June 17, 2025 • 5 mins
Nick Zednik's review of ELIO.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:26):
Music. Hey everyone, welcome back to
the Vigilante 9239 podcast. I am 1/3 of the ghost here in
(00:49):
New Zenig and I am back with Pixar's Elio.
I do want to thank the studio first and foremost for sending
me out to an early screening of this movie and we're going to
waste no time anyway. So let's talk about this movie.
You obviously if it has a reallyhigh budget, I was, I was told I
was seeing that this movie had like over a budget of $300
million. So definitely probably one of
the more expensive Pixar movies and marketing's kind of been
(01:14):
hiding the movie to a degree, which feels kind of strange
because honestly, I don't this movie in more ways than one
feels like it's classic Pixar. You know, you have a lot of
presentation on themes on grief and loneliness and self
acceptance. You know, you have this kid who
goes through something traumaticthat no child should ever go
through. He loses his parents at a young
(01:36):
age and he doesn't have any funds in the world.
So he feels like this outcast that where you know, he doesn't
feel like nobody really wants him or that he belongs in the
world. So he essentially just wants to
go in search of aliens and he wants them to kind of like take
him to a better place or a placewhere he might belong and fit in
a little bit better because it isn't that he fits in on earth
(01:58):
and he and he doesn't feel like he has a a place of, of
belonging anymore. So obviously, like those are
themes that regardless of what age you might be, how old you
are, and it it's always going tofind a way to hit you on that
regard, you know, and on top of this being like this cosmic over
the top space adventure, I do think that while visually it may
be great to look at, those are the themes in this movie, I
(02:21):
think is where the movie really does.
Sorry. So you do have a great voice
cast in this movie as well. Obviously you have Zoe Saldana
who plays the ants to the kid Elio, and then you have a lot of
other recognizable voice voice cast in this movie as well.
I'm not going to spoil who thosepeople are, but the relationship
that develops between Elio and the Anthe in this movie is kind
(02:41):
of like really the beating heartof this animated movie.
So while I thought that at timesit feels like it's more cartoony
and it may feel a little too kidfriendly for its own good.
I know it's an animated movie, but there were times like it
seems like that the kind of scale of back where like it
maybe wants to be a little bit darker, but then it kind of
(03:02):
really scales back a little bit.But overall, this movie was
simple. It was straightforward, it had
its funny moments, it was fun attimes, and visually it was good.
It was pretty good to look at. And I do think that outside of
what we've normally gotten for Pixar, I would say this is one
of more therefore better original animated offerings that
(03:23):
that they have given to us. A while it's not maybe the most
memorable Pixar movie that that I've ever seen.
I do that. It's good enough and I do that.
This movie is going to check a lot of boxes, especially if you
are somebody that's gone through, you know, wanting to
feel self acceptance and wantingto feel a place of belonging and
(03:44):
whether you've gone through grief and you felt like you
haven't really belonged in the world.
I think that I'd be lying if I said that this movie didn't
really talk on my heartstrings by the end of it.
I do get the score. It was also pretty good in this
movie. It's soared when it really
needed to. So I do give it a plus on that
one. On the overall, it's just a
solid Pixar and movie that you know, it's not going to reinvent
(04:06):
the wheel and may it may not be in my top ten of the year, but I
had a fun time watching it and it was great to see Pixar kind
of scale back a little bit. Try try again with something a
little bit more original, see what you got.
And honestly, I can even throw the comparison.
You know, there were times whereit felt like it was like Jimmy
Neutron, if anybody ever remembers that.
So if that's maybe like where I'm sitting at, then I still
(04:29):
think that that that's a pretty good benchmark for me.
So I would say like it's like Jimmy Neutron butt Pixar.
That's kind of like how I would describe it.
So had a had a fun time with it.I would probably give this more
like a seven straight up like A77.3 out of 10.
And I if I had to be a little technical, but I enjoy this
(04:50):
movie enough. So if you have a family, you're
looking for something light and breezy.
Nothing, nothing too serious. Go check out Elio in theaters.
Don't think that you'll be disappointed because it does the
job just good enough. So those are my thoughts on
Elio. Follow me on Twitter and
letterbox at Xanax. Of course, follow the show at
Vigilante 1929. And as always, I'll check you
(05:13):
all in the next film or TV review soon.
