My dad is a second gen immigrant and my mom has always lived in the United States. While Mom cries easily, Dad never did, and he told us kids to do the same. It always felt like Dad wanted us to work hard in school, and he would tell us stories about how he woukd work hard in school and his parents wouldn't be proud. How he grew up in poverty. How he was kicked out at 18. How he had to find job after job to support himself while me and my siblings have yet to ever have a job. My mom, on the other hand, is much more forgiving when we mess up, cries much easier, and is a little less frugal than Dad...this video made me realize perhaps why they're so different and why it always felt like a conflict when dealing with mistakes or emotions. Thanks for this
As a second gen immigrant to a mother who left everything to come to the states, I resonated with this movie so much. Ember’s rage being her only defining characteristic to some people is something I can’t really explain how relatable it is.
It's actually not fully ember's fault that the shop doesn't meet city regulations. The original shop builder might have not made the builder meet the city regulations which lead to it closed. Ember's parents also definitely did not know the shop is supposed to comply with city regulations. Ember was the one that got Wade to find out that it was not meeting regulation.
I have a friend who isn't an immigrant, but does have high expectations placed on them. He wants his own life, but since his mom worked so hard to fight from poverty to middle class living, he sympathizes with Ember's struggle of being a "good child". A sound analysis, thanks for the great video!
Even tho I'm not from an immigrant family at all I feel like I can sorta relate to ember. The weight of the expectations, feeling like I can't be myself without being judged by my parents, feeling like I have to be something big to as good as them for them to still love me. This movie is underrated, and I think it deserves much more love. Thank you so much for making this video :)
I can see why you can relate, I think that this movie applies to people that feel they need to sacrifice as much as their parents do. Which is why it’s mostly relatable to immigrants
I feel like ember because I was born in the US despite my parents coming from Mexico, and having to live a better life than my parents is something that was always told I had to do
Elemental does show a lot of heartwarming scenes, and good morals, thank you Pixar, not to mention Ember and Wade are the greatest power couple. The only thing I don't understand is why this film was hard to make, since it literally took 7 years to make the film, in other words, I felt like this was released a decade too late, why not release it in 2015 after Inside Out or maybe 2016, kinda like how it would've made a lot more sense if Monster's University happened first, or if Turning Red was actually released in 2002, or just change the year in the storyline, still blaming COVID-19 for this. Either way, I still love Elemental no matter what.🔥💧🔥💧🔥💧🔥💧🔥💧🔥💧🔥💧🔥💧🔥💧
As someone who grew up like Wade in a western family, with supportive parents who want me to find my own path, this video make me appreciate the movie far more. I thought it was already good. But hearing it from the perspective of someone who could really identify with Ember made me look at the movie with a different lens.
This is a wonderful video that really highlights what elemental brings to the table in terms of storytelling. I understand some people are tired of the generational trauma approach, but i think it's just a lot of the people who had these experiences as kids and who loved film are now simply working in these spaces. They're writing what they've lived through, relfecting the real world with these stories, and there's nothing wrong with that. For every person wishing Disney would go back to it's standard of having villains be evil just for the sake of it, there's another bawling their eyes out watching Elemental/Turning Red/Encanto. There's space for all of these in the world, making a few within the same years isn't going to kill the animation industry and it really doesn't hurt anyone either
This is an unexpectedly great story. I could tell right off the bat it was going to be a story about immigration and could guess the story beats that were going to come up but I also thought they were gonna do that fantasy thing and disregard Ember's parents and go. But they didn't. Ember worked things out with her parents to find a solution that works for each other and Wade simply exists as a channel for Ember to discover a better life for herself. They kept the theme up to the end and that was the best decision they could make.
