Amazing, hilarious, and delightful fun, Turning Red is highly energetic and deeply heartfelt in that way only Pixar knows how to do.
Originally, this was intended for one of my “Mega Movie Catch-Ups” but I enjoyed the latest outing by Pixar so much I thought it deserved its own separate review.
Meilin is a 13-year-old dorky overachiever living in Toronto in 2002, and like any teenage girl she has to balance high school, friends, noticing boys, responsibilities, a Tamagotchi, as well as the pressure and expectations of an overbearing mother. All that is put into chaos when she discovers the women in her family are afflicted with an ancient “inconvenience”.
The 25th feature to come from Pixar, Turning Red is an absolute delight of a film. As a “coming of age” story it could easily have been too saccharin or even obnoxiously “young” (see The Mitchells vs The Machines for the latter) but the film succeeds in getting the right balance of humour, fun, and emotion that Pixar is known for doing better than its contemporaries (even better than the in-house Disney Animation studio).
Directed by Domee Shi (who won the Academy Award for her animated short, Bao) the film takes many cues from her own teen years and experiences growing up with Chinese immigrant parents in Toronto during that era. And a lot like Bao, it’s a very personal story for Shi as it examines her own relationship with her parents and the rollercoaster that is “growing up”.
POTENTIALLY MINOR SPOILERS AHEAD…
A lot of commotion was had online due to some very bad, tone-deaf, and potentially racist takes in regards to this film’s Asian influences. Some citing how they could not relate to the movie because of the “foreign” elements, or even (if I’m being kind) the inability to relate to a teenage girl.
I can understand a movie not being to your tastes or even not aimed at certain demographics HOWEVER… Turning Red is a film about growing pains, or “magical puberty” as Shi jokingly calls it, as well as the pressures put upon children by their parents. Regardless of the gender or heritage of a character, if you cannot (or simply refuse to) relate to either of these things… that’s a YOU problem.
Also, after decades of consuming martial arts films and anime, both of which have been appropriated by western media, it’s incredibly odd and lacking in imagination or even empathy for anyone to claim they can’t relate to a Chinese-Canadian girl dealing with teen angst and yet have zero problem doing so when it’s a billionaire shut-in who dresses up like a bat and goes out at night to punch criminals in clown make up.
The fact that Mei and the women of her family turn into giant red pandas when they enter “womanhood” and is connected to their emotional state is as blunt a metaphor as possible about menstruation. I’m a cis gender guy, I don’t need to have gone through such experiences exactly to be able to relate to all the other aspects and challenges of puberty and being a teen that the film highlights. If you can’t relate to that exact scenario, perhaps being open to learning about it is also an option.
(Sorry, I just needed to get that rant out)
Speaking of anime, there are plenty of such influences that helped dictate the visual style of this movie from the character designs, the effects, even the visual humour. I’m not normally a fan of anime sensibilities yet it all mixes well with the Pixar style, pushing it from previous efforts to make it both different yet familiar.
As is par for the course with Pixar, this is a gorgeous-looking movie with so much detail and lovely little elements. Whether it be the city streets, Mei’s home, the family temple, you can’t help but be absorbed by the setting and the world of that era. Tonally, it perfectly conveys the late-90s/turn-of-the-millennium vibe in its presentation. There is definitely a bit of nostalgia going on with the appearance of Hi-8 camcorders, flip phones, and the aforementioned Tamagotchi but they’re all practical seasoning, rather than heavily reliant “nostalgia bait”, that work in service of the story.
It’s also a funny film too. The humour (particularly the energy of it) may be a tad much for some older viewers but like I said, there’s a way in which Pixar know how to balance these things in just the right manner. It didn’t completely rely on reference-specific gags so much as it did on the situations and energy of the characters, whether they’re swooning over their boyband idols 4*Town, or showcasing each character’s unique quirks and personality and almost every joke lands as it should.
And I think the humour is vitally important here especially considering the subject matter. It is a big obvious metaphor that many people, especially those who are approaching or undergoing these experiences, need to be made to feel comfortable about and realise that a lot of people feel the same way.
Most other studios fall into the trap of stunt-casting these sorts of animated films but that’s not the case here and everyone gives such great performances. In the same way they did for Russell in UP, the casting of Rosalie Chiang as Mei worked so well and, as is the case for animated features, she was 12 at the time production began over four years ago. As the director explains, there’s something charming in the imperfect nature of her performance as opposed to an older actor doing a kid’s voice. Sandra Oh really gets to let go as Mei’s mother, Ming, despite the seemingly uptight veneer she puts on most of the time and it gives a more nuanced performance than simply being a strict and overprotective mum.
The supporting characters are all fantastic too and appropriately cast. In particular I was so joyed by Mei’s equally dorky squad of best friends who present a great variety of characters. Miriam (Ava Morse), Priya (Maitreyi Ramakrishnan), and Abby (Hyein Park, who is actually a storyboard artist at Pixar and this was her debut as a voice actor) are wonderful friends who support Mei with their own personalities and quirks that are so endearing and enjoyable.
There are quite a few Asian actors lending their voices in the various roles. Also, is it really a Chinese-themed film made in Hollywood if you don’t have James Hong somehow involved? He pops up as a minor character that plays a big role in the third act and at 93 he’s still sounding great.
The centre of Mei’s teen crush and obsession is of course the boyband, 4*town. Late 90’s/early 2000’s pop music is completely my jam and I was surprised that the three original songs for the band were co-written by Billie Eilish and Finneas O’Connell (the latter would also voice one of the band members). Not only are these songs pitch-perfect to the era without taking the piss but the “hit single” will get stuck in your head.
I was blown away by the quality of this film and so I have very few nitpicks. I see a potential problem with the use of “Asian mysticism” as it seemingly always relies on such for anything to do with Chinese culture (James Hong appealing to ancestors during a mystical ceremony probably didn’t help matters – lucky he didn’t mention “green eyes”).
Someone did bring up the criticism that Mei’s mother, grandmother, and aunts all inhabited the same or similar “tiger mother” stereotype often associated with Asian women, and that maybe there should have been more variety. My only response to that is there sort of was in that Abby (Korean) and Priya (who is Indo-Canadian) offer another type of Asian characterisation but also Mei herself doesn’t fit that stereotype either.
But then again this movie triggered my own unresolved PTSD and I’m a guy of Asian diaspora almost hitting 40. The family characterisations hit very close to home, indeed.
I loved this movie more than I thought I would. I knew from the trailers the story it was going to tell and the metaphor it was using but I was so surprised at how much I fell for it all. I even got somewhat emotional myself in the third act.
Turning Red is a wonderfully-crafted and endearing personal story that has universal themes about the perils of growing up and feeling inadequate in the face of pressure and expectations of others. It’s done so well with great humour, charm, and joy that I almost forgot to mention that the entire leadership of this particular film was completely female AND it’s the first solo-female directed feature at Pixar. So what’s not to love and celebrate.
It’s currently on Disney+ but I’m most definitely getting the 4K steel book for myself!
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