Turning Red is Nothing New

About a month ago, a long stream of posts seemed to fill my social media feeds about the dangers of a new Pixar movie that some even labeled 'demonic'. Turning Red is an animated coming-of-age film about a 13-year-old girl who belongs to a family whose females are blessed (or cursed, depending on perspective) by the ability to turn into a red panda. In the weeks following its release, I heard comments ranging from "it's all about a girl getting her period" to "it's a leftist political ploy to push trans ideology and abortion." As a parent, these comments and the cloud of controversy around the movie provoked a ban in our home as well. Until today.

This morning, as I was drinking my coffee and catching up on some emails for work, I decided I'd see for myself what this movie was all about. So, this father of 5 sat alone in my living room and watched Turning Red to see if all the fuss was truly justified. And, though there were a few points in the movie that gave me pause, I failed to see the difference between the indirect messages of this film and those found in the overwhelming majority of film and music industries. Obviously, there are ideas depicted that could promote unhealthy attitudes such as disobeying parents and lying. There are a few remarks that could be linked to pro-choice and pro-LGBTQ+ ideologies, such as "my panda, my choice" and "We've all got an inner beast. We've all got a messy, loud, weird part of ourselves hidden away. And a lot of us never let it out." However, in the larger context of the film, I feel that while that was a potential goal, these moments felt much more focused on simply validating a person with attributes that are not always socially acceptable.

Despite the association that can be drawn between this and certain agendas, the idea that one should embrace their weird side is not inherently opposed to Christ's standards. We've often made a mess with our cultural expectations on things like femininity, masculinity, gender roles, racial identities, and more. Men are taught that crying is weak or that platonic affection between men is gay. Women are often sold the idea that their value is found in their sex appeal. Some traditional family structures resign women to subjugate roles and demean men for staying home. The Southern religious justified slavery and racism with distorted interpretations of scripture. These and more are examples of how we've pushed people into strict molds, afraid to be themselves and freely express their inner thoughts and desires. In a world that places so much pressure on our sons and daughters, I welcome the encouragement for my kids to be themselves everywhere they go. We used to call that integrity.

But that isn't the only thing I gleaned from this film. As a parent who is also a teacher by trade, I love to identify teachable moments. This movie was full of them. I kept thinking to myself, "she should get in trouble for that, but I wonder if she'd have done that if her mom had talked TO her instead of AT her." If I'd been with my kids (and when we watch it together later), I would have (and will) point out those moments for discussion about validation, healthy choices, conflict resolution, and more. Obviously, this movie isn't made for younger audiences. Just because it's animated, doesn't mean that it's for all children. It is a coming-of-age film that deals with puberty, adolescent angst, mood swings, and identity confusion. These are normal and healthy hurdles that are a part of adolescence, and I appreciate that a movie was made for a demographic that is underserved in so many ways. My recommendation? Don't pawn your kids off to a movie, but watch it with them and take advantage of the themes and topics that you should be consistently talking to your teens about anyway.

So, where there MIGHT be some allusions to a particular secular agenda, let's remember that it isn't a Christian movie to begin with. And if we are honest, there is nothing worse in this film than the things you are potentially allowing your children to be exposed to if they have access to insufficiently monitored social media, popular music, or cable television. Most music and tv series today seem to objectify women, minimize the gravity of sexual behavior, promote the use of filthy language, and paint parents/adults as idiots who just don't understand. The question is are you watching, listening, and experiencing those things your kids are seeking out? Are you monitoring their interactions with peers and social media? Are you talking about hard topics like identity, social value, purpose, and intimate relationships? Are you teaching them about discernment for when they see movies like Turning Red when they're older? If so, I don't think Turning Red is going to be an issue for your family.

Some final points I'd like to clarify:

1. The movie isn't about her period. Though the mom initially thinks that's what is going on, it is about the girl's red panda. I found the movie to be very similar to Teen Wolf from the 80s.

2. The red panda isn't a "bad" part of her, and the movie is not about embracing your "flesh" or your "sin nature" as some suggested in my Facebook news feed. Again, think 80's Teen Wolf and how people would react to something like that. The movie is about an Asian girl and seems to do a good job of portraying the cultural structure and refinement of many Asian homes (albeit slightly stereotypical), so there is also the issue of the inconvenience the red panda is to daily life.

3. The "my panda, my choice" comment at the end of the movie seems to play much more to comedy than pushing an agenda. I base this on the overall context of the film.

4. There are 5 other ladies in the movie who banished their pandas, (spoiler alert), that are reunited with them, then banish them again while the main character decides to keep hers. In context, it's illogical to assume that the panda represents a "real" or perceived identity that should be embraced, which is the argument by those who say the movie overtly pushes LGBTQ+ ideology.

5. The movie does depict eastern religion in the form of practices and beliefs seen through the events of the film. So, that may be an issue for some parents. Harry Potter and Mulan are two of my favorite movies, so it doesn't bother me. But again, I talk to my kids often and we have discussions about the content we see/hear as I teach and train to use their own discernment.