School of Babel

The film centers on typical heterosexual relationships among adolescents, such as the bond between Alice and Benjamin. It does not include explicit representations of non-straight or non-cisgender identities, nor does it challenge the assumption that everyone is straight or cisgender.

The narrative highlights the emotional lives of both male and female students, moving away from traditional masculine and feminine stereotypes. It emphasizes emotional vulnerability and intelligence over stoic masculinity or femininity.

The film showcases a multicultural classroom with students from various backgrounds, including Irish, Serbian, Brazilian, Tunisian, Chinese, and Senegalese. This diverse cast is integrated naturally, avoiding including someone from a minority group without giving them real depth and presenting a nuanced look at global coexistence.

The story takes a humanist approach, focusing on how students adapt to a new culture through social interaction. It gently critiques Western social stability by highlighting the benefits of fluid, globalized identities.

There are no prominent or centrally featured characters with visible or invisible disabilities. The narrative focus remains strictly on linguistic and social integration.