This is SUCH a great video! This movie got a lot of hate initially because people said it was cliche and then just sorta got caught up in the cycle of hating on it more and more, so I hope this gets more traction, like the monster universuty video. Like yeah SOME of the worldbuilding is a lil flimsy and maybe some scenes really didnt work for people, but these are things that most often can be overlooked if there was a general good effort, but i guess it just didnt happen for this movie This whole perspective on it is also really cool to see, like... I would not pick up on any of the nuances presented here myself, this whole thing is just.. SO so incredibly cool to see! I hope you keep making appreciation videos like this, bdcause they really are just a joy to witness
Another aspect of Ember’s character/background I found incredibly relatable is the fact that she is an ONLY child. So not only does she have these immense expectations on her to do everything in her power to make her parents proud, if she fails, her parents have no one. I have always been jealous of my cousins and friends who have siblings for quite a few reasons, and one of those is that they have the help of their siblings to take care of their parents. If one messes up, the other can make up for it. Yet people like Ember and I? We are on our own. After our parents struggle and sacrifice so much to make a living in a new country, all you want to do is be able to make their lives easier, at least one day. Yet if you are unable to fulfill that, your parents have no one else to take care of them once they are old and frail, like Ember’s father. You do not have a sibling to share the struggle with, to divide the work with, or even relate to the overwhelming pressure. All the weight and responsibility of repaying your parents’ sacrifices is on you, only you. I absolutely loved this video essay. You really nailed every second generation immigrant and immigrant parent struggle on the head. The movie itself already gets me tearing up or full out crying every time, yet I was not expecting a video essay on it to also start up the waterworks heh. I especially loved the section about how any problem you have is immediately minimized because of how much worse your parents problems were. It makes you very closed off from expressing any negative experiences or thoughts to them, whether it be out of fear of their ridicule or coming off as a spoiled brat. Then you internalize that you have no valid problems whatsoever because you do not know what it is like to truly suffer; because your life is easier by comparison, your life is easy. So every time you are sad or upset, you feel weak. Amazing video.
I'm not an immigrant, but I am an Asian eldest daughter LOL so I relate to this movie as well, especially the relationship between Ember and her dad. I love this movie and I cried so much watching it. Expectations can be heavy.
I have never watched this movie, I only watched one review (from Shaeffrillas Production) of it where he didn't ranked it the highest. However, I think that he did not fully understood what the movie was about as it could be really hard, just like for Wade, to connect and understand the struggles of immigrants they never experienced. Yes, the ending would be more impactful if Wade actually sacrificed himself and maybe the movie is not the best written piece of art that ever existed and could be much more original in terms of world building. But that wasn't the goal of this movie. The goal of this movie, as seen from your video, has been explored to subtle details that even I would have never noticed. Thank you for this video. I'm looking forward to more analysis videos from you which cover niche topics not everyone immediately sees.
I’ve seen a lot of people not care for this movie but personally I really liked it. it’s the first Pixar movie since inside out to make me cry (I’m sorry coco didn’t get me) and I was tearing up multiple times before I fully burst. Even just watching some of the clips you’ve chosen for this video I’ve let a few tears loose. I’ve seen some people say they didn’t like the movie but could understand what it may mean to immigrants but I’m 4 or 5 generations in and still felt very deeply for Ember especially during the final bow. there’s also just so many beautiful lines in this movie that can connect with you regardless of where you come from. it makes me sad that this movie gets a bad rep. I truly feel like if it came out at a different time, before people started to get tired of Pixar, it could’ve been as well loved as their pre-pandemic movies
I love this movie! And I love your commentary! I’m not a child from immigrant parents, so hearing it from your perspective was really eye opening, thank you!
Thank you for making this video!! I IMMEDIATELY knew I was going to love your analysis the second I heard your first sentence lol (a first-gen Chinese immigrant here). The few youtube movie critics I usually watch all disliked this movie and I think it's probably because they aren't able to connect with the main theme of immigration and sacrifice, but I love this movie so so much and it saddens me to hear them complain about small things and completely missing the amazing aspects of this movie. Definitely subscribing!
One thing: technically you'd probably say Ember is first-generation, not second-generation. Though "second generation immigrant" is sometimes used, usually "first-generation" is the appropriate term for someone whose parents immigrated. And I would say, this movie does indeed touch upon many parts of the first-generation experience in an unexpectedly poignant way, like the scenes at 16:24 and 12:10; especially the latter, would 100% agree this is a question every first-gen ponders upon. Wonderful work on this and your Monsters University recaps.
