A Chinese-Canadian girl (Rosalie Chiang) turns into a red panda in this 2022 Pixar flick they should have called Mulan Rouge.

I had all but given up on Pixar after the overly literal Inside Out and Soul, movies that prioritised admirable messages over basic storytelling and kid-friendly fun. Turning Red, finally given a UK release after heading straight to Disney+ during the panda-emic, sees the studio return to what it does best: character-driven comedy for kids where all manner of messaging can be red into the story.

Inside Out is a picture with a single meaning, that we should value the full spectrum of human emotion; a moral it hammers home by literally depicting the emotions without any sense of allegory (see also the souls in Soul, and elements in Elemental). Embracing our emotions is just one of the messages of Turning Red, whose allegorical elements are secondary to the pandamonium.

It works as mother-daughter therapy à la Everything Everybear All at Once, a Derry Squirrels-esque take on young female friendship, or a werewolf-style period allegory that puts the ginger in Ginger Snaps. But above all it is the tail of a girl finding her voice, discovering boys, pop music and her indepandance – much to the horror of her over-bearing mother (Sandra Oh). Turning Red is a rare film about matriarchy, another theme it approaches without reducing it to black-and-white.

Domee Shi (who also directed the Oscar-winning short Bao, and becomes the first woman to solely direct a Pixar feature) endearingly captures the enormity of teenage emotion, where life depends on seeing your favourite boy band. She squeezes big laughs from the adorable red panda interacting with humans. And the music brilliantly combines Chinese elements with boy band songs by Billie Eilish and Finneas O’Connell, completely authentic in their inauthenticity.

That authenticity extends to the cultural aspects, using stereotypes (including the Chinese girl’s ability at maths) only to accentuate the culture clash between mixing with your peers while staying true to your shoots. This is a funny, charming and truthful outing that makes you wish Pixar would quit its intellectual pandering, shelve Inside Out 2 and make a Turning Red sequel about the menopaws.