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Bigger Than Us

Name: Bigger Than Us
Director: Flore Vasseur
Released: 2021
Duration: 95 min

Representation Score

9.2/10

Excellent

2021

Director

Flore Vasseur

Runtime

95 minutes

Average Rating

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New Showbiz Analysis

Bigger Than Us is a documentary that shifts the focus from traditional authority figures to a global youth movement. It excels at challenging Western-centric views by centering activists from the Global South. The film’s greatest strength lies in its approach to gender and ethnicity. By highlighting young women and non-Western leaders, it challenges established geopolitical and economic hierarchies. However, the film lacks depth when it comes to specific identity-based struggles, such as LGBTQ+ or disability narratives. While it captures a broad movement, it misses opportunities to explore these specific lived experiences.

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Category Breakdown

Does Bigger Than Us have LGBTQ+ representation?

Fair

The film doesn't have clear stories focused on LGBTQ+ identities or same-sex relationships. Instead, it highlights collective activism among young people, avoiding the assumption that everyone is straight or cisgender.

How does Bigger Than Us portray gender?

Excellent

Young women play key roles in driving the story, showing intelligence and leadership. The film challenges the idea that activism is mainly led by men, instead putting women at the forefront of social and political change.

How racially and ethnically diverse is Bigger Than Us?

Excellent

The documentary shines by featuring activists from countries like Indonesia. It challenges the dominance of Western perspectives by focusing on non-Western voices and a diverse group of leaders.

How does Bigger Than Us represent religion and culture?

Excellent

The film criticizes Western institutions, presenting capitalism and corporate growth as sources of instability. It emphasizes justice and empowerment over the status quo, focusing on secular motivations.

Does Bigger Than Us include disability representation?

Fair

There are no prominent depictions of neurodivergence or physical disabilities. The film focuses on the shared experiences of young people rather than exploring disability as a lens for understanding the story.

Present on Screen

Strong focus on gender equality by centering women as intellectual and political leaders.
Excellent global representation that prioritizes voices from the Global South over Western perspectives.
Effective critique of systemic capitalism and traditional Western institutional power structures.

Limited or Absent

Lack of explicit or centralized narratives regarding LGBTQ+ identities and queer-coded character arcs.
Minimal representation or focus on neurodivergence and physical disability within the activist movements.

Official Synopsis

For six years, Melati, 18, has been fighting the plastic pollution that is ravaging her country, Indonesia. Like her, a generation is rising up to fix the world. Everywhere, teenagers and young adults are fighting for human rights, the climate, freedom of expression, social justice, access to education or food. Dignity. Alone against all odds, sometimes risking their lives and safety, they protect, denounce and care for others. The earth. And they change everything. Melati goes to meet them across the globe. At a time when everything seems to be or has been falling apart, these young people show us how to live. And what it means to be in the world today.

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