Turning Red

2022·100 minPG·English

Rate

6.98395%3.4/5

Stream

Rent & Buy

Thirteen-year-old Mei is experiencing the awkwardness of being a teenager with a twist – when she gets too excited, she transforms into a giant red panda.

What critics thought

Critics broadly celebrated Turning Red as one of Pixar's sharpest and most energetic films in years, singling out its specificity of cultural setting, its honest handling of puberty and female friendship, and Domee Shi's distinctive directorial voice. The minority of dissent split two ways: some felt the film coasted on Pixar formula without fully earning its emotional ambitions, while a contested and later-retracted review argued that its tight cultural focus made it feel narrow — a charge that sparked a wider public argument about whose stories count as universal.

“A story of magical transformation as a metaphor for personal and cultural change, Turning Red (from Bao director Domee Shi) is Pixar's funniest and most imaginative film in years. It captures the wild energy of adolescence, uses pop stars as a timeless window into puberty, and tells a tale of friendship and family in the most delightfully kid-friendly way”
Siddhant Adlakha·IGN
“The film often seems squarely, deliberately, aimed at ... parents instead, offering them a gentle (if busy) reminder that they were young once too, once bursting at the seams with enthusiasm and curiosity and, yes, budding lust.”
Richard Lawson·Vanity Fair
“The journey is slick and diverting, and at times incisive, but Turning Red is yet another Pixar film that coasts rather than glides. Hopefully its next offering can turn into something more”
Benjamin Lee·The Guardian
“The problems are mostly with the script, which often requires Meilin to be almost irritatingly obnoxious. Meanwhile, her mother behaves like a monster for much of the story, which takes on an increasingly supernatural element to the point where there's a Ghostbusters homage”
Richard Roeper·Chicago Sun-Times
“With Turning Red, Pixar abandons decades of nuanced storytelling and warms over Disney's clichéd advice to follow your heart.”
Collin Carbarino·World

Accolades

Genres

Adventure, Animation, Comedy

Cast & Crew

Domee ShiDirector

Rosalie ChiangMeilin Lee (voice)

Sandra OhMing (voice)

Ava MorseMiriam (voice)

Hyein ParkAbby (voice)

Maitreyi RamakrishnanPriya (voice)

Orion LeeJin Lee (voice)

Wai Ching HoGrandma (voice)

Tristan Allerick ChenTyler (voice)

James HongMr. Gao (voice)

Lori Tan ChinnAuntie Chen (voice)

Mia TaganoLily (voice)

Sherry ColaHelen (voice)

Ludwig GöranssonComposer

Julia ChoWriter

Sarah StreicherWriter

Mahyar AbousaeediCinematography

Jonathan PytkoCinematography

From the studio

Pixar

Turning Red

2022·100 min·PG·English

Rate

6.98395%3.4/5

Thirteen-year-old Mei is experiencing the awkwardness of being a teenager with a twist – when she gets too excited, she transforms into a giant red panda.

What critics thought

“A story of magical transformation as a metaphor for personal and cultural change, Turning Red (from Bao director Domee Shi) is Pixar's funniest and most imaginative film in years. It captures the wild energy of adolescence, uses pop stars as a timeless window into puberty, and tells a tale of friendship and family in the most delightfully kid-friendly way”
Siddhant Adlakha·IGN
“The film often seems squarely, deliberately, aimed at ... parents instead, offering them a gentle (if busy) reminder that they were young once too, once bursting at the seams with enthusiasm and curiosity and, yes, budding lust.”
Richard Lawson·Vanity Fair
“The journey is slick and diverting, and at times incisive, but Turning Red is yet another Pixar film that coasts rather than glides. Hopefully its next offering can turn into something more”
Benjamin Lee·The Guardian
“The problems are mostly with the script, which often requires Meilin to be almost irritatingly obnoxious. Meanwhile, her mother behaves like a monster for much of the story, which takes on an increasingly supernatural element to the point where there's a Ghostbusters homage”
Richard Roeper·Chicago Sun-Times
“With Turning Red, Pixar abandons decades of nuanced storytelling and warms over Disney's clichéd advice to follow your heart.”
Collin Carbarino·World