Turning Red Movie Review

Finally, we’ve got a movie that tackles the lived experience of young girls!

From pandas to pop music, here’s what we loved about Disney Pixar’s latest movie, Turning Red. 

Pixar's Turning Red follows Mei as she learns to navigate her life with her unique curse, which slowly turns into a blessing. After discovering that being a large fluffy panda is now a part of her life, we see Mei’s character encounter through some awkward, uncomfortable and weird times. And just like magic, Pixar captures what it’s like to be thirteen in the most relatable way possible.  

With so many coming-of-age movies out there, it’s tough to come up with something so original, and 9 times out of 10 they usually end up following the same storyline BUT Turning Red has managed to break down those stereotypical walls and Disney Pixar have created a weird but wonderful movie.

As we all know, Disney movies carry powerful and important messages throughout and Turning Red proudly practises what it preaches! Turning Red highlights the importance of not forcing yourself to exist in just one box and to stay true to yourself and who you want to be. 

Being a film about a giant red panda you’re probably thinking you’ll never relate to this movie, yet somehow Turning Red has now become one of the most relatable Pixar films we’ve ever seen. 

Puberty is something that everyone has to endure, and I’m sure that you can all agree with us when we say that at the time it feels like a terrifying and personal experience (even though we all had to go through it at some point!). 

Watching Mei go through it in this movie, felt so relatable and we really fell for her character. We felt like we could really emotionally connect with Mei's character - especially with her love for boy bands!

Turning Red also embraces the power of fandom, friendship and daughterhood.

If you were obsessed with the Backstreet Boys, N*SYNC, One Direction or in fact, any boyband, you will most definitely relate to the struggles Mei and her friends have to go through to live out their dream of seeing their favourite boy band in concert. Not only does it highlight how important being a part of a fandom can be to one’s upbringing, but it understands it.

For all those misunderstood fangirls out there, Turning Red communicates how being a fan is not just about obsessing over a band or an artist but about building a community with your friends and finding your place in the world.

Growing up we all had our obsessions and crushes and Turning Red goes into the complexities of being a teenage fangirl at its finest. 

Aside from obsessing over boy bands, Turning Red also focuses on the relationship between Mei and her mother. With constantly wanting to be good enough for her mother, Mei realises the importance of being true to herself and is determined to be who she wants to be, no matter what the consequences are. With Mei’s mom obsessing over her daughter’s every move, her grades, her after-school activity, her everything, this puts a strain on their relationship. As the film goes on, her family soon come to realise that Mei is more than capable of deciding what she wants for her future, despite still only being the young age of thirteen.

From its heart and sensitivity, there are several lessons found for everyone in Mei's journey.

Turning Red is fun, heart-warming and a little strange BUT what more could you ask for in a Disney Pixar Movie?!

Turning Red’s weirdness is an integral element throughout this movie, and we truly believe that without it, this film would fade into the background as your stereotypical coming of age movie and of course, Disney do not want that!

We connected with this movie on a stronger level than we expected. We saw ourselves in Mei and her friends and especially their love for boy bands. Watching this movie we felt a special kind of joy and we can confirm... we absolutely loved it!

Although Mei's character is intense and obsessive, she is also easily relatable, very likeable and oh so sweet.

AND as soon as the movie had finished, we found ourselves searching for the movie soundtrack on Spotify. Is it acceptable to start a petition for 4*Town to become a real boy band?

People of all ages, young and old, will love this movie for sure!  It's an uplifting story about adultescence, friendship, and embracing change.

For anyone who's ever done a little growing up, this film will hit you right in the feels.

We most definitely will be watching over and over again (and not just for the catchy boy band tunes!)Turning Red is available to watch now exclusively on Disney +.