There’s been no shortage of conversation and debate surrounding Disney Pixar’s new animated film “Turning Red.” Some parents feel that the movie’s message is telling their kids to turn away from them. The coming-of-age story about a 13-year-old girl named Meilin, who starts magically turning into a giant red panda, has one pastor warning about its themes and asking, “Is it demonic?”

Mike Signorelli, the senior pastor of V1 Church in New York City, recently released a video on social media taking parents through his spiritual concerns over the film and why he believes it’s simply not a kids’ movie. Signorelli told CBN’s Faithwire, “I believe that every parent — not just a pastor, but a parent — has a mandate to actually screen material. Because every single device you have in your home is a portal, either a window into the things of God or, unfortunately, things that I believe are demonic.”

The preacher and parent of a young child said he wanted to watch the film to understand the movie’s central theme. However, Signorelli claimed he was absolutely appalled within the first eight minutes, noting the film deals with ancestral communication, among other topics that don’t align with a biblical worldview.

“We know in Hebrews 9:27, it’s appointed once to live and then to die, and we face judgment, and it’s strictly forbidden, in the Christian context, to communicate with the dead,” Signorelli said. “And so, even within the first eight minutes, you have chanting and communication with ancestors, and immediately a red flag should start to go off.” Signorelli also said that millions of Christian parents are unaware of what their kids are watching and might not realize that the film shows spiritual practices that don’t align with the Christian faith.

Signorelli, whose Facebook review of “Turning Red” is inching toward 100,000 views, said he wasn’t aiming to become “a viral meme of the Christian trying to cancel Disney.” And he’s aware some will scoff at his concerns. However, he still believes it’s essential for parents to educate themselves about the themes, one-liners, and general content. For instance, Signorelli points out that there are scenes surrounding menstruation as well as the line, “My panda, my choice” (a play on the pro-choice “my body, my choice” line) among other elements.

He said, “There’s definitely a tipping point, and there’s a moment where you’re like, ‘They’ve gone too far. Now, if you extract the spiritual aspect of this movie, just on the basis of the content being about menstruation and this coming of age, it’s not appropriate for children.”

He also described a nightmare sequence that he found particularly disturbing for kids in the film. The scene shows the little girl’s ancestors with “glowing red eyes” tormenting the child. Toward the end of the movie, there’s also a ritual scene that troubles Signorelli. All of this, he said, should cause Christians to pause and reflect. The pastor believes that people are so desensitized that Christians have become accepting of things that used to be offensive. Over time, we ignore it, which is why he felt the need to put the word out about the film.