Rim of the World seems to favor identity elements over rich character growth, especially with its central group, each character neatly fits a modern diversity checklist. While some attempts are made to give them distinct personalities, much of the story’s momentum comes from emphasizing their backgrounds rather than individual arcs, which can feel a bit formulaic and predictable.

The film lightly subverts traditional masculinity by making the adult male hero largely ineffective and instead puts underdog teens, especially those fitting underprivileged or outsider profiles, at the forefront. Parental figures are mostly absent or shown as flawed, implying self-made found families are ideal. Traditional values get a soft nudge, making room for newer norms.

Alternative or traditional perspectives barely exist except as jokes or obstacles for the diverse main group to overcome. There’s little debate or questioning of the group’s assumptions, and characters that represent opposing worldviews are caricatured or sidelined, leaning toward ideological uniformity.