Pixar’s ‘Turning Red’ Getting Overpraised [Review]

You can sense the sanctimony in some of these “Turning Red” reviews. An 85 on Metacritic, 92% on Rotten Tomatoes. Yes, my review is a semi-positive one, but this is nowhere near a great movie. It’s a slight and likeable one about female independence and self-image, but it’s a rather silly affair at that.

“Turning Red” is the first full-length Pixar directed by an Asian-American, a cause worth celebrating. Domee Shi directed the rather excellent Pixar short “Bao” just a few years ago. However, if you read some of the rave reviews for “Turning Red” then you’d think it’s more about its socio-cultural important than any sort of artistic triumph.

This is another Pixar film, much like “Onward” and “Luca,” that just coasts along without much ambition, save for entertaining as large a crowd as possible. It’s a fine-as-it-goes movie about a shy teenage girl who turns into a panda when too stimulated. It all feels as disposable as their recent fare. You now have to wonder if Pixar has lost a bit of its edge. Their dive into the business of sequels and slight entertainment has watered down their reputation and “Turning Red” very much relates to the latter.

There is none of the wild inventiveness of say “Inside Out,” WALL-E,” or even “Coco.” The result is a tad too calculating. The plot centres around 13-year-old protagonist, Mei Lee (voiced by Rosalie Chiang), who has three best friends and an overbearing mother (voiced by Sandra Oh). However, one day puberty hits and the emotional state becomes so overwhelming that her hormones turn her into a red panda.

The formulaic storyline that follows excludes villains or a romantic subplot (that’s a good thing), in favor of silly slapstick. How can Mei hide the red fever inside of her without, err, exposing herself. Oh, the undertones! Well, how about charging students at her high school 5 bucks a pop to get their photo taken with the panda. The fact that not one student is freaked out or horrified that she can turn into a creature already tests the implausibility factor of the entire thing.

What fares better is the mother-daughter friendship, which is filled with subtle and relatable detail about overbearing yet loving parenting. Otherwise, I found that Shi took a potentially on-paper solid idea and squandered it into semi-plodding and, at times, derivative plot devices

The fact that Disney decided to bypass theatres with this one says everything you need to know about its disposability. No, despite the glowing reviews, it doesn’t look as though “Turning Red” will be able to qualify for the 2023 Oscars. [B-]