Elemental

I went to see Elemental yesterday afternoon and I absolutely loved it because not only is the story incredibly moving (I actually had a tear in my eye during one poignant scene) but the animation is gorgeous.  Bernie and Cinder Lumen (Ronnie del Carmen and Shila Omni, respectively) leave their home in Fire Land, despite great personal sacrifice, to emigrate to Element City for a better life for their daughter Ember (Leah Lewis).  They face xenophobia from the other elements of water, air, and earth so they settle in Fire Town and keep to their own element.  They establish a successful convenience store called The Fireplace and Bernie's greatest wish is that Ember take over when she is ready.  When a water pipe bursts in the store, Ember meets Wade Ripple (Mamoudou Athie) and they eventually work together to stop the flooding.  They also develop feelings for one another despite Bernie and Cinder's disapproval of him because he is a water element.  Wade discovers Ember's talent for glass blowing and he encourages her to follow her passion but she feels the weight of responsibility to run the family store because her parents worked so hard to build it as a legacy for her.  Will her duty to her parents and their prejudice against water elements keep her from following her dream and finding true love?  This is very obviously about the immigrant experience and what it is like for a second-generation immigrant to grow up with the pressures of keeping the traditions of one culture alive while living in another one and I loved the message that the differences between people can also bring them together.  I also enjoyed the message that love can conquer all, especially in a scene where Ember and Wade realize that love has altered their chemistry so they can touch each other without being vaporized or extinguished (the animation in this scene is so beautiful and it took my breath away).  The world building is incredibly clever (I was especially impressed by how much Fire Town looks like its own separate neighborhood within Element City) and so is the character design (I loved the clothing worn by the fire elements).  I wasn't as impressed with the music as I usually am with a Pixar release but I loved the animation so much it didn't really matter.  This has had a very disappointing opening weekend at the box office so I definitely encourage everyone to go out and see it because, in my opinion, it is one of the best Pixar movies in recent memory.