Gosh durn this video made me cry. I'm basically the Wade in good ole murica (minus all the money) and I just never thought about this kind of struggle, despite most Americans being descendants of immigrants to some level. Need to go watch this movie now.
I was looking for this video again and I just have to say, this is so underrated! By far the best analysis of this movie on TH-cam, and one that really opened my eyes to how deep this story is. Awesome stuff!
My dad is an immigrant but my mom is white so I only got parts of this but my family has had to work hard and that’s what I deal with trying to repay all of their sacrifices
I didn't want to see this movie, so I didn't. I am also not an immigrant...did I shed tears watching this video? Yes. Yes. I. Did. Hearing her finally tell her dad that she didn't want to run the shop really got me D:
No, it's deep because it's about how the expectations of someone's parents can stifle their growth and learning to overcome that while still respecting their parents. This is a completely different theme to A:TLA.
Thanks so much for the love yall, just released another video essay: th-cam.com/video/s_C5CfCqKNs/w-d-xo.html
“You can do everything right your entire life but the one time you mess up, you become a nightmare to your immigrant parents” is a banger line 🥵
Iykyk 🤷🏽♂️
certainly agree
25:12 “i personally think he should’ve died” KILLED ME
The voice actress for Ember is amazing. The more I hear her the more raw it is
Agreed fs
I'm not immigrant, didn't watch the movie, yet I still teared up when Ember openly communicates with her father. Man, the voice actress killed it!
My dad is a second gen immigrant and my mom has always lived in the United States. While Mom cries easily, Dad never did, and he told us kids to do the same. It always felt like Dad wanted us to work hard in school, and he would tell us stories about how he woukd work hard in school and his parents wouldn't be proud. How he grew up in poverty. How he was kicked out at 18. How he had to find job after job to support himself while me and my siblings have yet to ever have a job. My mom, on the other hand, is much more forgiving when we mess up, cries much easier, and is a little less frugal than Dad...this video made me realize perhaps why they're so different and why it always felt like a conflict when dealing with mistakes or emotions. Thanks for this
This is legit underrated marketing of the movie
As a second gen immigrant to a mother who left everything to come to the states, I resonated with this movie so much. Ember’s rage being her only defining characteristic to some people is something I can’t really explain how relatable it is.
It's actually not fully ember's fault that the shop doesn't meet city regulations. The original shop builder might have not made the builder meet the city regulations which lead to it closed. Ember's parents also definitely did not know the shop is supposed to comply with city regulations. Ember was the one that got Wade to find out that it was not meeting regulation.
the writing here is absolutely fire.
22:43 Another great parallel here is the glass breaking as Ember says this, symbolically shattering the parts of herself too.
I have a friend who isn't an immigrant, but does have high expectations placed on them. He wants his own life, but since his mom worked so hard to fight from poverty to middle class living, he sympathizes with Ember's struggle of being a "good child". A sound analysis, thanks for the great video!
This movie broke me, I cry every time I see it.
Even tho I'm not from an immigrant family at all I feel like I can sorta relate to ember. The weight of the expectations, feeling like I can't be myself without being judged by my parents, feeling like I have to be something big to as good as them for them to still love me. This movie is underrated, and I think it deserves much more love. Thank you so much for making this video :)
I can see why you can relate, I think that this movie applies to people that feel they need to sacrifice as much as their parents do. Which is why it’s mostly relatable to immigrants
I feel like ember because I was born in the US despite my parents coming from Mexico, and having to live a better life than my parents is something that was always told I had to do
Elemental does show a lot of heartwarming scenes, and good morals, thank you Pixar, not to mention Ember and Wade are the greatest power couple. The only thing I don't understand is why this film was hard to make, since it literally took 7 years to make the film, in other words, I felt like this was released a decade too late, why not release it in 2015 after Inside Out or maybe 2016, kinda like how it would've made a lot more sense if Monster's University happened first, or if Turning Red was actually released in 2002, or just change the year in the storyline, still blaming COVID-19 for this. Either way, I still love Elemental no matter what.🔥💧🔥💧🔥💧🔥💧🔥💧🔥💧🔥💧🔥💧🔥💧
As someone who grew up like Wade in a western family, with supportive parents who want me to find my own path, this video make me appreciate the movie far more.
