Movie Review: Turning Red

Stars: 2 out of 5

Pros: Animation, voice acting, some laughs

Cons: Lots of laughing at embarrassing situations, questionable messages

The Bottom Line:

Potentially fun

Middle school complication

With some poor morals

“Is There Anything Else I Should Know About?”

I’ll admit, the preview for Turning Red, the newest Pixar movie, didn’t grab me right away.  But it’s Pixar.  Of course, I was planning to watch it.  This was especially true since it was premiering on Disney+, which is the one streaming service I subscribe to, making it super easy.  While I can see how others would enjoy it, I found it disappointing overall.

The movie tells the story of Meilin (voiced by Rosalie Chiang), a thirteen-year-old living with her parents in Toronto.  She does exactly what is expected of her, getting amazing grades and spending her afternoons and evenings helping with the family’s temple, which is a tourist attraction.

However, her life turns upside down one day when her mother, Ming (Sandra Oh), embarrasses her horribly.  The next morning, Meilin wakes up to find that she is a giant red panda.  She quickly figures out that it is triggered by strong emotion.  She tries to go on with her life while avoiding strong emotions that will trigger it, but…well, eighth grade.  What will happen when others discover her secret?

I can see how the movie would be funny for some.  There are certainly plenty of scenes that would make others laugh.  However, I was too busy cringing rather than laughing at them.  I was embarrassed for Meilin myself.  These are the types of things I could see myself finding funny on a rewatch, but they certainly weren’t the first time around.

One in particular involves Meilin’s mom thinking that Meilin is getting her first period until Ming figures out what is really going on.  I cringed through that scene, and I can see it leading to lots of questions in kids.

However, my biggest problem with the movie is the moral.  Yes, I get that as you grow, you start to express your independence and you start to rely more on your friends than your family.  That is an overall healthy thing.  However, the way the movie handled that left a very bad taste in my mouth.  You definitely need to have a balance between friends and family.  Heck, even as an adult, you need a balance.  This movie came down fully on the side of the friends over family.  Maybe it’s just because the film didn’t have the time for the nuance that would be needed to balance them out, but it bothered me.

Then there’s the idea that Meilin is ultimately praised for sneaking around behind her parent’s back.  Not to mention her father being a very weak parent (almost forgotten character, really), and her mom is the closest thing we have to a villain (she reminds me too much of King Triton from The Little Mermaid in this regard).  And, maybe I’m taking things too far, but I feel like the “embrace who you are” message, which again can be good, was left wide opened to embracing some bad behavior.  I’d be willing to give the movie the benefit of the doubt, but based on the way the culture is going these days, I don’t think I’m wrong that they left it vague on purpose.

I’ve got to admit, as my niece and nephew have gotten older, I’ve become much more sensitive to these type of messages in the movies I watch.  I can only imagine how I would feel if I had kids of my own.

It’s a shame the message was so poor since the film has Pixar’s usual high standards for movie making.  The voice cast is stellar.  The animation is a bit stylized, but it has some beautiful shots along the way.  And there were some things I laughed at as the movie progressed.

As I said at the beginning, I can certainly see why people would enjoy Turning Red.  But, for me, the movie had too many poor messages to let me enjoy it.