The Breadwinner Parent Guide

Nate (Nate Bargatze), Katie (Mandy Moore), and their three daughters (Stella Grace Fitzgerald, Birdie Borria, and Charlotte Ann Tucker) live a lovely, happy life. Nate is the self-proclaimed “breadwinner,” working as a top salesman for Toyota, while Katie manages everything at home. From Nate’s perspective, they’ve achieved a great “work-life balance,” and by all outward appearances, they have an ideal life, marriage, and family. However, when a major business opportunity arises for Katie, Nate needs to take time off work to care for the girls while she travels. He quickly realizes that the scope of Katie’s responsibilities is far greater than he realized. Struggling to keep up, Nate decides he doesn’t need to do things the way Katie does—he’s going to go his own way.

Before I proceed with my review, it’s important that I say there was nothing explicitly offensive in this film. I’m just one of those people who can’t separate media from the broader cultural context in which we consume it. Given the low level of bad language, violence and crude jokes, The Breadwinner is, on the surface, suitable for family viewing. 

Now for my thoughts…

This movie is genuinely kind of terrible. There are a few reasons I feel that way, but the most glaring is the harmful stereotypes it reinforces, even while ostensibly challenging them. Although The Breadwinner presents itself as a lighthearted reversal of traditional family roles, its humour often relies on the idea that men are naturally incapable of managing domestic labour and caregiving responsibilities. While intended as comedy, this trope reinforces misogynistic assumptions that household and emotional labour are inherently feminine tasks, while also feeding into toxic masculinity by framing caregiving competence as incompatible with masculinity. This is not an uncommon theme in media. It felt like something I’ve seen a hundred times in 90s sitcoms: the bumbling, incompetent dad who can’t manage even basic tasks like making toast or doing laundry. Eventually, he (sort of) gains an appreciation for what his wife does after dramatically failing at it himself, and everything is resolved because they love each other.

Now, I won’t say the film is all bad or that I hated it. There were some moments where I genuinely couldn’t stop laughing (though, to be fair, I’m not entirely sure those moments were intended to be funny since no one else was laughing). However, the movie fell flat for me. I think this story could have been a great opportunity to show that strength can come from vulnerability; that caregiving is not inherently a feminine trait. The film could have meaningfully acknowledged the amount of invisible labor performed by stay-at-home parents, and how that labor enables their partners to live the lives they do. Instead, it ultimately suggests that these skills come naturally to women, while men have to work to become good fathers. This message not only undermines mothers’ labor but also reinforces the idea that domestic competence is at odds with masculinity, while also underestimating men’s capacity for emotional intelligence. The Breadwinner isn’t a win for me and, to be honest, it left me feeling uneasy. It’s just another reminder that low levels of negative content don’t guarantee rewarding family viewing. 

About author

Alisha Bagshaw

Alisha Bagshaw is completing her BCST in Child and Youth Care Counselling and is working toward a career in psychology and policy advocacy. She enjoys reading, watching movies, and subjecting her husband and friends to in-depth (and usually unsolicited) synopses and thematic analysis.