I thought it was already good. But hearing it from the perspective of someone who could really identify with Ember made me look at the movie with a different lens.
This is a wonderful video that really highlights what elemental brings to the table in terms of storytelling. I understand some people are tired of the generational trauma approach, but i think it's just a lot of the people who had these experiences as kids and who loved film are now simply working in these spaces. They're writing what they've lived through, relfecting the real world with these stories, and there's nothing wrong with that.
For every person wishing Disney would go back to it's standard of having villains be evil just for the sake of it, there's another bawling their eyes out watching Elemental/Turning Red/Encanto. There's space for all of these in the world, making a few within the same years isn't going to kill the animation industry and it really doesn't hurt anyone either
This is an unexpectedly great story. I could tell right off the bat it was going to be a story about immigration and could guess the story beats that were going to come up but I also thought they were gonna do that fantasy thing and disregard Ember's parents and go. But they didn't. Ember worked things out with her parents to find a solution that works for each other and Wade simply exists as a channel for Ember to discover a better life for herself. They kept the theme up to the end and that was the best decision they could make.
This is SUCH a great video! This movie got a lot of hate initially because people said it was cliche and then just sorta got caught up in the cycle of hating on it more and more, so I hope this gets more traction, like the monster universuty video.
Like yeah SOME of the worldbuilding is a lil flimsy and maybe some scenes really didnt work for people, but these are things that most often can be overlooked if there was a general good effort, but i guess it just didnt happen for this movie
This whole perspective on it is also really cool to see, like... I would not pick up on any of the nuances presented here myself, this whole thing is just.. SO so incredibly cool to see!
I hope you keep making appreciation videos like this, bdcause they really are just a joy to witness
I’m so glad I told you to watch this movie
Another aspect of Ember’s character/background I found incredibly relatable is the fact that she is an ONLY child. So not only does she have these immense expectations on her to do everything in her power to make her parents proud, if she fails, her parents have no one. I have always been jealous of my cousins and friends who have siblings for quite a few reasons, and one of those is that they have the help of their siblings to take care of their parents. If one messes up, the other can make up for it. Yet people like Ember and I? We are on our own. After our parents struggle and sacrifice so much to make a living in a new country, all you want to do is be able to make their lives easier, at least one day. Yet if you are unable to fulfill that, your parents have no one else to take care of them once they are old and frail, like Ember’s father. You do not have a sibling to share the struggle with, to divide the work with, or even relate to the overwhelming pressure. All the weight and responsibility of repaying your parents’ sacrifices is on you, only you.
I absolutely loved this video essay. You really nailed every second generation immigrant and immigrant parent struggle on the head. The movie itself already gets me tearing up or full out crying every time, yet I was not expecting a video essay on it to also start up the waterworks heh. I especially loved the section about how any problem you have is immediately minimized because of how much worse your parents problems were. It makes you very closed off from expressing any negative experiences or thoughts to them, whether it be out of fear of their ridicule or coming off as a spoiled brat. Then you internalize that you have no valid problems whatsoever because you do not know what it is like to truly suffer; because your life is easier by comparison, your life is easy. So every time you are sad or upset, you feel weak. Amazing video.
Ember is just an amazing protagonist. I didn't see much of it, but I loved what I saw.
I'm not an immigrant, but I am an Asian eldest daughter LOL so I relate to this movie as well, especially the relationship between Ember and her dad. I love this movie and I cried so much watching it. Expectations can be heavy.
Pretty much every metacritic rating that gave this movie a low score says it “lacks sincerity”. I have scarcely read something more ridiculous
This entire video made me legit tear up.
I have never watched this movie, I only watched one review (from Shaeffrillas Production) of it where he didn't ranked it the highest. However, I think that he did not fully understood what the movie was about as it could be really hard, just like for Wade, to connect and understand the struggles of immigrants they never experienced. Yes, the ending would be more impactful if Wade actually sacrificed himself and maybe the movie is not the best written piece of art that ever existed and could be much more original in terms of world building. But that wasn't the goal of this movie. The goal of this movie, as seen from your video, has been explored to subtle details that even I would have never noticed. Thank you for this video. I'm looking forward to more analysis videos from you which cover niche topics not everyone immediately sees.
