Chen Nian is a quiet high school student in a Chinese city who prepares for the gaokao, the national college entrance exam. Her mother is often away, and debt collectors threaten the family. Chen believes the exam is her only path to a safer life. After a classmate dies following severe bullying, a popular group of girls targets Chen. She turns to Xiao Bei, a poor school dropout and street fighter, and their fragile friendship grows into love while a violent crime draws them into a police case.
Better Days makes bullying the main subject of its story. The film shows insults, beatings, sexual humiliation, online abuse, suicide, and the damage caused by classmates and adults who ignore the harm. The story connects this violence to exam pressure, family debt, poverty, and failures by schools and police to protect children. Chen and Xiao Bei protect each other, and Chen later helps another bullied child. The ending asks adults and students to speak up and presents protection, honesty, responsibility, and government action as ways toward a better future.
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Breakdown
These are the editorial factors and ratings behind our score for Better Days.
Woke representation / casting
Not present. Representation is not present. The main cast is Chinese, which matches the film’s Chinese setting. The female lead, male protector, and school bullies serve story roles rather than a diversity statement.
0%
Woke political dialogue
The final segment uses spoken language that urges people to act against school bullying and protect young people. The film also presents new government policies as an answer to the problem. The message is brief and supports the story’s lesson about bullying. The film contains no repeated discussion of race, gender, sexuality, or DEI.
12%
Identity-driven story themes
The story repeatedly focuses on a girl’s sexual humiliation, online abuse, and loss of safety. The film asks classmates and adults to protect children who are being harmed. Chen later continues that duty by helping another bullied child. These themes involve social and gendered harm, but they grow from the bullying plot instead of a modern identity-politics message.
16%
Western institutional / cultural critique
Not present. Western institutional or cultural critique is not present. The film criticizes failures by Chinese schools, police, parents, and other adults. The film does not attack Western institutions, Christianity, conservative family life, or traditional gender roles.
0%
Woke character or canon changes
Not relevant. Character or canon changes are not relevant. The film adapts a modern Chinese novel and keeps its central girl and boy. The film shows no change involving race, gender, sexuality, or a real person.
0%
Anti-woke backlash and complaints
Not present. Anti-woke backlash is not present. The reviewed coverage and supplied X research show no sustained anti-woke complaints. The reported disputes concern censorship and plagiarism claims about the source novel, not DEI or identity politics.
0%
Creator track record context
The director’s known social focus includes bullying and youth pressure, which gives a mild activist context. The writers and producers have no clear record of sustained DEI advocacy or identity politics. Their work is mainly youth drama, romance, and commercial filmmaking. The creator context adds only a weak signal.
8%
Production
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