Peace. The.
Music. Hey everyone, welcome back to
the Vigilante 9239 podcast. I am 1/3 of the ghost here in
(00:49):
New Zenig and I am back with Pixar's Elio.
I do want to thank the studio first and foremost for sending
me out to an early screening of this movie and we're going to
waste no time anyway. So let's talk about this movie.
You obviously if it has a reallyhigh budget, I was, I was told I
was seeing that this movie had like over a budget of $300
million. So definitely probably one of
the more expensive Pixar movies and marketing's kind of been
(01:14):
hiding the movie to a degree, which feels kind of strange
because honestly, I don't this movie in more ways than one
feels like it's classic Pixar. You know, you have a lot of
presentation on themes on grief and loneliness and self
acceptance. You know, you have this kid who
goes through something traumaticthat no child should ever go
through. He loses his parents at a young
(01:36):
age and he doesn't have any funds in the world.
So he feels like this outcast that where you know, he doesn't
feel like nobody really wants him or that he belongs in the
world. So he essentially just wants to
go in search of aliens and he wants them to kind of like take
him to a better place or a placewhere he might belong and fit in
a little bit better because it isn't that he fits in on earth
(01:58):
and he and he doesn't feel like he has a a place of, of
belonging anymore. So obviously, like those are
themes that regardless of what age you might be, how old you
are, and it it's always going tofind a way to hit you on that
regard, you know, and on top of this being like this cosmic over
the top space adventure, I do think that while visually it may
be great to look at, those are the themes in this movie, I
(02:21):
think is where the movie really does.
Sorry. So you do have a great voice
cast in this movie as well. Obviously you have Zoe Saldana
who plays the ants to the kid Elio, and then you have a lot of
other recognizable voice voice cast in this movie as well.
I'm not going to spoil who thosepeople are, but the relationship
that develops between Elio and the Anthe in this movie is kind
(02:41):
of like really the beating heartof this animated movie.
So while I thought that at timesit feels like it's more cartoony
and it may feel a little too kidfriendly for its own good.
I know it's an animated movie, but there were times like it
seems like that the kind of scale of back where like it
maybe wants to be a little bit darker, but then it kind of
(03:02):
really scales back a little bit.But overall, this movie was
simple. It was straightforward, it had
its funny moments, it was fun attimes, and visually it was good.
It was pretty good to look at. And I do think that outside of
what we've normally gotten for Pixar, I would say this is one
of more therefore better original animated offerings that
(03:23):
that they have given to us. A while it's not maybe the most
memorable Pixar movie that that I've ever seen.
I do that. It's good enough and I do that.
This movie is going to check a lot of boxes, especially if you
are somebody that's gone through, you know, wanting to
feel self acceptance and wantingto feel a place of belonging and
(03:44):
whether you've gone through grief and you felt like you
haven't really belonged in the world.
I think that I'd be lying if I said that this movie didn't
really talk on my heartstrings by the end of it.
I do get the score. It was also pretty good in this
movie. It's soared when it really
needed to. So I do give it a plus on that
one. On the overall, it's just a
solid Pixar and movie that you know, it's not going to reinvent
(04:06):
the wheel and may it may not be in my top ten of the year, but I
had a fun time watching it and it was great to see Pixar kind
of scale back a little bit. Try try again with something a
little bit more original, see what you got.
And honestly, I can even throw the comparison.
You know, there were times whereit felt like it was like Jimmy
Neutron, if anybody ever remembers that.
So if that's maybe like where I'm sitting at, then I still
(04:29):
think that that that's a pretty good benchmark for me.
So I would say like it's like Jimmy Neutron butt Pixar.
That's kind of like how I would describe it.
So had a had a fun time with it.I would probably give this more
like a seven straight up like A77.3 out of 10.
And I if I had to be a little technical, but I enjoy this
(04:50):
movie enough. So if you have a family, you're
looking for something light and breezy.
Nothing, nothing too serious. Go check out Elio in theaters.
Don't think that you'll be disappointed because it does the
job just good enough. So those are my thoughts on
Elio. Follow me on Twitter and
letterbox at Xanax. Of course, follow the show at
Vigilante 1929. And as always, I'll check you
(05:13):
all in the next film or TV review soon.
Peace. The.
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