I’ve seen a lot of people not care for this movie but personally I really liked it. it’s the first Pixar movie since inside out to make me cry (I’m sorry coco didn’t get me) and I was tearing up multiple times before I fully burst. Even just watching some of the clips you’ve chosen for this video I’ve let a few tears loose. I’ve seen some people say they didn’t like the movie but could understand what it may mean to immigrants but I’m 4 or 5 generations in and still felt very deeply for Ember especially during the final bow. there’s also just so many beautiful lines in this movie that can connect with you regardless of where you come from. it makes me sad that this movie gets a bad rep. I truly feel like if it came out at a different time, before people started to get tired of Pixar, it could’ve been as well loved as their pre-pandemic movies
I love this movie! And I love your commentary! I’m not a child from immigrant parents, so hearing it from your perspective was really eye opening, thank you!
Yes I feel called out. Yes I cried. This was a beautiful review and I'm not sorry.
Thank you for making this video!! I IMMEDIATELY knew I was going to love your analysis the second I heard your first sentence lol (a first-gen Chinese immigrant here). The few youtube movie critics I usually watch all disliked this movie and I think it's probably because they aren't able to connect with the main theme of immigration and sacrifice, but I love this movie so so much and it saddens me to hear them complain about small things and completely missing the amazing aspects of this movie.
Definitely subscribing!
I don't usually like "love stories" but this one felt different, and you explained why perfectly, love your essays!!
I actually love that wade doesnt die cuz it makes sense given water is water.
One thing: technically you'd probably say Ember is first-generation, not second-generation. Though "second generation immigrant" is sometimes used, usually "first-generation" is the appropriate term for someone whose parents immigrated. And I would say, this movie does indeed touch upon many parts of the first-generation experience in an unexpectedly poignant way, like the scenes at 16:24 and 12:10; especially the latter, would 100% agree this is a question every first-gen ponders upon. Wonderful work on this and your Monsters University recaps.
This analysis (or whatever you call it) is really underrated
Well said brother, I'm a second gen, i've never been able to express these types of feelings. You hit it spot on
Beautiful movie and wonderful analysis!
I have never watched 2 video essays in a row. You earned a subscribe
I’m so glad the algorithm blessed me by recommending this channel
How do you not have more subscribers?! Your videos are great, best wishes for your future!
Gosh durn this video made me cry. I'm basically the Wade in good ole murica (minus all the money) and I just never thought about this kind of struggle, despite most Americans being descendants of immigrants to some level. Need to go watch this movie now.
I was looking for this video again and I just have to say, this is so underrated! By far the best analysis of this movie on TH-cam, and one that really opened my eyes to how deep this story is. Awesome stuff!
My dad is an immigrant but my mom is white so I only got parts of this but my family has had to work hard and that’s what I deal with trying to repay all of their sacrifices
Relateable immigration stuff
Such a great video! Love how you touched so many points and articulated them beautifully. I absolutely loved this movie
you have made some very respectable essays on this channel! please keep making more!
Thanks so much for the kind words!
You get this treatment in Eastern Europe with being born as a native kid.
Simply beautiful.
I didn't want to see this movie, so I didn't. I am also not an immigrant...did I shed tears watching this video? Yes. Yes. I. Did. Hearing her finally tell her dad that she didn't want to run the shop really got me D:
Great channel! Happy I found it !
Binging all the videos now.
Is there an upload schedule ?
Listening to this at work was a mistake 😭😭
I wish I could've enjoyed this movie more. As a western person like Wade, I can't connect with the immigrant themes in the movie.
25:13 no maan why so edgy.
Let stories have a happy ending
I just want to know your thoughts on you story 4
Wow. The movie is deep because different elements get along. This has never been done before. (Avatar TLAB)
No, it's deep because it's about how the expectations of someone's parents can stifle their growth and learning to overcome that while still respecting their parents. This is a completely different theme to A:TLA.
1 off from being number 600
The love is crazy 🙏
Im gon remember that im in you first 1000 subs when you hit 1M subs