Pixar goes through low hours. From the fact that few of his films have made it to the cinema in the last five years, to the controversy surrounding most of them. The studio known for its creativity and contributions to animated cinema seems to have lost its magic by trying to combine the adult world with the children’s world. An experiment in script and in the visual section, which had been successful for years. But whether by repetition in the formula when telling his stories or alone, By becoming predictable, it lost the ability to captivate its audience.
So the apparent initial failure of Elementary, didn’t surprise anyone. The studio’s twenty-seventh film, it debuted to mixed reviews. Much more in Cannesin which she received devastating reviews that led her to a disappointing 57% positive rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
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But what was even worse, most experts and specialized journalists insisted that the film lacked appeal, charm or originality. A simple love story in a fantastic setting, repeated endlessly by Pixar in the past. By the time it was released in the rest of the world, collection 29.5 million dollars in its first weekend, a figure well below the rest of the company’s films.
However, in the following months, the film was vindicated. World critics had a better opinion of it than that of the French festival. What allowed him increase its positive reviews average at 76% on Rotten Tomatoes. In addition, the audience rating gave it a 92% approval rating. But the most surprising thing was that after a modest debut, the feature film continued to be among the highest grossers for almost two months. Something that allowed it to become a rare success, which happened slowly and ended in a triumph that no one expected.
A phenomenon in the entertainment business
The low initial collection of Elementary, seemed to show that the studio had lost its ability to attract audiences in theaters. The previous project to hit the big screen, Lightyear, became a controversial flop. In addition, a scandal that led to public questioning of Pixar’s ability to recover after the pandemic stoppage.
How will it be remembered, both Soulas Luke and Gridwere released on Disney+, which turned the poor performance of the spin off of toy story in a warning sign. One that seemed to increase with what happened with Elemental both in Cannes and in its first weekend of release.
But, the love story between a creature of fire and another of water, which was much more than a disappointing debut. Gradually, word of mouth and good reviews allowed the film to remain on the most viewed lists. Even in the midst of other major premieres.
An unexpected success
With a staying power rarely seen in other films, whose tendency is to fall in box office figures, Elementary rebounded in its second week. Contrary to The Flash either Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumaniawhich lost a large part of the audience almost immediately, the lively continued being attractive. With small percentage drops, it was never beyond the ten highest-grossing films in the following four weeks of its release.
Even outside North American borders, it had solid success in different markets, especially in South Korea, Mexico, France and the United Kingdom. Particularly among the South Korean public, he became one of the successes of the year with 48 million dollars in collection.
But above all, the film managed to vindicate its seemingly simple love story. The allegory of migration, loneliness and discrimination in a fantastic city inhabited by creatures of air, earth, fire and water captivated. From its visual section, in which Pixar demonstrated a new level of imagination and inventiveness to narrate its sensitive point of view on complex topics. Elementary It was surprising for being an underrated story, which found its place in a year of box-office failures.
An sometimes unpredictable industry
There is no single explanation that allows us to understand the success of Elementarywhich ended by collect more than 460 million dollars before its arrival on Disney+. With less than half that figure as budgetthe film is a success that showed that it could reverse the factors against it.
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With a love story told between allegories about adult themes and animation that is even outstanding in the studio’s high standards, Elementary found his audience. A triumph that, in a time when nothing seems certain in the cinematographic world, is more significant than ever.