How did Pixar’s Delightful ‘Turning Red’ become the target of a sexist, racist controversy?

In the latest attempt in the world to ruin all the fun, Turn red somehow became one of the most controversial films of 2022. Domee Shi’s new coming-of-age movie, about a young girl cursed for turning into a giant panda, has curious interest of Orange beetle combined with the perfection (and completely family-friendly visuals) of Pixar. And yet, here we are, going upstream again to protect poor Meilin Lee (Rosalie Chiang), the part-time muscular high school student, the part-time red-furred beast, from those who can’t. manages to have a good time — or, in fact, understand the purpose behind the movie from the start.

The new animated film has been met with a lot of controversy. Like young girls justifying their love sunset or Justin Bieber, a fan of Turn red Face the fury of angry parents and confused men as they mourn on Rotten Tomatoes over several scenes from the film. This — leaving energetic teenage girls ashamed of their passion — is exactly what Turn red proved unhealthy.

To put it plainly, Turn red It’s a near-perfect movie.

Controlled by her mother (Sandra Oh) and beloved by three of her friends, Mei is a cheerful high school girl with perfect grades, devoted to her family, and obsessed with boy bands. When her lust for a boy becomes too strong to deal with, she loses control and becomes a giant red panda. This is not surprising, however: it is a tradition that the Lee family has faced for centuries; all Mei has to do is exploit the beast until she can perform a ritual banishing it.

Mei’s cheerful personality is combined with a quick twist, a clever plot, filled with 2000’s nostalgia, delicious bowls of hot food filling every scene and meticulous attention to detail. details (like something I just found today: Priya, Mei’s friend is obsessed with vampires, and imitate them in most scenes of the movie). It moves away from clichés, marching to the beat of its own drum. There’s even a great degree of Spinal Tap in the form of the movie’s spoof boy band, 4Town, with standout tunes from Billie Eilish and Finneas O’Connell.

How does this joy face such a difficult time? Although not unique to Turn redThe first dilemma is Disney’s decision to bring this goldmine straight to streaming. soul and Luca also fell for this tactic, a decision that led to a backlash from Pixar employees. The theater must be buzzing with suspenseful kids — here’s a kids movie that real parents should enjoy too — candy in hand, ready for the moment of their lives. (That’s not to say the movie doesn’t deserve a simultaneous online release, especially since kids under five are still unvaccinated.)

However, when the first reviews started pouring in for the film, things seemed to be turning. The film, which currently sits at a whopping 95% “fresh” rating from critics on Rotten Tomatoes, has been praised for its teenage freshness, stellar voice acting, and exceptional imagination. Featured by Pixar. But that hasn’t stopped some critics from decrying the film as “tired”, for creating a character “uncomfortably obnoxious” and over the period scenes this can be. confused the children to ask questions.

A horribly negative review has since been hailed from CinemaBlend. “By rooting Turn red very special in the Asian community in Toronto, the film feels legitimately made for Domee Shi’s friends and immediate family members, which is fine,” the review said, but also has a bit limited in its scope. The reviewer was dragged across social media for racist, racist slurs in his statements, and the article was subsequently deleted. But one review Other prices are left by Chicago Sun-Times denounce Turn reddiscussions about puberty, saying the kids “may have questions.” Uh, hi: that’s the problem. If your child is about to turn into a giant panda (or more likely, undergo any other body change), they need to be ready.

“Some of the Pixar movies are made for the mainstream audience,” the CinemaBlend review continued. “Turn red not.” If Turn red unpopular, so are other family films (The Incredibles, Looking for Nemo), grow up (Contradictory, Toy Story 3) or friendship (Monsters Inc.). Final father Pixar movies have storylines in which humans become animals—soul, Lucaand now Turning red—which, at least for me, doesn’t feel universal at all. Why are people embarrassed? Turn red because of the fact these are bonders. Have you ever been a rat in Paris teaching a vampire how to cook?

Turn red is a pivotal moment to represent, and there’s no underlining what it means for young girls to end up seeing someone who looks like them in a movie like this. To interpret such a moment as responsible for the film’s appeal suggests a grotesque lack of imagination, generosity, and empathy from someone whose demographic is, for so long, the only one. represent.

What makes matters worse is popularity Turn red really, minus the whole “turn into a giant red panda” bit. Everybody going through some form of puberty. To get through puberty and family drama, Mei turns to her best friends, whom she dreams of every time she predicts a panda attack. Perhaps having friends could become a more common concept with those who decry this movie.

And then there’s the case of the film’s poor audience score on Rotten Tomatoes and feedback from parents online, thanks to Mei’s fondness for boys and her mother’s wearing of menstrual tape. . One watch the movie again to cover “adult topics like puberty and menstruation”. Other say Turn red is “not a children’s movie” because it “glorifies disobedience.” This is exactly the kind of silly helicopter parenting that forces kids to defy — as for the junk food, here we are again, this is the exact plot of the story. Turn red.

Teen girls are often embarrassed by their feminine desires, and it appears Turn red no stranger to this phenomenon. If a young girl’s passion isn’t childish or cheesy, it’s the opposite sex. Mei and her friends’ fascination with 4Town is silly, inconsolable, but when she’s infatuated with real boys, her love turns into something considered forbidden, is inherently too erotic. Mei’s bubbly personality and thoughtfulness make her one of Pixar’s finest characters. People who wiped her out for her, what, a harmless teenage girl? They just missed the party.

And don’t even get us started on the sexism, deviant, and reverse gender confusion behind the backlash to the film’s admission of a fact of life: Menstrual girls. That people get triggered to blockbuster review scores—flooding sites with negative scores and reviews—Turn red are minors. It’s 2022, and tampons are still taboo? Come on.

Turn red should have Looking for Nemo welcome level. Shi’s masterpiece should have made a fortune at the box office, sold millions of giant red pandas to little girls like Mei, and inspired an energetic 4Town album. But for some reason (see: racism, sexism, etc.), people get stuck in their angry red panda state through this movie. Let’s jot down some notes from Mei and cool it off, guys!