REVIEW: TURNING RED

4/5

Panda Express. 

100 Mins. Starring: Rosalie Chiang, Sandra Oh, Ava Morse, Hyein Park, Maitreyi Ramakrishnan, Orion Lee, Wai Ching Ho, Tristan Allerick Chen & James Hong. Director: Domee Shi. 

Putting you on 'Red Notice', all whilst clawing at Netflix's latest Ryan Reynolds blockbuster (the big bang of 'The Adam Project'), what would have you 'Turning Red'? Those uncontrollable urges you start having when you go past a dozen years on this planet? The teenage love LL Cool J rapped about when he was alone in his room? Your mum finding your sketchbook and artists rendition of all of this with your muse that would even make Leonardo DiCaprio in 'Titanic' blush? YOUR MUM TAKING SAID SKETCHBOOK AND YOU BY THE ANVIL LIKE HAND TO THE LOCAL CONVENIENCE STORE WHERE THIS BOY WORKS, DROPPING IT ON THE COUNTER LIKE AN ANCHOR AND PUTTING IT ALL ON HIM?! Not to mention. ALL HIS FRIENDS BEING THERE WITH PRACTICALLY EVERYONE FROM SCHOOL (I mean what are they doing there this time of night)?! And for a cherry on top, how about turning into a big red panda on the spot? One that's so fluffy that you could die...of embarrassment. Oh and to boot...it's your time of the month. Could you imagine anything worse? Well Disney couldn't have conceived something better as Pixar shines the stomping lamplight on the pain of periods and growing into your body, as well as truly finding yourself in this young world of yours that has just been turned upside down and inside out with all those emotions.

Coming of age in a Pixar picturesque postcard perfect Toronto, Canada (which is giving me real detailed memories of living there back in 2006. My soul may now be a part of Tokyo, but I left my heart in The 6), this movie takes us to the heart of Chinatown and Disney's rich reverence of a culture as previously seen on their live action 'Mulan' and the 'Black Panther' like superhero game and world changed of Marvel's 'Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings'. All in a time were-let's keep politics aside for a family film review-people needed to be reminded that Chinese culture and their people are much more than their government. Stop ALL Asian hate! It also takes us to the heart of our lead, Mei and everything she is going through from her deepest anxities to her wildest desires in this fantasy. And keep your protest shirt on as you type out a furious tweet to the mouse. It's not all lusting over boys. Turning powder puff doe eyed like something straight out of a filtered emoji or 'Ren and Stimpy'. Although the BTS like 4Town with songs from Billie Eilish and Finneas O'Connell (they weren't done with 'No Time To Die') will have you happier than ever in a world full of bad guys. DUH! Especially when they open the iconic T-Dot SkyDome to something bigger than the overlooking CN Tower or a Blue Jay hitting for home out of there. For all the 'Soul' and 'Encanto' Oscar favourites the studio from the desk they brought you Andy's toys and something truly incredible, this 'Red' and director Domee Shi's defiant debut is the most refreshing movie you've seen since this computer generated art form really changed the way we see cartoons with animation. Because as real as it gets, 'Turning Red' changes the game up by getting to the heart of what matters when more than your body is going through changes. 

Exploring emotions like 'Inside Out'. Getting to the family root of culture and legacy in a spiritual realm like 'Coco'. Having so much heart like 'Soul'. The latest from Pixar that leaves any other animation feeling pixilated is one of the greatest. It's the click to your Disney + that wishes upon a star that circles your castle in this land of hope and dreams. Coming right back down to earth and taking a seat with you on the couch in your living room as you and the kids pick up the remote to press play. The studio's 25th feature is worthy of an anniversary of history. Shi's stunning visual is the first Pixar movie directed by a woman and the second to feature an Asian lead after the balloons of 'Up' took us up, up and away. And poet Rosalie Chiang (check out 'A is for Albatross: Birds A to Z' and 'A is for Arowana: Freshwater Fish A to Z') crushes it in her first feature. A lead one too as our Mei who turns into a panda at express speed everytime she gets embarrassed (Wow! If that was me I'd be in a permanent fury of fur). This star of the future can hold her head high though. She's tapped in with great poise and presence. Not bad for a role she copped whilst auditioning for it on her mom's iPhone 6. The mother in this movie though is 'Greys Anatomy' and 'Killing Eve' star Sandra Oh, killing it from 'The Chair' before her final season with Villanelle. It's a commanding performance of moving mothering that in all its overbearing nature is rooted in the deepest devotion to more than just her family's legacy. And just wait until you see a monster of moment from this mother's nature when her daughter turns red like a Raptors road jersey in the stadium. Add Ava Morse, Hyein Park and Maitreyi Ramakrishnan as the three best friends that anyone could have for Mei's wolfpack and Orion Lee as her quiet, but kindly father and this fond feeling is full of red warmth. Even with the stern but sure approach of 'Daredevil' and 'Iron Fist' star Wai Ching Ho. The Hong Kong cinema legend who has moved over to Disney + with the rest of the 'Defenders'. Or Tristan Allerick Chen's caustic to the socially awkward bully. But if you want to talk about legends in this adolescent maturity than how about the great James Hong? 93 years old and with 650 films and counting, even Samuel L. Jackson is jealous of this icons filmography. His star on the Hollywood Wall of Fame is set. From 'New Adventures' as 'Charlie Chan', to all the 'Wayne's World' (that dubbed fight scene will always go down as the best in history) and 'Big Trouble In Little China' inbetween. His presence powers this movie of super proportions. Whether it be the astral planes traversed with the big red panda, or the new ground broke back on earth between family and identity. It may be far from Autumn, but as Spring approaches like one in your post-Winter step, 'Turning Red' will have you turning over a new leaf. The message here is deep and heartfelt. And that's with no pandering. TIM DAVID HARVEY. 

Further Filming: 'Inside Out', 'Soul', 'Coco'.