Pixar’s latest project, Turning Red, has been very well-received by critics, but how does its Rotten Tomatoes score compare to other Pixar movies? While there are many studios that have brought a variety of stories to the world of animation, Pixar continues to be the biggest and most influential one, and it keeps on treating its audience to at least one movie per year. This year, Pixar is bringing two very different movies, starting with Turning Red, directed by Domee Shi (writer and director of fan-favorite Pixar short Bao).
Turning Red takes viewers to Toronto, Canada, to meet Meilin "Mei" Lee (Rosalie Chiang), a confident and dorky 13-year-old Chinese-Canadian student who one day discovers that, whenever she gets too excited or stressed, she turns into a giant red panda, but she can turn back if she becomes calm. This “quirk” is linked to her ancestors, who have a shared history with the species as a family curse, but the curse can be contained by performing a special ritual on one specific night – unfortunately for Mei, that night coincides with a concert of her favorite boy band. In addition to this, Mei has to deal with everything puberty throws her way, along with her overbearing mother, Ming (Sandra Oh).
Although it was originally planned to be released in theaters, Turning Red ended up being sent to Disney+ due to the coronavirus pandemic, but that hasn’t really been an obstacle for its success. Turning Red has been praised by critics and viewers (though there are many others who aren’t on board with it), who have pointed out its animation style, story, humor, and use of culture as some of its strengths. Less than a week after its release, Turning Red holds a 95% score on Rotten Tomatoes, and while it’s a high score, it currently places Mei’s story on the 12th place among Pixar movies.
The #1 spot is held by Toy Story 2 with a surprising 100% score, and in a close second place (or maybe second first place?) is Toy Story with also 100%. Rounding up the Top 5 of Pixar movies on Rotten Tomatoes are Finding Nemo with 99%, Inside Out with 98%, and Toy Story 3 with 98% (the whole Toy Story saga made it to the first 10 places, with Toy Story 4 sitting at seventh place with 97%). Right before Turning Red is Monsters Inc. with 96% and on the 13th spot is Soul with 95%. Even the least popular and successful Pixar movies are still considered among the “fresh” percentage, as happens with Brave (78%) and The Good Dinosaur (76%), and the only “rotten” Pixar movie, which as a result sits on the last place, is Cars 2. The audience seems to be drawn towards original stories (like Toy Story and Finding Nemo) rather than those based on different cultures (like Coco and Luca), and there’s also a heavy element of nostalgia as seen with the Toy Story sequels ranking among the first 10 places.
As more and more people watch Turning Red, its score could increase or decrease slightly, and it’s unlikely it will lose its “fresh” certification. Given the topics it addresses and its different animation style, Turning Red was inevitably going to be divisive, but definitely not as much as other Pixar movies that were poorly received. What many viewers have pointed out about Turning Red is that it repeats a formula that Pixar has overused by now, which definitely impacts its score. Ultimately, Turning Red is getting the recognition it deserves, and a 95% score is still impressive and among Pixar’s standards.