Elio (Christian Movie Review)
Bolstered by beautiful visuals, a timely story, and a hefty dose of Pixar magic, Elio soars as one of the better animated films of the last few years.
About the Film
The last time Pixar took audiences on a journey to outer space, it didn’t go well (to put it mildly). Embroiled in controversy, Lightyear (2022) was a massive box-office flop that crashed and burned before ever leaving the atmosphere, causing audiences to question whether Pixar had finally lost its golden touch. That narrative changed with Inside Out 2 (2024), a mega-hit that found the animation studio back in fine form, having clearly learned the right lessons from past failures. Now, the studio’s second voyage into space keeps that positive momentum going. Bolstered by beautiful visuals, a timely story, and a hefty dose of Pixar magic, Elio soars as one of the better animated films of the last few years.
The film asks the age-old question, “Are we really alone in the universe?” Elio hopes the answer is an emphatic “no,” because he’s dying to meet some aliens. Much of the film’s charm is subverting genre norms by focusing on a character who wants to be abducted. When his wish comes true, it’s everything he hoped it would be. After having a DNA sample taken from his nose, he excitedly declares, “My first probe!” His unwavering enthusiasm is infectious and makes him a worthy addition to Pixar’s sprawling cast of quirky and memorable characters.
Of course, in classic Pixar fashion, there’s a lot going on beneath the surface of aliens and UFOs. At its core, Elio is a film about loneliness and social isolation. The real concern is not whether we are alone in the universe but whether we are alone in our lives down on Earth. The search for life in the cosmos acts as a metaphor for Elio’s internal yearning for acceptance and belonging in the aftermath of the tragic death of his parents. I’ve criticized Pixar in the past for sometimes aiming over the heads of its younger audience demographic with some of mature thematic messaging (such as Woody’s existential crisis in Toy Story 4), but Elio confronts a universal and relatable struggle that will resonate with young and old viewers alike.
At their best, Pixar films are emotionally rich enough to make adults cry (those first 15 minutes of Up pack a punch) but also bursting with ample fun and inventive hijinks to keep younger viewers entertained. Elio has the mature themes down. The film is engaging due to the vibrant visuals and Elio being a likable protagonist, but the story feels stuck in first gear, never quite ramping up the action or stakes.
The climactic third-act sequence is perhaps a fitting representation of the film as a whole. The heroes, who are aboard a spacecraft, receive coordinates from Earth in order to navigate a debris field. As help is radioed in from individuals spanning the globe, the scene perfectly encapsulates the film’s central message that we are not as alone as we may think— but it’s just not terribly exciting to watch. When the end credits rolled, I thought, “That was a really charming film.” But if I were to rewatch it, I struggle to think of any particular scene or moment I would be excited to experience again. In that way, the movie is like a solid musical album that is filled with enjoyable tracks but no hit singles.
Part of what makes the film immersive despite its undercooked story are the gorgeous visuals. This movie looks great, especially its depictions of space. Yet, while films like Soul, Elemental, and Inside Out offered immersive and fully developed imaginative worlds, Elio feels more like a collection of visual ideas than a cohesive world. It has all the otherworldly fun of the famous cantina in Star Wars, but it lacks the “lived-in” quality to make it feel like a real place. The story’s primary setting—the “Communiverse,”a planet-like ship where the brightest minds of the universe gather to share ideas—is an exciting idea. But after a quick initial tour, we never see much of its inner workings again.
Overall, the journey into space may be a bit more like Katy Perry’s Blue Origin space flight than Neil Armstrong’s Apollo 11 moon landing, but Elio is another entertaining animated story from Pixar. Behind the scenes, the film changed key members of its creative team midway through production, and it shows. The film demonstrates some excellent seeds of creativity and a clear thematic identity, but it doesn’t always explore those ideas to their fullest potential. Even so, Elio is a really good—if not great—animated film with a timely message that reminds viewers that we don’t need to look to the stars to find belonging; we can find it in the people all around us.
For Consideration
On the Surface—(Profanity, Sexual content, violence, etc.).
Language: A character repeats the phrase, “Oh my gosh,” and there are a few rude words like “butt.”
Violence: The leader of a war-like species of aliens uses another miniature alien species for target practice (although they are not killed in the act). Grub-like aliens wear armored carapace, which looks like a horrific torture chamber and involves the creatures being punctured with many sharp spikes (the spikes are not shown impaling the creatures, but the chamber is shown closing around one). A human clone accidently cuts off his finger (he is not human, so there is no blood) before re-attaching it.
Sexuality: None.
Other: Several moments may be frightening for young viewers, including a scene depicting a human clone that seems to be inspired by classic zombie films or the scene of an alien being enclosed in the carapace armor.
Engage The Film
A Matter of Perspective
Elio is a story about loneliness and isolation. In recent interviews, Pixar’s chief storytelling executives have declared their intentions to focus on “universal storytelling.” Given the sobering statistics and research about the current “epidemic of loneliness,” Elio may be one of Pixar’s most relatable stories yet. The movie may have a cosmic scope, but Elio’s journey is a deeply personal and internal one.
Some Christian viewers may try to apply a religious framework to the story. The film itself opens that door, with a repeated voiceover suggesting that the question of whether we are truly alone in the universe is at the heart of superstitions, science, and religion. But attempting to interpret the film on an allegorical level of a boy who finds belonging by looking to the heavens quickly breaks down. In fact, the main message seems to be the opposite, that we don’t need to look upwards. Instead, we need to appreciate the life and community we have on Earth. It’s a message about having a healthy perspective.
In one of the movie’s best moments, Elio finally learns to look past his own pain and recognize the struggle and sacrifices of his aunt (his guardian). The movie doesn’t judge Elio (the kid has had a hard go at it), but it demonstrates how loneliness can lead us to become so focused on our own desires that we are blind to the needs of others. Both Elio and his aunt come to terms with not having the life they envisioned for themselves by shifting their perspectives to the blessings they can enjoy.
The film echoes the apostle Paul’s sentiment, “I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength” (Philippians 4:12-13). Hardships are real, and life is challenging. But God is good, and there is beauty in the world around us if we look at it from the right perspective.
