Movie review
October 19, 2018 · 86 min · R
Woke Score
Lower is better
Breakdown
These are the editorial factors and ratings behind our score for mid90s.
Woke representation / casting
Casting mixes professional actors with real skateboarders and naturally matches 1990s Los Angeles skate-scene demographics without forced diversity or audience-visible signaling.
Woke political dialogue
Dialogue uses authentic 1990s teen profanity, slurs, and group talk with no modern political, activist, or identity language.
Identity-driven story themes
Story focuses on universal coming-of-age, male friendship, family dysfunction, and skate subculture with zero emphasis on race, gender, sexuality, or social-justice arcs.
Western institutional / cultural critique
Film shows raw 1990s male youth dynamics and language in a straightforward nostalgic way but includes no modern activist reframing of patriarchy, institutions, or Western norms; director avoided moral lessons.
Review
mid90s is Jonah Hill’s 2018 directorial debut, a coming-of-age drama about a 13-year-old boy in 1990s Los Angeles who escapes his abusive home life by joining a crew of older skateboarders. The film follows his summer of friendship, risk-taking, family tension, and personal growth amid skate culture, fights, drinking, and first experiences. It presents these elements with raw, nostalgic authenticity and no visible identity-driven themes, activist dialogue, or social-justice messaging.
Woke character or canon changes
Not relevant
Anti-woke backlash and complaints
No notable right-leaning complaints accused the film of woke or identity-politics messaging; minor pushback stayed on explicit content rather than ideology.
Creator track record context
Key team including Jonah Hill and listed producers shows mainstream or personal-project focus with no prominent pattern of activist, DEI, or identity-driven work.
Production
