Movie review
June 26, 2019 · 116 min · PG-13
Woke Score
Lower is better
Review
Yesterday (2019) is a light fantasy comedy in which struggling British musician Jack Malik wakes up after a global blackout as the only person who remembers the Beatles, then performs their songs as his own to achieve sudden fame while navigating a romance with his longtime friend and manager. The story centers on themes of authenticity, the value of art, personal integrity, and choosing love over celebrity in an alternate-reality premise. No activist messaging, identity politics, political lectures, or institutional critiques appear in the narrative, dialogue, or marketing; diverse casting is visible but ethnicity plays no role in the plot or character arcs.
Breakdown
These are the editorial factors and ratings behind our score for Yesterday.
Woke representation / casting
South Asian British actor Himesh Patel plays the lead in a modern UK story with a visible interracial romance; ethnicity is never referenced in the plot or marketing, fits the contemporary setting naturally, and drew only mild positive commentary rather than signaling or agenda.
Woke political dialogue
No political speeches, activist language, or ideological discussions of any kind appear in the film.
Identity-driven story themes
The narrative focuses entirely on music legacy, fame’s personal cost, authenticity, and romance with zero race, gender, sexuality, or identity-based arcs or messaging.
Western institutional / cultural critique
No modern activist-style attacks on patriarchy, capitalism, traditional norms, or Western institutions; only generic, light observations about the music business.
Woke character or canon changes
A fictional elderly John Lennon appears in an alternate timeline where he survived; the scene was criticized by some fans and Julian Lennon as unnecessary but carries no identity-political or ideological intent.
Anti-woke backlash and complaints
No significant right-leaning or anti-woke complaints accused the film of pushing DEI, identity politics, or agenda; debate stayed on execution and one scene’s taste.
Creator track record context
Richard Curtis maintains a record of humanitarian activism (UN SDGs, poverty campaigns) and has voiced regret over past lack of diversity in his films; Danny Boyle shows left-leaning cultural awareness; remaining key crew are low-profile mainstream professionals with no identity or activist patterns.
Production
