If you're looking for a little kid–friendly movie, Pixar’s delightful new animation Elio is just the ticket. The film — about a space-obsessed child who desperately wants to be abducted — is populated by colourful, whimsical aliens that look a lot like the kind of toys you'd give a toddler. Even the bad guy looks enough like a Transformer for visual comfort level.
As always, Pixar delivers a storyline that will speak to your kids, with messages about self-confidence, love, and tolerance. This last one is a biggie these days. There’s also a deeper, more psychologically resonant story for adults.
Narratively there’s nothing new, but at its core Elio is the story of an open-hearted little boy searching for his place in his universe, by projecting that longing out into the universe. It’s part of the biggest message for kids, who can feel like they don’t matter or that they never get things right or they just don’t fit in. Wanting to run away with aliens into space or another planet where he’ll be unique is a lovely metaphor for aiming to find your place in the universe where you’ll be seen and accepted as you are, flaws and all. That theme speaks to adults as well.
Three directors collaborated to make Elio, including Canadian Domee Shi, a graduate of the Sheridan animation program who won an Oscar for her 2018 short Bao, and was Oscar-nominated for her 2022, Toronto-set Pixar film, Turning Red.
Elio. Directed by Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi, and Adrian Molina. Voice cast: Yonas Kibreab, Zoe Saldaña, Brad Garrett, Jameela Jamil, Remy Edgerly, Atsuko Okatsjka, and Brendan Hunt.