I’m really excited to see what happens next.

Do I think this film is better than the first? Well, that’s tough to say. It would be like comparing Disneyland to Disney World (which I just came back from). One is the original and the other is more expansive. If you had to make me choose, I’d say Into is slightly better because it told a self-contained story. Still, Spider-Man Across the Spider-verse is up there is not just one of the best sequels of all time. It’s also one of the best Marvel and superhero movies of all time and my favorite movie of 2023 so far. I am most certain that every version of me in the multiverse would agree.

Verdict:

+Cliffhanger ending

+Daniel Pemberton’s score

+First 15 minutes

+The animation

+The new characters

+The references

Score: A+

Can’t wait for Beyond the Spider-Verse