You are here:
Cerebrum

Cerebrum

2022

Director

Sébastien Blanc

Runtime

96 minutes

Average Rating

No ratings yet

Synopsis

After waking up from a year-long coma, an insecure young man must fight his controlling father in order to discover what really happened to his seemingly absent mother, as the true consequences of his past actions unravel before him. Richard is stuck in a limbo of denial and lost in the past, thinking that he can essentially reverse it and bring back the dead – with deadly consequences.

Where to Watch

Diversity & Representation

Overall Score

3.2/10

Limited


Category Breakdown

LGBTQ+ Representation

Minimal

The film lacks any visible representation of non-cisnormative identities. There is no evidence of same-sex intimacy or narratives that critique heteronormativity.

Gender Representation

Fair

The story subverts traditional patriarchal tropes by framing the father as a controlling, dysfunctional figure. This positions the male role as an obstacle to autonomy rather than a source of stability.

Racial & Ethnic Diversity

Minimal

The narrative provides no indication of diverse casting or non-white characters. The focus remains strictly on the central familial conflict without broader ethnic representation.

Religious & Cultural Diversity

Good

The film rejects idealized family structures, instead portraying the domestic unit as a site of trauma. It explores loss through a complex, potentially nihilistic lens rather than religious certainty.

Disability Representation

Fair

The protagonist's experience as a coma survivor introduces themes of physical and psychological vulnerability. It is unclear if this condition is treated with agency or used as a horror device.

Strengths

  • Subverts traditional patriarchal roles by depicting the father as a source of dysfunction and control.
  • Challenges the idealized family unit by framing domestic life as a site of trauma and struggle.

Areas for Improvement

  • Lacks representation of LGBTQ+ identities or narratives that critique heteronormativity.
  • Provides no evidence of racial or ethnic diversity within the cast or character arcs.
  • Fails to demonstrate intersectional breadth across different cultural or neurodivergent identities.

AI Analysis

Cerebrum is a psychological horror film that finds its strength in deconstructing traditional power dynamics. By pitting an insecure young man against a dominant, controlling father, the film challenges the archetype of the patriarchal protector. This subversion of familial stability provides a moderate level of progressive narrative depth. However, the film's scope is quite narrow. It lacks any documented presence of LGBTQ+ identities, racial diversity, or neurodivergent representation. The focus remains heavily centered on a singular, likely homogenous, domestic struggle. While the exploration of trauma and the instability of reality offers some thematic complexity, the absence of intersectional breadth prevents the film from achieving a higher diversity score.

How are these scores produced? →

Rate this Movie

No rating selected
Use arrow keys to select a rating from 1 to 5 stars
Optional text review, maximum 2000 characters
Tip: Wrap spoilers with ||double pipes|| to hide them
0/2000 characters
You must be signed in to submit a rating

Reviews

No reviews yet. Be the first to share your thoughts on this movie!

Use the rating form above to leave a star rating and optional review.