Movie

Neighbors

Name: Neighbors
Released: 2014

2014

20Score

Absolute Cinema

Story over sermons. Cinema first.

My list →Saved on this device — no account required.

Share this verdict card

Is Neighbors Woke? Quick Answer

Neighbors scores 20/100 on the IsItWoke scale and is rated Absolute Cinema.

That is the story-first end of the scale for this film.

The dialogue occasionally leans into social commentary about parenting and youth culture but mostly serves comedic purposes rather than overt messaging. Some characters feel somewhat stereotypical, particularly the fraternity members and the suburban couple, which can come across as tokenistic but not deeply ideological.

See the full breakdown below.

Woke profile

How the score is shaped

Eight stored dimensions, each scored from 0 to 20.

Message

Characters

Story

Legacy

Politics

Lead

Tradition

Norms

Column height is the stored score out of 20

Message-first dialogue
3/20
Tokenistic characters
4/20
Ideology over story
3/20
Legacy rewriting
0/20
Modern politics injection
2/20
Protected protagonist pattern
3/20
Anti-traditional framing
4/20
Cultural normalization framing
3/20

AI vs Community

AI says Absolute Cinema. What do users say?

AI verdict: Absolute Cinema. Be among the first to challenge it.

Challenge the AI See most disputed titles

Community verdict

Pick the band you think fits. One vote per browser on this title. You cannot change it after you vote.

Loading community votes…

Why it received this score

Based on: Published title analysisConfidence: MediumLast updated: 2026-10-12

Key reasons

The dialogue occasionally leans into social commentary about parenting and youth culture but mostly serves comedic purposes rather than overt messaging.
Some characters feel somewhat stereotypical, particularly the fraternity members and the suburban couple, which can come across as tokenistic but not deeply ideological.
The story prioritizes humor and conflict between neighbors over any heavy ideological framing, keeping the narrative light and entertainment-focused.

View full breakdown

There is no legacy property or source material being rewritten, so the film avoids franchise-related ideological retconning.
The film lightly touches on anti-traditional themes by contrasting the responsible parenting couple with the wild fraternity lifestyle, but it does not glamorize rebellion or subversion in a heavy-handed way.

Score signals

Signal	What was measured	Strength	Impact
Anti-traditional framing	How strongly a title normalizes, glamorizes, or positively frames anti-traditional, anti-religious, anti-family, or civilizationally subversive themes in a way that should count as woke or corrosive for this product's audience.	4/20	+3
Message-first dialogue	How much the dialogue, monologues, or character interactions feel driven by overt messaging, moral lecturing, ideological framing, or making a point instead of serving the story naturally.	3/20	+2
Tokenistic characters	How much characters feel inserted or shaped primarily for symbolic representation, political signaling, or demographic checkbox value rather than narrative depth, organic fit, or strong characterization.	4/20	+2
Ideology over story	How much the overall storytelling prioritizes ideological framing, message delivery, social commentary, or activism-coded narrative choices over pacing, conflict, immersion, and entertainment.	3/20	+2
Protected protagonist pattern	How much the protagonist fits the protected-protagonist pattern (agenda-driven character construction) rather than competence fantasy. Score HIGH only when: competence appears unearned or unexplained; protagonist rarely faces consequences; antagonists exist mainly to demonstrate protagonist superiority; narrative treats protagonist as symbolically superior; plot shields protagonist from vulnerability. Score LOW when: competence is grounded in training, profession, or past experience; protagonist suffers damage or setbacks; real physical danger and survival tension exist (normal action storytelling). Do not penalize competence fantasy.	3/20	+2

AI cultural analysis

A short read on tone, themes, and messaging — not a plot synopsis.

AI read

Neighbors is a comedy that primarily focuses on the clash between a new family and a nearby fraternity, using this conflict as a source of humor rather than ideological debate. While the film includes some social observations about generational differences and lifestyle choices, these elements remain secondary to the comedic narrative and do not dominate the story.

Characters occasionally fall into broad stereotypes, especially the fraternity brothers who embody the typical party-animal trope, but this serves more for laughs than political signaling. The protagonists face realistic challenges and consequences, maintaining grounded character arcs without resorting to invincibility or protected status.