That hasn't stopped me with Pixar before. I've seen every Pixar movie, eventually.
With Elio, I know I'll have the chance to see it on Disney+ before my ranking deadline, so that's easy. However, this is a significant moment in my Pixar career, as it is the first time since 2013 that I've passed on an opportunity to see a Pixar movie in the theater.
That was Monsters University, which came out on June 21, 2013, when I did not yet have a child old enough to go watch it with me (my oldest son was only two), and when we had our mind on other things with our impending move to Australia two months hence.
Since then:
- Inside Out, watched at the Jam Factory in South Yarra on June 7th, 2015, at an advanced screening with my now-old-enough son, who showed an incredible comprehension of what was happening for a four-year-old. It ended up being my #1 movie of the year.
- The Good Dinosaur, watched at Village Crown on January 3, 2016, also with my son and maybe not this time with my wife, who probably sniffed out the stink of this movie when I could not.
- Finding Dory, watched at the Sun Theatre in Yarraville on July 6, 2016, by myself at a 9 o'clock show, where I remembered thinking it was strange that I was seeing an animated movie by myself at night, and then ultimately feeling even more foolish because the movie is bad.
- Cars 3, watched again at the Jam Factory in another advanced screening on June 17, 2017, in what was a milestone movie for my younger son, his first movie in the theater at age three-and-a-half. I didn't really like it but I don't think the others had a problem with it.
- Coco, watched again at the Sun with I think just the two boys, on January 6, 2018, on a Saturday afternoon. It wasn't the first time they'd seen their old man cry at a Pixar movie (Inside Out), but it was the first time they both saw their old man cry, though it was dark so maybe they didn't notice.
- Incredibles 2, watched on June 17, 2018, though I am having trouble remembering which cinema it was. I think it was just the three boys again. I thought this movie was pretty good.
- Toy Story 4, watched on June 17, 2019 (Pixar loves this release date range), as the last Pixar movie before COVID. I don't remember who was with me or where we saw this, but it was in the theater, and at least one of my children was there.
- Onward, watched on April 20, 2020, at home. There was no option to watch this in the theater as it was now COVID. My older son was really emotionally affected by this movie and was bawling uncontrollably. It was a little frightening to see. Wonder if it made him think about the possibility of losing me, his dad?
- Soul, watched on January 1, 2021, on our projector at the lodging where we were staying in Mansfield, Victoria, with my sister-in-law and mother-in-law. It was my younger son's seventh birthday and he really remembered this one, as did we all. Still no option to see it in the theater during COVID.
- Luca, watched on June 28, 2021, again on our projector and again at a place we were staying, only this time it was an Air BnB in Nagambie, Victoria, where we got away for a week to change up our circumstances during COVID isolation. Third straight Pixar you could not watch in a cinema.
- Turning Red, watched on March 19, 2022, on our projector for the third straight time, but this time at home in our garage. Fourth straight Pixar it was not possible to watch theatrically. This one made my top five of the year.
- Lightyear, watched on June 19, 2022, at I think Melbourne Central? I can't remember. My older son had aged out by this point but my younger son was with me. I'd say it was a happy return to theatrical viewings of Pixar movies, except this might be my least favorite Pixar movie.
- Elemental, watched on June 21, 2023, back to going solo to the Sun in Yarraville, but at least I believe it was an afternoon showing, unlike Finding Dory. And Pixar is back in the win column after Lightyear.
- Inside Out 2, watched on July 11, 2024 at the Sun, with my older son returning to the fold for one more movie because he remembered liking the first one. My wife and younger son were also there for our first full family Pixar outing since Cars 3, though I think we were all a little let down by the movie.
With the number of mildly snide comments I made about the movies there, you can see how a lack of need to see a Pixar movie in the theater is something that has been steadily building in me. Now, with Elio, I'm finally putting it into practice.
Even though Pixar movies are definitely hit and miss with me lately, it seems like a big moment. It ends a streak of 14 straight Pixar movies that I either saw or would have seen in the theater if I'd been able. I am pretty sure that there is no other type of movie with that many examples where it was possible for me to have that sort of streak, and even if there had been, I likely wouldn't have achieved it.
This is not to say I will not see another Pixar movie in the theater. Of course I will. I will probably see the next one there. It's called Hoppers and the description sounds sort of interesting. I could probably even get my younger son to go with me, as he will only just be turned 12 next March and will probably still retain some of his instinct -- especially as the younger one -- to please his old man. If not, maybe I'll just go by myself, as I did twice before during this run of 14.
Then it's -- sigh -- Toy Story 5, which is kind of a given theatrical visit, despite my wariness that this franchise is still going on. (It's actually the sixth movie, not the fifth, if you also include Lightyear.)
But opting out of Elio does serve as a bit of a nail in the coffin, at least from my perspective, on the idea of a Pixar movie as an event movie, the kind you would not risk missing in the theater. I saw what Elio was offering -- a lot of extreme colors, goofy aliens, and characters who sound like they're being voiced by babies -- and said "No thanks."
Which, really, just puts me back where I was in my thirties, when I missed seeing Cars, Cars 2, Brave and of course Monsters University in the theater, the last three of those being a three-movie streak of their own.
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