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a14 people & arts
Thursday 10 March 2022

Puberty runs amok in Pixar’s ‘Turning Red’ Tony Awards to return

to return to regular date

and place

This image released by Disney+ shows Mei Lee, voiced by Rosalie Chiang in a scene from “Turning
Red.”
Associated Press

By JAKE COYLE a high-achieving, straight- fairly radical move in the
AP Film Writer A student — in an introduc- typically sanitized world of
For better and worse, “Turn- tory montage, a teacher studio animation. But Shi, a
ing Red” is like no Pixar film describes her as “a very en- longtime animator at Pixar, By MARK KENNEDY AP Entertainment Writer
before it. terprising, mildly annoying has never been one to shy NEW YORK (AP) — In another sign that show business is
The film, directed by Do- young lady” — with a solid, away from a dramatic plot snapping back to its pre-pandemic rhythm, the Tony
mee Shi, who made the supportive group of friends: device. Her “Bao” con- Awards will once again take place in June and at a
lovely Oscar-winning short Miriam (Ava Morse), Abby ceived a mother-son tale in familiar location, Radio City Music Hall.
“Bao,” is the first Pixar mov- (Hyein Park) and Priya (Mai- a dumpling-comes-alive al- The Broadway League and the American Theatre
ie directly solely by a wom- treyi Ramakrishnan). But legory that culminated, sur- Wing announced Wednesday that the awards will be
an. Its leadership team, possibly the most dominant prisingly, with the mom eat- handed out June 12 and aired on CBS, but instead of
including producers and relationship in Mei’s life is ing her dumpling son in a fit a three-hour presentation, producers are adding an
art departments, is entirely with her mother (Sandra of denial over him growing extra hour ahead of the telecast that will stream only
female. And its protago- Oh). She’s a domineering up and leaving home. on Paramount+. The broadcast will be live across the
nist, 13-year-old Meilin Lee but loving parent whose The Lees live in one of the country, starting at 7 p.m. ET (4 p.m. PT), and the main
(voiced by Rosalie Chi- high standards for her oldest Chinese temples in event will be live at 8 p.m. ET (5 p.m. PT).
ang), is a Chinese-Cana- daughter have somewhat Toronto, and that setting is There was no word on a host.
dian eighth-grader in the stifled the anxious Mei. She just one way “Turning Red” The ceremony will he held nine months after “Moulin
throes of puberty. keeps certain feelings — plays with balancing cul- Rouge! The Musical” took the best new musical crown
For Pixar, a factory of child- like the onset of hard-to- tural assimilation with pres- at the last Tony Awards, one postponed because of
hood whimsy designed to control urges, particularly ervation. Mei soon discov- the pandemic. That show was also expanded from its
make adults cry, “Turning when it comes to a popular ers that panda alter-egos typical three hours to four, with host Audra McDon-
Red” fills in more than a boy band named 4-Town run in the family. Her moth- ald handing out Tonys for the first two hours and Leslie
few blind spots. Not only is — hidden from her mother. er, and their other female Odom Jr. hosting a “Broadway’s Back!” celebration
the movie deeply rooted in “I do make my own moves,” relatives, have known the for the second half with performances from the three
a female and Asian-North Mei says. “It’s just that some same struggles with expres- top musicals.
American perspective, it of my moves are also hers.” sion and repression. (Some The Tony Awards eligibility cut-off date for the 2021-
wades into a chapter of life But it’s getting harder to similar themes about not 2022 season is April 28 for all Broadway productions
unfrequented by Pixar. This keep some of those feel- holding in your feelings which meet all other eligibility requirements. Nomina-
is the first film by the studio ings inside for Mei. Her were brought more vividly tions for the 2022 Tony Awards will be announced May
in which, for example, a mother finds a notebook to life another recent Dis- 3.q
sanitary pad is offered. And under her bed with swoon- ney hit, “Encanto.”)
it’s the first — history take ing drawings of 4-Town, Where I think “Turning Red” But “Turning Red” is surpris- justice with a PG rating.
note — to feature twerking. and immediately irratio- mainly misses is with the ingly free of humor or the But “Turning Red” does nail
The best thing about “Turn- nally blames an older teen mom. The movie is struc- kind of visual wit that has one rite of female adoles-
ing Red” is how it broadens boy for being a bad influ- tured for her to be the long been a Pixar hallmark. cence with remarkable
the horizons of the 36-year- ence. Then one morning, primary foil and friend of It could be that, if we’re accuracy: the boy band.
old animation powerhouse Mei awakens to find the Mei, but her character isn’t talking about representing With radio-ready pop tunes
with a refreshing van- transformation that’s been much more than an assort- hard-to-tame adolescent by Billie Eilish and Finneas
tage point and some new occurring within her has ment of Asian tiger mom urges in monster form, “Turn- (who voices one of the
moves. If some of Pixar’s manifested itself: She turns tropes. That leaves little to ing Red” — bold as it may singers), 4-Town is about as
greatest movies have used into a big, fluffy red panda propel “Turning Red” other be — can’t come close to pitch perfect as an NSNYC
high concepts to illustrate — and a walking metaphor than the inevitable em- matching the messy comic knockoff can be. But just
existential quandaries, for menstruation and other powerment of Mei. There farce of “Big Mouth,” the as good is Mei’s mother’s
“Turning Red” (which like developments of young are delights along the way: far less family-friendly but cutting critique of them as
the previous two Pixar re- womanhood. a rooftop skip through To- much more true-to-life ani- “glittery delinquents with
leases is streaming only; it That “Turning Red” pivots ronto, with a dose of wuxia mated series that paired their ... gyrations.” I seriously
debuts Friday on Disney+) this way — with Mei, as magic; the rich, lovable seventh graders with lasciv- doubt I will ever listen to my
is one of the studio’s most panda, cowering in the design of Mei’s Totoro-sized ious “hormone monsters.” It daughters blast BTS with-
specifically drawn films. bathroom with her mother panda; the close-knit com- isn’t easy — or maybe even out muttering her line to
Set in Toronto in 2002, Mei is knocking outside — is a panionship of her friends. possible — to do puberty myself.q