Recently, Disney released a new animated movie known as Turning Red, a story about a young girl who lives in a family whose women are cursed with carrying the spirit of the red panda. When Meilin, the main character, experiences strong emotions, she turns into the red panda. While this movie was made specifically for teenage girls, this is story that anyone can relate to. 

Despite its adorable surface, the movie itself delves a lot deeper into the emotional trauma caused by excessive amounts of pressure from parents and how families can work to understand each other.

“Something that stood out to me is how they addressed situations dealing with POCs (people of color) and trying to please their families, trying to do the best thing or what would be in the families best interest,” senior Magdelena Solorio said.

“I think the theme overall is very good. It really addressed topics that are normally never talked about and it addressed them in a manner that wasn’t in a way to put them down but how there needs to be more communication on both ends,” said Solorio. 

Turning Red reached out to its audience with its relatable teenage angst. Not only did it reach out through emotions, but there was a lot of history in the movie that everyone could take time to appreciate. It’s nice to see that movies like Turning Red are becoming more inclusive and give an audience opportunities to learn about other cultures.

“I overall loved the movie more than I thought I would,” senior Isabella Moreno said. “The ending really stuck with me. The expectations of parents being so hard on their children is something I’m sure everyone can relate to at some point.”

Parental pressure is often something that many kids have to carry the burden of throughout their childhood. The movie was seemingly a good depiction of this, as it seems as though many find it to be incredibly relatable.

“The animation style really stood out to me because it stressed the facial expressions and movements while still keeping the backgrounds and the character models realistic, which I really liked because I feel like that’s the whole point of animation as a medium,” senior Taryn Montgomery said.

It seems as if the animation style was a huge hook for this new movie. Turning Red’s style was more exaggerated and cartoonish, but this only helps display the intricate emotions and situations depicted in the movie itself. 

“I’m obsessed with the theme of parents and children learning to understand each other’s unique points of view. I think it’s so important that parents understand the experience of their kids and don’t forget that they were also in their shoes once,” said Montgomery. 

There are many aspects of this movie that truly reached a target crowd. Its adorable art style, morals, themes, and its culture were key components to the success of the movie. But more than anything, it shows that with communication, connection, and understanding, families can become happier and closer than ever before.