Pixar’s latest (it’s 27th!) may not be one of its all-time instant-classics, but thanks to director Peter Sohn (‘The Good Dinosaur’) and the dazzling work of the animation team, it still lands as a top-notch feature. A sweet and touching film about whether fire and water (in the form of anthropomorphic elements) could not only co-exist but even fall in love, it hits all the right notes without ever getting treacly or too message-driven (Sohn was inspired by his own upbringing as the outsider son of Korean immigrants). The result is clever, funny, and tender, and it may just be Pixar’s most romantic film to date.
4/5 stars