Review: 'Turning Red' a New Disney Animation Triumph

Her entire life Meilin "Mei" Lee (voiced by Rosalie Chiang) has aspired to be exceptional. At 13 she has very high expectations for herself that include being a straight-A student, an over-achiever at her middle school, hanging tight with her besties, and staying on top of the latest dance steps from her favorite boy-band 4*Town, all the while honoring the Chinese-Canadian traditions that are dear to her family, especially her headstrong mother, Ming Lee (voiced by Sandro Oh). Mei has managed the ideal balancing act and prides herself on her ability to keep it all together, but lately...

...Mei has been experiencing some serious changes.

For starters, all of a sudden Devon, the boy that works at the local convenience store, has started looking different to her. Devon has gone from marginally interesting to a hunk-a-hunk of burning love on par with her celebrity crush, 4*Town's frontman, Robaire (voiced by Broadway's Jordan Fisher). When Ming Lee, who has no boundaries, discovers that some rather-telling anime doodles depict Mei and Devon in some very compromising situations (as kissy-mermaids with sparkly eyes), she jumps to conclusions and confronts Devon, embarrassing Mei to no end!

To add insult to injury, Ming is none too pleased by Mei's adulation for the boy-band phenomenon, and regards the boys in 4*Town, including Robaire, as delinquents. She's not going to be happy to find out that Mei and her friends are determined to catch the band when stop by Toronto and perform live at the Sky Dome Arena.

For the first time in her life, Mei is wrestling with feelings that are totally out of her control.After trying to sleep it off, she wakes up and makes a startling discovery: She is now a giant-sized, all too cuddly red panda. The transformation causes all kinds of chaos. Mei has no idea what's going on, and is mortified to no end when her pushy mom assumes that her 13-year old daughter is coming into her womanhood. It's time for them to have "the talk."

Mei would rather die than have that happen, but "the talk" reveals more than Mei could have ever imagined. Her mother reveals that all the women in their family are cursed, and at the mercy of the Red Panda. Ming unravels the legend of one of their Chinese ancestors, who long ago, in order to protect her children from invaders, demanded strength and was both blessed and cursed by the gods with the strength and courage of the mighty Red Panda. Ever since then, whenever the women came of age they, too, would have to confront their own Red Panda and control their emotions.

It isn't long before Mei begins to come to terms with her predicament and commune with her Red Panda alter-ego, in fact, she seizes on the opportunity and learns that there may be an upside to the situation – especially before she takes part in the ceremony that will remove the Red Panda entirely! Mei has some decisions to make that will determine whether she will whole-heartedly embrace her true self as a blessing, or see the Red Panda as a curse.

"Turning Red" is a wonderfully humorous tale in the grand style of previous Pixar and Disney traditions, with beautifully styled animation that is influenced by anime but capitalizes on the studio's near-photo realistic elements. Mei is a charmingly authentic character, and her plight will undoubtedly resonate with many young people (and their parents) who find themselves in that awkward phase of adolescence. "Turning Red" will open the door to compelling conversations about changes, while making for a thoroughly enjoyable animated adventure the whole family will enjoy!

The film will be making its exclusive release on the Disney+ streaming service, following in the footsteps of recent animated hits "Soul" and "Luca."

"Turning Red" arrives on digital April 26 and 4K Ultra HD�, Blu-ray� and DVD May 3