A scene from “Turning Red,” available to stream on Disney+.

Puberty hits some people hard, but at least none of us turn into giant red pandas when we hit 13. At least, I hope not.

“Turning Red,” the latest exclusively streaming Disney/Pixar venture, is a delightful and heartwarming story about the stresses of family expectations, friendship and figuring out what makes you who you are. With vibrant and cutesy animation along with humorous situations that every teenager or tween-ager will probably be able to relate to, it is sure to delight younger viewers. But as with most Disney/Pixar films, there is a lot for the adults to enjoy — and tear up over, too.

Set in 2002, “Turning Red” follows Meilin Lee (voiced by Rosalie Chiang), “Mei” to her friends, a confident and dorky 13-year-old in Toronto, living her best life, getting good grades, hanging out with her equally dorky and quirky friends, playing with her Tamagotchi and being the “perfect” daughter to parents Ming and Jin (voiced by Sandra Oh and Orion Lee). Jin is a quiet but loving father and a hell of a cook. Ming is also loving, but also the most embarrassing helicopter mom you’ll ever meet. Together, they run their family temple, where they share the Lee family history, emphasizing and honoring their ancestral matriarch’s connection to the red panda.

While Mei seems to adore working in the temple with her mom, she, like all girls her age, is starting to notice things changing, most notably her feelings where boys are concerned.

After a mortifying event in which Mei’s mom finds doodles in her notebook of Mei and the corner convenience store clerk, Mei wakes up to find she’s transformed into a giant red panda.

Turns out, this is a family thing, passed down for generations from mothers to their daughters, and the panda comes out with any strong emotion, but luckily, there’s a cure. And as long as Mei can control her emotions until then, the ritual under a red moon (a lunar eclipse) will trap the panda for good.

But before the moon’s scheduled appearance, Mei and her friends’ favorite dreamy boy band is set to perform in Toronto, meaning emotions will no doubt get tricky, if only they can figure out how to score tickets.

There are times when some of the overtly teen-driven dialogue starts to wear a little bit, but luckily, the film never dwells too heavily on the “heart eyes” looks or the like.

This is a universally felt story for anyone, exploring emotional peaks and valleys we all went through as teens. Beyond that, it even taps into the deeper, and oftentimes more tragic, emotions of expectations laid on said teens by parents. The overwhelming feelings of having to be perfect, smart and dutiful in order to meet those measures are a lot for anyone and it’s something passed down generationally as we come to find out in “Turning Red.”

While brilliantly specific to the Chinese-Canadian experience, it remains accessible to those without that background.

The themes of friendship and sticking with your ride-or-die friend group are fully realized between Mei and her friends, and their unconditional love for one another rings true even for a heightened animated film.

Director and co-writer Domee Shi (along with Julia Cho) beautifully brings together deeper connections in the story to the fun and bright world of 2002 Toronto, and includes all the things from that generation. Millennials, get ready to relive your middle school years, from Uggs to face Band-Aids, the beginning of speaking in acronyms and boy band mania. Shi weaves it with a banging soundtrack that feels very time-appropriate, with original songs from Billie Eilish and Finneas O’ Connell (the latter even lends his voice to a boy band member) and a great score from Ludwig Goransson, along with strong performances from the voice cast, specifically Sandra Oh.

Every emotion feels big when you’re 13, and “Turning Red” maneuvers through them with good humor and an endearing story about finding yourself, your place in your family and your world.

In theaters this week: Catch Oh in the flesh in the creepy horror flick “Umma,” and Mark Rylance suits up as a tailor for a crime family in “The Outfit.” In next week’s GO! it’s time again for my yearly Oscar picks! Most of the nominees are heading back to the Regal Cinema’s here in Bend and many are available to stream. So if you need to catch up, now’s the time.

“Turning Red”

100 minutes

Rated PG for thematic material, suggestive content and language

3.5 stars