Turning Red (2022) - SPOILER-FREE Review
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© 2022 Disney/Pixar. All Rights Reserved.
Directed by: Domee Shi
Written by: Julia Cho, Domee Shi
Starring: Rosalie Chiang, Sandra Oh, Ava Morse, Maitreyi Ramakrishnan, Hyein Park, Orion Lee, Wai Ching Ho, James Hong
Runtime: 99 min
Synopsis: Mei Lee (Rosalie Chiang) is a confident, dorky thirteen-year-old torn between staying her mother's dutiful daughter and the chaos of adolescence. And as if changes to her interests, relationships, and body weren't enough, whenever she gets too excited (which for a teenager is practically ALWAYS), she "poofs" into a giant red panda!
© 2022 Disney/Pixar. All Rights Reserved.
Pixar is popularly known for its incredibly moving, impactful narratives, constantly tackling sensitive and even quite adult topics in a way that viewers of all ages and genders understand and feel understood. Will Turning Red continue that trend, or is the risk of dealing with issues like puberty too heavy for the studio?
One of the most outdated, derogatory, truly irritating preconceptions about the animation genre is that "animated flicks are for kids". If there's a type of film that causes its audience to be emotionally overwhelmed, it's precisely the animation genre, be it 2D, 3D, stop-motion, or a mix of these or other styles. Gone are the days when only Disney and/or Pixar could break this cultural barrier since studios like Studio Ghibli or Cartoon Saloon are already well-known by moviegoers. Obviously, the target audience for these films are children and families, but the above comment is often used to belittle and demean them as if they were worth less for being advertised to such viewers.
Yet, here comes Turning Red. A work that, after debuting on the Disney+ streaming platform, will serve as "court evidence" to contest such a prejudiced argument. On the other hand, it will generate heated discussions about the powerful way in which it approaches its central theme: puberty. As if the problems during its production weren't enough - switching from theatrical release to streaming plus criticism of the animation style - this new Pixar movie promises to be the most divisive ever. In such a way that, after viewing it, the title itself takes on a whole other meaning, a bit more… uncomfortable.
Turning Red tells the story of Mei Lee, a 13-year-old girl brought up strictly and rigidly by her overprotective mother, Ming Lee. The young girl reaches puberty and, with it, the various "inconveniences" - word repeated throughout the runtime - from such a transition arise overwhelmingly. Add a family "genetic problem" to this process, where very intense emotions turn a person into a giant red panda, and what was already complicated becomes infinitely worse. Reading it this way in writing, it doesn't seem like such an adult narrative that younger children wouldn't understand or even be able to watch.
© 2022 Disney/Pixar. All Rights Reserved.
However, in a surprising and even somewhat shocking manner, Turning Red goes in with both feet, without any remorse or shame in addressing topics such as menstruation, sexual tension, and even finds space for a short scene that indirectly points to masturbation. Yes, you read well. Domee Shi and Julia Cho - both doing their feature film debuts - create the first film of the famous studio in which words like "sexy", "naughty" and "excitation" belong to the central narrative. Biting lips. Intense sweating when the crush walks by. Closing the legs while gripping the thighs. Very explicit drawings of a character and her crush touching, hugging, and kissing. And much, much more.
So that my words aren't misinterpreted by evil tongues, it's worth clarifying: it's not me - nor any viewer, I hope - who is attracted to the characters or considers them sexy, let alone aroused by watching Turning Red! It's the characters themselves who, without leaving any room for doubt, feel physical and sexual attraction to others, whether they're schoolmates or celebrities. It's the film itself that shows and uses this particular vocabulary to describe the feelings of its characters.
Yes, they're 13-year-old boys and girls. Yes, these words quickly become a problem if taken out of a specific context. But we're in 2022, where 6-year-old children already possess a YouTube channel, earning more than adults with 20 years of work experience. The time has certainly expired when it comes to pretending that pre-teens are ignorant and that they don't have any kind of knowledge or personal experience with strong passions or desires involving sexual tension, masturbation, and related things, especially in an age where smartphones, social media, and access to the Internet are in the hands of so many children. So, let us adults, too, stop infantilizing and stigmatizing a phase of life that is anything but childish.
© 2022 Disney/Pixar. All Rights Reserved.
Turning Red manages to perfectly capture this complex, complicated stage of puberty, where all the strange emotions and sensations appear out of nowhere, without an adult around to explain or help to understand. Never has a Pixar film been so dedicated and courageous in diving into its sensitive topics. This work is packed with youthful excitement, whether the protagonist is going to a party with her friends for the first time, seeing a concert of her favorite boy band - and it's not just for the music - or falling in love with a boy who herself draws exaggeratedly muscular. The stigma around this subject shouldn't exist, as it's simply something natural and part of human life.
Basically, everything serves to convey a message of self-acceptance encompassed in a puberty environment. Turning Red is a reminder that despite hormonal, physical, and emotional changes - metaphorically represented by the panda transformation - we mustn't stop being who we are, nor seek constant validation from those who don't value our essence. It's crucial to appreciate true friendships and embrace change without shame. Mei Lee and her friends are an incredibly realistic and unashamed representation of today's youth, and the character arc of her mother offers a good lesson to parents who create more obstacles for their children rather than helping to bring down those that emerge naturally.
Technically, Turning Red holds fun, appealing music, as is traditional in Pixar films. Ludwig Göransson (Tenet) delivers a pleasant score, with contributions from Billie Eilish and Chris O'Connell for the boy band's songs. Personally, mixing the different animation styles works, although not in an impressive fashion. The colorful, fun atmosphere, together with peculiar editing, keep this movie within the typical studio standard, as well as the excellent voice work by the entire cast, namely the newcomer Rosalie Chiang as the protagonist.
Of course, the real target audience is mainly girls going through puberty, which doesn't mean that other people can't enjoy it, regardless of age and gender. However, being an adult and a man, there are certain moments where the narrative loses some momentum due to the lack of personal connection, which is perfectly understandable. The filmmakers themselves feared that many of the scenes would be removed by the executive producers, but recent interviews demonstrate that their vision has remained untouched. I recommend that parents see it without their children first if they don't want to initiate conversations that are too… "advanced", in your perspective.
© 2022 Disney/Pixar. All Rights Reserved.
Final Thoughts
Turning Red is undoubtedly the riskiest, possibly the most divisive work in Pixar history. Without any remorse or restraint, Domee Shi and Julia Cho unapologetically approach the sensitive topic of (female) puberty in a quite shocking, positively impactful manner. A narrative that unquestionably explores the hormonal, emotional, and sexual developments of its characters, conveying a message of self-acceptance and understanding of human evolution through its metaphors loaded with youthful excitement. With the well-known technical attributes from the successful studio, this film will serve as an essential companion for all pre-teens who will deal with or are going through this inevitable and "inconvenient" phase of life. One of the best movies of the year until this day.
