The School of Good and Evil takeaway: How did the fantasy series comment on grey characters?

The School of Good and Evil, adapted from the novel of the same name by Soman Chainani, premiered on Netflix on October 19, 2022, bringing in another YA novel adaptation with a few big names on the cast list. However, the film failed to make an impact in all honesty, and ended up being more of a repetitive done-to-death fantasy adaptation.

Coming from the desk of Paul Feig, the genius behind the brilliant Freaks and Geeks, it was quite surprising. The film may not have an inherent problem, but it had nothing redeeming enough to be interesting. The only thing that was perhaps a little interesting about The School of Good and Evil was its approach to the good-bad debate.

It would be incorrect to say that shows and films have not addressed the duality and complexity of good and bad characters (such as Maleficient), but it is uncommon in fairytale-like settings.

Read on to explore how The School of Good and Evil commented on the complexity of human nature while navigating through its fairytale setting.

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How The School of Good and Evil broke the stereotype of 'good' characters?

The School of Good and Evil deals with the theme of good and evil for the majority of the film, as is suggested by the name. Its premise followed two friends, Agatha (Sofia Wylie) and Sophie (Sophia Anne Caruso), who are accidentally sent to the wrong schools, with Sophie starting a new life in the evil school.

The idea of depicting a school where fairytale heroes and villains are groomed to perfection was well thought out. The film commented on the dual nature of good and evil while exploring various interesting characters, such as King Arthur and Captain Hook's son.

The human aspect of the situation—the duality—is completely ignored in most fairy tales, which depict good and evil as two opposing poles that must fight each other. There is no such thing as an entirely good or entirely bad person. In the dark, there is some light, and vice versa. This film questioned what it means to be good while going over relatively unimportant sequences.

For instance, slaying a dangerous creature is inherently considered one of the trademark moves of a 'hero.' But what if the creature meant no harm and acted as any wild animal would?

In one such striking sequence, Agatha tried to bond with a supposedly dangerous creature, only for it to be slain by Tedros (Jamie Flatters), the hero of the story. Agatha's anger at this act commented on how heroic deeds are not necessarily the best course of action, and not even the most moral one.

Sophie's character, too, constantly swayed between good and evil. She was taken to the evil school and acted like a villain in many instances. However, when the time came, she jumped in front of her friend to save her, doing a deed of pure goodness.

The School of Good and Evil used its two-and-a-half-hour runtime to comment on this duality and the grey nature of human beings.

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The School of Good and Evil is now streaming on Netflix.