Turning Red

When the trailers for Turning Red came out, I was disappointed. Especially since Pixar actually studied the red pandas I work with. 

They even gave them some Pixar gifts!

When I finally watched the movie, it was quirky and strange. Except I liked it. I think largely because Mei was 13 in the year 2002. I would have been 12 at that time. I could get a good feel for her and her friends. Although it was high school when I was in a group of goofy friends. We'd all get really excited about stuff (one of them even showed us the "boots and cats" beat-boxing). We weren't into boys and boy bands (at least not me, and no one else was very loud about it). But we were hyper about video games and Ghibli and Disney movies (I didn't start watching anime until I was in college). 

I probably would not have liked the movie when I was a teenager. I had little patience for that boy-crazy stuff then XD I would have found the movie more awkward than funny. 

But that was then.

It's fun to have a movie that shows how crazy girls can be. 

I like how Mei is so confidently weird. I wasn't confident about my weirdness when I was her age, but I grew into it. Not that I tried to hide my weirdness either XD But by high school, I had a bubble of weird friends around me which helped me build my confidence and embrace how I was different.

I like that everyone liked the panda when she first appeared - no angry mob appeared to chase her out. Though there was definitely some trouble after the party. 

I like how the jerk ended up as one of the besties. 

I like the dad. He's great. 

I like that Mei and her mom had a good relationship, even though Mei was trying too hard to be perfect. It wasn't one of those movies where the parent doesn't seem to care about the kid. The two of them loved being together. And yeah, it's good if you can be part of what's important to your family. But there are always limits. 

I like that the director said that she just made a movie about stuff she liked, and then filled out the themes and story around it (I've done that too).

The panda at the end was... too big. But I found the movie fun, goofy, and entertaining. I've already re-watched it.

Hey, it's not the first time I disliked a trailer and ended up liking a movie (Frozen).