Goodbye “Night at the Museum,” Hello “Underdog”
There’s no need to fear, Underdog is here, and he’s taking power back from the ruling class. “Underdog” is a movie about many things: family, love, and self-confidence among them. It’s a feel-good flick that’s sure to make you root for the underdog!
The story begins as a beagle (Shoeshine) employed by the government is cast out of his job when he does not meet the standards set before him. He is then dognapped by the evil scientist Simon Barsinister who bestows upon Shoeshine powers that elevate his agency and standing within his community.
The story continues from there as Shoeshine must navigate the rules of these powers, and the responsibility that comes along with them. If we dare to break through the surface of this deeply complicated movie, critiques of class and class mobility become apparent. “Underdog” is a movie about the complicated social rules of class and socioeconomic mobility.
Shoeshine, at the beginning of the movie, is fired from his job as a bomb-sniffer. His uniform is stripped from him and he is left to wander the lonely streets. There were no second chances, his job security was nonexistent and there was no compensation pay presented to him as a result of his sudden termination. Shoeshine laments as he shuffles down a dark alley that he has no access to food or even shelter.
In this instance, Shoeshine is representative of the working class in modern America. He has just lost his job and he has nothing to fall back on. He has lost his agency, and it appears as though he has no way of gaining it back. Without access to an income, Shoeshine finds himself at a loss for how to be successful in Capital City.
Enter Simon Barsinister: the ruling class’s stand-in. He has money, he has smarts, and he has the power to change the world because of his economic standing. He has been awarded the freedom to conduct dangerous experiments that others of a lower social and economic class would not be permitted to do. Barsinister can get away with these crimes because of the money he wields. Barsinister dognaps Shoeshine and grants him superpowers. These superpowers give Shoeshine agency again, and he uses his powers to conduct vigilante justice throughout Capital City. Shoeshine gains confidence, he gains social standing, and he is able to control his life and steer it in the direction that he wishes.
This agency could not have existed if it hadn’t been handed down by Barsinister, and when Shoeshine (now Underdog) begins using this power that has been passed down in a way Barsinister disagrees with, he takes it away. Underdog is back where he began, having lost his powers (code for capital or money). He does not regain agency again until he has forcefully taken it back from Barsinister.
In the end, Underdog does not ask, he takes, and he is again granted mobility and agency within the system the movie works in. Barsinister is put in prison for his heinous crimes. “Underdog” is a move that artfully introduces themes of class and mobility under the guise of a fun children’s movie. Underdog tells us to rise against the ruling class, and take their misused power from them, redistributing it to well-meaning, vigilante beagles.