Lee Family Temple

The **Lee Family Temple** is an ancient temple dedicated to the Lee Family's ancestors, most specifically Sun Yee, in *Turning Red*.

## Description

The Lee Family's Temple is a place that is located in the streets of Toronto, Canada. it is one of the oldest temples in Toronto and the most unique, as Ming Lee honors her ancestors while on the temple ground. Outside the temple's entrance are two red panda statues which stand outside the temple. Within the temple's grounds is a gift shop which sells many red panda-related merchandise and behind the gift shop is the Sun Yee Hall, a room dedicated to Sun Yee, revered ancestor of the Lee family who was a scholar, poet, and defender of animals (especially the red panda) where outside the Hall is a pair of red panda statues outside.

### Point of interests

* **Gift Shop:** A gift shop located inside the temple grounds. Most of the products sold are red panda products.
* **Sun Yee Hall:** A room dedicated to Sun Yee's legacy. Inside the shrine is a scroll depicting Sun Yee surrounded by red pandas on it and behind it is a hidden compartment containing a chest containing a scroll telling the story of Sun Yee's legacy.
* **Ancestral Temple:** A room dedicated to Sun Yee's descendants who have passed on.

## Role in the film

The Lee's Family Temple is first seen when Mei arrives at the temple grounds where she wears her assistant manager tag while encountering her mother quietly talking to Sun Yee inside a hall dedicated to her. Discussing with Mei about how school was today, Mei shows her mother the grades, believing that her ancestors would be so proud just before the two thank Mei for protecting them from danger. After talking to Sun Yee, Mei and her mother perform their work routine in cleaning the temple. Later in Mei's nightmare, it is seen before Mei gains the ability to turn into a red panda, which happens while she is sleeping, where, the camera zooms to some candles near a portrait of Sun Yee surrounded by red pandas. The candles are blown out and Mei gains the ability to become a red panda when her strong feelings are released.

The next day, Ming and the rest of her family arrive at the temple where she finds a hidden compartment behind the scroll depicting an image of Sun Yee where she explains to them that Sun Yee had a mystical connection with red pandas as she asked the gods to turn her into one. Ming narrates that during war, a group of men sacrificed their lives while Sun Yee was desperate for a way to protect herself and her daughters and during a red moon for one night, the gods granted her a wish which gave her the abilities to transform into a powerful red panda to fight off the bandits and protect her family and protect her village as Sun Yee passed this gift to her daughter. After telling the story, Mei fears that this story was a curse to which Mei explains that there *is* a cure to take care of it to which it is explained that it happened to her before and then she overcame it. Ming explains to her that during a red moon eclipse, Mei will undergo a ritual to seal the red panda spirit on a pendant to remove her red panda form to cure her for good just like her as Mei gets only one chance to banish the spirit or she will never be free with the spirit inside her. Jin explains to his wife and daughter that the next eclipse will be on May 25 just before Mei and her family return home. The following day, the temple is shown to be closed to the public due to "family emergency".

Later that night, Ming and Mei walk past the temple grounds while discussing about Mei's friends to which suddenly, Mei's aunties and grandmother approach the two, where they plan to take care of take care of Mei to prepare her for the ritual. As Mei is hanging out with Priya, Abby, and Miriam at Tyler's house, Ming is shown to have given her mother and relatives a tour to which her mother Wu explains to her that her granddaughter Mei needs a strong hand, telling her to never let her daughter out of her sight.

On the day where the lunar eclipse arrives at Toronto during dinnertime, Mei, her family, and Mr. Gao see spotlights showing the logo for "4★Town" at the SkyDome which Mei's grandmother believes that the number four is an unlucky number. During dinnertime, Mr. Gao shares his experience that for the past fifty years, he was a shaman. Grandma Wu then tells her family and Mr. Gao that a long time ago, the spirits blessed the women of her family with a great challenge as Mei is tasked to banish the red panda spirit into a talisman while being guided by Sun Yee and as the eclipse begins, Mr. Gao draws a circle to open the astral realm to send Mei there so the red moon will shine on it. Mei's family members strike their instruments and perform a ritual song as it is revealed that the astral realm will only open if they sing from their hearts just as Mei's family members sing louder while Mr. Gao talks to Sun Yee to hear the Lee family's chanting to send Mei to the spirit world. However, Mei abandons the ritual and instead decides to go to the SkyDome where 4★TOWN is performing, much to her family's worry.

At the end of the film some time later, the Lee Family's Temple is reopened to the public as everything in the temple has gotten better while Mei and her mother raise a charity to rebuild the SkyDome which was damaged by Mei's mother in her red panda form. Priya, Abby, Miriam, and Tyler visit the temple grounds as Ming offers them that they are welcome to join them for dinner just before Mei continues hanging out with her friends while Ming continues guiding the visitors at the temple grounds. Inside the gift shop is a portrait of Mei as a red panda alongside her family, her friends, Mr. Gao, and the members of 4★TOWN on it.

## Trivia

* At one point in the beginning of the film, Mei calls the two statues of red pandas outside the temple, nicknaming them "Bart" and "Lisa" (in reference to characters from *The Simpsons* franchise).
* Artists drew inspiration from the Bok Kai Temple in Marysville, CA, US for the temple Mei and her family care for.