“Turning Red is inspired by this universal struggle of growing up and trying to figure out how to honor your parents, but also stay true to yourself,” said director Domee Shi. “And for Mei Lee in the movie, the red panda is that magical spark that sets off this internal conflict.
Pixar's 'Turning Red' touches on the bittersweet experiences Asian-Americans face in their adolescence. 'Turning Red' is a coming-of-age movie that tells the story of thirteen year old Meilin Lee as she navigates adolescence and family expectations. Hereditary curses, panda transformations, and generational trauma.
The biggest choice she makes in the film is to keep her red panda despite her mother's wishes, breaking the generational cycle of suppression that's plagued her family for generations. In the process, she teaches us that embracing all aspects of oneself is a healthy step towards growth and maturity.
Turning Red is a touching and inclusive animated film that weaves together the themes of emotional regulation in childhood and the importance of inclusivity in a heartfelt and engaging manner.
It comes along with unexpected hair growth, body odours, and seeing the colour red in… new places. And that's what Disney Pixar's Turning Red is all about! The latest Pixar movie has many people asking “is turning red a period metaphor?” and the answer is YES!
Turning Red: The REAL Message People MISSED - Therapist Reviews
Is the red panda about periods?
The Creators Speak on the Scene as Well. “The red panda is a metaphor not just for puberty, but also what we inherit from our moms and how we deal with the things that we inherit from them,” says Domee Shi, director and co-writer of Turning Red. “It was always in the very earliest versions of the film.
Some have been aghast that the movie discusses menstruation; others dislike its exploration of romantic crushes and sexuality; and still others are upset that the main character, 13-year-old Mei Lee, rebels against her parents by repeatedly lying and sneaking out.
Mei hides in the bathroom from her mom, who thinks her daughter has her period for the first time. But instead, Mei turns into an 8-foot panda when she gets emotional — a metaphor for “magical puberty,” Shi says.
Therefore, part of the response to Turning Red is about the anger Mei experiences and how this anger physically and emotionally tears apart her home, school and city. In Turning Red, girlhood anger is an indomitable force to be reckoned with. The film even suggests that Mei should be proud of this side of herself.
Some viewers and critics have complained about the film's supposedly inappropriate “maturity,” Mei's willful nature, and the generalized problem of teen girls. First, the “mature issues” argument — namely teen girls getting their periods.
In Turning Red, after Ming's amulet that keeps her from shapeshifting breaks, her emotions overwhelm her, and she turns into a Godzilla-sized red panda.
Turning Red explores the idea of reproductive labor as a feminine activity through the trauma that comes from the panda lineage only affecting the women of the family. The film also focuses on how Ming's relationship with her own mother informed how she treated Mei.
Mei can turn into her red panda form not only when excited, but also situations that heightens her adrenaline (Also, Mei can switch to her red panda form just as easily as she can change to her human form).
We've all got a messy, loud, and weird part of ourselves hidden away. A lot of us never let it out, but I did.” The red panda is a crucial part of Mei's life, and as she seeks to embrace the chaotic, growing, and learning young woman that she is, she is not letting her family's experience limit her life.
The reason for Turning Red's failure was the same reason that many of Pixar's newer films have not performed well - it was released simultaneously on Disney+. This meant that audiences could watch it from the comfort of their own homes, which obviously impacted the movie's worldwide box office results.
But apparently there are some detractors out there who think the movie is "too mature" for young audiences...specifically, because it deals with puberty, sexuality, and menstruation.
Grandma Wu has a strong dislike towards the number 4. The reason why she calls her 4★Town necklace "unlucky" is because the number 4 is traditionally considered an unlucky number in Chinese culture and because the number 4 sounds like the Chinese word for death.
Her proposed concepts were all coming-of-age stories centered on teenage girls. The one that became Turning Red was based on a girl going through a "magical puberty", which Shi wrote based on her own personal experiences.
What is the Disney movie about a girl getting her period?
Before Pixar's 'Turning Red,' 'Braceface' and a 1946 Disney Short Tackled the “Taboo” of Menstruation. Despite being decades apart, all three Disney-related projects grappled with backlash over tackling the topic onscreen.
It might look like a children's movie, but its main themes are to do with puberty and adolescence. It also includes several references to periods and pads. For these reasons, Turning Red is more suited to pre-teen and younger teenage audiences.
One star Rotten Tomato reviews from viewers include criticism such as “Don't watch if you don't want your kids learning about menstruation from a Disney movie,” and, “It encourages rebellion, discourages the idea that parents are often wise and caring and seems kinda anti-family.” Social media reactions haven't been ...
And while Mei's Hulk-like change is an obvious stand-in for dealing with getting her period for the first time, for me, and many other Asian Americans watching the film, Mei Lee's struggle wasn't just about her flow—it depicted her struggles with mental health and intergenerational trauma.
And so Turning Red tells a story about shame, repression and social anxiety — areas that I, like more than a few Asian Americans, know a thing or two about.
