ELEMENTAL A story of two opposites falling in love. barney (Ronnie Del Carmen) and cinder (Shila Omi) are fire elements who migrate from the Land of Fire to the Element City. They face xenophobia as soon as they enter the city. Eventually, they managed to find a house in the Fire Town area. There, they started a store called Fireplace, a convenience store for Fire residents. They gave birth to a daughter, Tara named Amber (Leah Lewis) He grows up and dreams of one day owning the store after Barney retires. However, he has a bad temper that prevents him from being an ideal shop owner. One day, he gets so angry at customers for scolding him that he goes to the basement to vent his anger. While doing so, he ends up bursting the pipe.
A city inspector, Wade (Mamoudu Athi), enters the basement by sucking on the pipeline. Wade filed a complaint against the faulty pipeline at the store. Amber tries to stop Wade by telling her that authorities can shut down the fireplace if they find a violation. Wade decides to help him when he learns that Barney built the store brick-and-mortar. Wade introduces Amber to her boss, Gale (Wendy McLendon-Covey). Gale informs Amber that all water connections in the fire town have been shut off and therefore, water leaks in her shop are a concern. He assures Ember that if Wade is able to find the source of the leak between next Friday and Friday, the violations will be forgotten. What happens next forms the rest of the film.
The story by Peter Sohn, John Hoberg, Kat Lickle and Brenda Husuh is a bit clichéd but the elements of water and fire add a nice touch. The screenplay by John Hoberg, Kat Likkel and Brenda Hsueh is effective. The writers pepper the narrative with very entertaining and moving scenes. At the same time, they make an important comment on the xenophobia and problems immigrants face when migrating and settling in foreign lands. The dialogues are simple and funny.
Peter Sohn’s direction is uncomplicated. He tells a great story with sincerity. He adds a lot of creativity and goes all out when using fire and water elements. The Mexican wave scene, for example, is a masterstroke. He also scored with romantic scenes. The Vivisteria tree sequence will especially move viewers to tears.
On the upside, one expects a lot more thrills and excitement, especially when there is such a build-up around the canal. Sadly, this bit is eventually forgotten and no one knows what happened to it. The scene where Wade gives a speech at the end is a nice idea but seems too implausible. Ultimately, the buzz surrounding the film is limited.
The voiceovers by Leah Lewis and Mamoudou Athie are pretty good. Ronnie Del Carmen, Sheila Omi and Wendy McLendon-Covie also contributed well with their respective voiceovers.
Thomas Newman’s music has an Indian touch and is therefore quite interesting. In the case of music, ‘steal the show’ Really stole the show. The cinematography by David Bianchi and Jean-Claude Kalache is decent. Don Shank’s production design is rich and inventive. The animation is, as expected, top-class. Stephen Shaffer’s editing is fair.
Overall, Elemental is a touching story that works because of its relatable plot, music, commentary on xenophobia and lovely romantic moments.
.
