Turning Red

Pixar have always had a knack for delicately commenting on topics that, while not exactly taboo, aren't always par for the course. Whether it's the fear of being replaced (Toy Story), the afterlife (Soul), grief (Up), mental health (Inside Out) or any of the array of other subjects they've explored, it is almost always done both beautifully and tastefully.

Turning Red is no exception. While there are probably writers better placed to muse on it (specifically ones that aren't male) than this one, it is easily one my favourite films of the year so far. Telling the story of a teenage girl who mysteriously begins transforming into a giant red panda every time she gets emotional, it is an ingenious allegory about the onset of womanhood.

Featuring a stellar voice cast led by Rosalie Chiang, the film also explores the enduring appeal of manufactured pop music, the trials and tribulations of senior school and, most interestingly, the engrossing myths of East Asian culture. Props must go to director and co-writer Domee Shi for taking such a cauldron of themes and turning it into a film that is as entertaining for adults as it doubtlessly is for kids.

This is filmmaking that warms the heart and educates the mind, and yet another triumph for everyone's favourite studio.