Review: 'Elio' a great message, lost in space

Disney/Pixar, 2025.

The mere mention of the word "Pixar" used to bring with it an expectation of exceptionalism. And while the studio still is capable of producing magic from time to time (see last year's "Inside Out 2"), "Elio" contains very little of it. 

Grade: C

There are fantastic messages at the heart of "Elio," and you can feel the good intentions. A young boy, Elio (voiced by Yonas Kibreab) has lost his mother and has real trouble interacting with other kids his age, as well as adults. As a father to a young boy battling social anxiety, this was a direct hit and completely relatable. Elio becomes enamored with outer space, and goes to great lengths to purposely get himself abducted by aliens...whatever is "out there" must offer more to the young boy than what he's experienced so far here on Earth.

It would have been a boring movie if Elio's dream didn't come true. A "Communiverse" - a sort of space community representing several different planets and galaxies - answers his call, mistaking him as Earth's galactic ambassador. At the same time, the leader of an aggressive race of aliens, Lord Grigon (voiced by Brad Garrett), has just been denied being accepted into the Communiverse so he angrily threatens war in retaliation. When Elio is captured, he meets Grigon's son, the alien Glordon (Remy Edgerly), who despite being from another planet, bonds with Elio over their mutual loneliness and yearning for acceptance.

Elio finds connection, and we learn that Lord Grigon represents more of a cautionary tale for the young boy as opposed to a straight antagonist. He is an insecure bad guy, who probably struggled in many of the same ways Elio is now. But without developing empathy and dealing with his issues, he has morphed into a cold, hardened soul, angry at the world and with no real connections of his own.

Back on Earth, Elio is cared for by his Aunt Olga (Zoe Saldana), who has silently sacrificed much to care for her nephew. She too, has some learning to do.

Ultimately, the lessons lie in the letting go. True connection and understanding comes from vulnerability, not control. The harder you force control, the more the things that you cherish tend to slip through your clutched fingers. All of these characters embark on emotional journeys, where they cleverly all end up having the same core issues. Like viewing a problem from several different angles, exploring many different facets.

All of this is disappointedly buried in what ends up feeling like a generic space adventure. There is so much richness to the themes, but you have to - ironically - search hard for the connections. A lot of what might have made "Elio" stand out just isn't pulled off effectively. None of the characters really stand out. Some of the dialogue doesn't work. The jokes rarely land, even for the little ones.

Pixar - at their best - have been able to lean into their storytelling with a confidence that pushes innovation. "Elio" feels like it was pushed in the wrong direction, like a corporate hand was making sure that the film wasn't too "out there" for the masses.

Despite the promising themes, "Elio" lacks originality in its execution. It might be passable, but Pixar has seasoned us to expect so much more.

Grade: C

Genre: Animation, Sci-Fi, Adventure
Run Time: 1 hour 39 minutes
Rated PG

Starring (voices of): Yonas Kibreab, Zoe Saldana, Remy Edgerly, Brad Garrett.

Directed by Adrian Molina, Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi.

"Elio" is in theaters everywhere on Friday, June 20th, 2025.