Written by Andreas Babiolakis

I was a little let down by Luca last year, because I felt like it was a safer Pixar release that could have really gone the distance both narratively and with what it was trying to encompass. With an early release for Turning Red this year, I was fearing the worst initially: was Disney just trying to get this film over with? Could it have missed the mark more than Luca? Unlike the former film, I actually didn’t know what to expect with Turning Red when I saw the promotional material (outside of being chuffed that Toronto was actually being allowed to be its own city in a major feature film). Director Domee Shi has already made a big name for herself as a part of the Pixar team, and she won the world over with her Academy Award winning short film Bao: a celebration of culture, Chinese heritage, and the Toronto landscape. I could only hope that Turning Red was able to blend themes and story structure in the same way.

Whilst being much louder and more vibrant than the sublime short, I can safely say that Turning Red actually does go far enough that I was more than pleased. If anything, this almost feels like a bit of a different side of Pixar that we didn’t know could be tapped into: a more fun film that still goes about it the right way without cutting itself short. I had obviously biased reasons to gravitate towards Turning Red, given that it’s based in Toronto, takes place in the early 2000’s (I would have been around the same age as the tween/teen characters that we follow around, particularly the protagonist Meilin), and that there is a nostalgia overload for 90s kids (Tamagotchis, boy band music, indestructible flip phones, and so much more), but I can also see past all of this. The film is still hilarious, awkward, and occasionally beautiful, even if you aren’t in on all of the references.

Going into Shi’s debut feature film, I was trying to predict why Meilin was turning into a giant red panda (when she gets too excited) on a metaphorical level. Was this a metaphor for a young girl experiencing her period for the first time? Was it a more obvious symbol for a tween getting more embarrassed when she starts to fancy boys or get mocked and/or pointed out in front of everyone? Could this just be a basic representation of a girl shying away from her cultural roots and being reminded of them at any given second? It turns out that Shi isn’t a fan of implementing just one good reason to have fluffy red pandas in her film, as this transformation actually embodies all three ideas (and more), rendering Turning Red identifiable for so many viewers (older patrons will be able to notice themselves in Meilin’s mom Ming Lee: a suffocatingly protective mother who is only trying to do what she feels is in her daughter’s best interests).

Meilin Lee is thirteen and at the top of her class. She helps her mother Ming Lee at an ancient temple that is open to tourists, and her best friends at elementary school feel like she hasn’t had a chance to really discover herself as a person. All Meilin knows for sure at the start of Turning Red is that she is absolutely obsessed with the boy band 4*TOWN (a potential shoutout to pop group O-Town, who would have been big around the time this film was set). She is aware of this apparent curse involving her ancestors and red pandas, but it seems like it’s somewhat of a mythological tale. That may have been true until the day after she starts really discovering boys and falling for the Daisy Mart cashier (get ready for more Toronto staples). The night after her mother embarrasses this employee — as she thinks that he is taking advantage of her daughter once she skimmed through Meilin’s sketches of him — Meilin has a nightmare that can be also comparable to an “awakening” on that kind of level, and *poof*! She has become a red panda in a very literal sense. She quickly realizes that she will turn into this creature whenever she gets too emotional, either through excitement, sadness, or anger.

Without giving much more away, I will highlight the core strengths of Turning Red. It is easily one of Pixar’s funniest films, and I will echo the concerns raised by fellow critics: this should have had a theatrical release. Having been fortunate enough to catch a promotional screening in a theatre, the infectious laughter that erupted at any given moment made the viewing experience so much more electrifying. We would laugh from relatability, discomfort, and the audacity of the film (the comedy here goes as far as it can for a Disney/Pixar property, to the point that I’m shocked that it got away with some of its jokes since these studios are usually a lot stricter). Furthermore, seeing these stunning designs and animation on a big screen was highly rewarding: parts of Turning Red are illustrated in a nostalgic way, and others in Pixar’s iconically prestigious way, with some honestly breathtaking sequences. Additionally, as funny as Turning Red is (and I do mean actually very funny), it also has so much depth to it as well when it comes to speaking about the importance of one’s family (as well as making time to discover yourself as an individual as well); living with this harmony will be difficult for young tweens and teens, but it is doable because we’ve all had to go through this.

Shi’s selection of the early 2000’s is an interesting decision, and I feel like it was chosen because it was when she herself was the same age as Meilin. However, I think it actually speaks to us on an even higher level. This era and the 90s was significant when it came to youths feeling conflicted when it came to honouring their culture and family. The internet was blossoming and we were finding friends in new ways. Pop culture was dominant enough that children and teens were finding passions outside of their immediate surroundings (this was the case for many decades, but by the 90s and 2000s we were extremely far removed). There was a dilemma for many of us young millennials as to who we were and how we could find our true identities. That is captured quite well in Turning Red, especially during some uncharacteristically abstract sequences that were breathtaking to watch. Shi is able to pinpoint the challenge of matching familial expectations when culture appeared to be dying. She also made the film her own way, with a huge representation of growing up as a Chinese Canadian and as a young woman. She didn’t hold back on her love for Toronto either, with Vince Carter Raptors jerseys, Tim Horton’s Timbits, and loonies and toonies to boot (as well as a final showdown at the SkyDome).

The biggest power move she made, however, was to never villainize mother Ming Lee, and it’s a very important detail since it reminds us about what Turning Red really is about. We will all go through our own personal battles when we reach a certain age, and it will seem like the world — and our loved ones — are against us. Really, it’s about wrestling with that internal beast ourselves whilst discovering a new side of our own being that we can share with the world (perseverance, expression, passion, confidence, whatever it may be). There is actually a lot going on in Turning Red, and Domee Shi is able to tell it as simply as possible. As much fun as Turning Red is, it is also profound and interesting enough to consider it a solid Pixar release that may actually be a top-tier film of theirs for some viewers.

Andreas Babiolakis has a Masters degree in Film and Photography Preservation and Collections Management from Ryerson University, as well as a Bachelors degree in Cinema Studies from York University. His favourite times of year are the Criterion Collection flash sales and the annual Toronto International Film Festival.