Movie

Big Brother

Name: Big Brother
Released: 2018

2018 • Action, Comedy, Drama

Woke Score

out of 10

Plot

A high school is in crisis, the students are under-performing and preoccupied with non-academic activities. Henry Chen, aka Big Brother, a teacher with rather rusty writing skills yet armed with the most knowledgeable fists and heart of steel, comes to enlighten and inspire the students with his unconventional teaching methods. Just as the kids are improving their work and enjoying the merits of the educational system, trouble follows. An opportunistic entrepreneur creates havoc by sending in a motley gang of fighters to win over the land. Their approach, however, isn't all that persuasive with Chen as he and his beloved class are going to give the unwelcome guests the benefits of a real education.

Overall Series Review

Big Brother is a Hong Kong action-drama starring Donnie Yen as Henry Chen, a former soldier who returns to his alma mater as a teacher to help a class of underperforming students. The film follows a classic inspirational teacher trope, focusing on Chen’s unconventional methods to address the complex personal issues of his students, who face problems ranging from poverty and racism to family troubles and specific learning disorders. The movie's core message champions personal responsibility, hard work, and the belief that education should be a pathway to success and fulfillment for everyone, regardless of their background. The primary conflict is a moral one, pitting the benevolent teacher and his mission to save the school against a greedy entrepreneur and his gang. The narrative is overwhelmingly sincere, morally clear, and focused on universal uplift through mentorship and defense of a community institution.

Categorical Breakdown

Identity Politics3/10

The narrative acknowledges real-world barriers like racial discrimination faced by a South Asian student and poverty for another, placing the lens on specific immutable characteristics. However, the plot does not exist to lecture on systemic oppression; instead, the teacher's universal mentorship and the student's subsequent hard work is the solution to all obstacles, aligning strongly with a meritocratic resolution.

Oikophobia2/10

The film explicitly critiques the institutionalized education system in Hong Kong for its over-reliance on standardized testing and its failure to reach troubled students. This is a criticism of a specific system, not the wholesale demonization of the home culture or nation. The main character is a loyal alumnus who returns to save the school, an act of gratitude and institutional defense, not civilizational self-hatred.

Feminism3/10

The story includes a female student who is a tomboy and whose aspirations to be a race car driver are opposed by her father who is portrayed as sexist. The male mentor supports the student's pursuit of her non-traditional passion. The main male lead, Mr. Chen, is the highly competent, charismatic, and physically capable hero, which counteracts any pervasive themes of male emasculation or female 'Girl Boss' perfection. No anti-natal or anti-family messaging is present; in fact, the teacher helps students address their difficult family lives.

LGBTQ+1/10

The core issues and personal challenges faced by the students are related to poverty, family dysfunction, educational struggles, and racism. The plot does not contain any material centering on alternative sexualities, deconstructing the nuclear family, or lecturing on gender theory. The structure of the student-mentor relationships and family issues is normative.

Anti-Theism1/10

Religion is not a factor in the film's plot. The morality is not subjective; a clear, objective moral standard is established where the good (the teacher, education, and community) fights the evil (greed, corruption, and mobsters) attempting to destroy the school. The film champions transcendent virtues like selflessness, mentorship, and hope as sources of strength.