'Elio' Review: Pixar’s Cosmic Adventure Misses the Emotional Mark but Dazzles Visually
- Dan Bremner
- Jun 21
- 3 min read
By Dan Bremner - June 21, 2025
Pixar’s 29th animated jaunt, an original cosmic adventure. Directed by Domee Shi (Turning Red), follows Elio Solis, a daydreaming kid whisked off to the Communiverse, a galactic council of oddball aliens after they mistake him for Earth’s ambassador. It’s a cracking setup, dripping with potential for interplanetary chaos and self-discovery, but the execution? Elio is a safe, straightforward tale that doesn’t quite reach the stratospheric heights of Pixar’s Soul or Inside Out. At least it’s not another sequel.
I caught a 20-minute preview at a swanky hotel a couple of months go, free croissants and all (Thank you, Disney), and those clips, heavy on Elio’s early alien encounters and attempts to be abducted, outshone the final cut, hinting at a bolder film that never fully lands. Instead, we get juvenile humour with silly voices and very child-aimed slapstick that lands a chuckle or two but feels beneath Pixar’s pedigree.
Elio’s Humor Aims for Kids, But Lacks Pixar's Usual Depth
Visually, Elio is a stunner, pushing Pixar’s artistry into dazzling new orbits. The Communiverse of swirling nebulae, glowing bioluminescent critters, and alien cities carved from crystal are real eye-candy that had me wishing I saw it in Dolby. It nods to 1984’s The Last Starfighter, too, off all things with its retro-futuristic vibe, but lacks that film’s scrappy unpredictability.
Shi keeps things zipping along at a breezy 80ish minutes (sans credits), a mercy after some of the bloated blockbusters lately. The score by Rob Simonsen with twinkly synths meets orchestral swells lends a playful, E.T.-ish vibe, though it’s not the most memorable. Problem is, the script plays it too safe. Unlike the greats like Soul, which plumbed emotional depths, Elio coasts on surface-level charm, rarely digging into the core of its premise.
The confidence theme of Elio proving he’s more than a shy child is sweet, if undercooked, and there’s no real wrestle with the stakes of his ambassador gig. It all seems in favour of cutesy characters and cosmic visuals, which you know, can be fine, but you really do hope for more with a studio of this calibre. This is far from the gut-wrenching emotion that Toy Story 3 or Monsters Inc. brought to the table.
Elio, voiced by newcomer Yonas Kibreab, is a wiry, imaginative lad with a knack for doodling aliens, living with his aunt across military bases, due to the death of his parents. When a UFO snatches him up, he’s thrust into a diplomatic mess, tasked with representing humanity, which allows his charm and bumbling through the responsibility to have its moments. Zoe Saldaña, as Elio’s tough-but-warm aunt Olga, brings some emotional weight, but like a lot of the film, her character just feels undercooked. While expected to steal hearts, Remy Edgerly as the wormlike Glordon vexes with his irritating best-friend to Elio, and Brad Garrett does fine enough as the generic intergalactic warlord and father to Glordon.
Pixar’s recent rough patch of COVID-era Disney+ dumps and a string of bombs makes this original story a relief, especially with their slate of sequels like Toy Story 5 and Coco 2 raising eyebrows. Why churn out more when Toy Story 4 already stretched it? Still, the lack of ambition frustrates, missing the spark of Pixar’s boldest originals, but I admire them for giving a big-budget to a new story rather than another needless sequel.
A safe bet in Pixar’s post-COVID era, but where’s the ambition?
Elio is a likeable romp with stunning visuals and a breezy runtime, lifted by Kibreab’s charm and a solid cast. But it's a safe, simple tale and juvenile humour make it a middling Pixar effort, far from their peak. It’s a pleasant cosmic jaunt, just not one that sticks.
'Elio' is out now in cinemas
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