“What if becoming yourself was the most radical act of all?”
That’s the question Poor Things throws at us in every frame. Behind its surreal world and grotesque aesthetics lies a deeply philosophical journey, one that echoes Plato’s Allegory of the Cave and the timeless human (and brand) urge to become authentic.
Let’s dive in. Not just into the movie, but into its meaning. And how it can change the way we build brands, run businesses, and write our own stories.
Chama Academy is here to make you plan and strategise better to see sustainable results.
In Plato’s Allegory of the Cave, prisoners are trapped in darkness, mistaking shadows for reality. Only when one escapes the cave does he realise that truth, beauty, and meaning exist beyond the illusion.
Bella Baxter is that escapee. Reborn with a childlike mind, she walks the world untainted by shame, norms, or preconceptions. She doesn’t return to the cave, she questions why it existed in the first place.
She doesn’t follow. She discovers.
And that’s the first lesson for brands:
🔥 You can’t build an authentic brand by staying in the cave of convention.
To stand out, you must question, unlearn, and reimagine.
Bella’s past is erased. And yet, her journey isn’t about forgetting, it’s about remembering through reinvention.
This recalls Nietzsche’s concept of the Übermensch: a self-creating being, unshackled from inherited values.
In brand terms: your past matters. But it doesn’t define you. What defines you is what you do with it.
Brands that evolve without learning from their past repeat noise, not purpose.
Reflection isn’t nostalgia, it’s strategy.
So if your business is pivoting, rebranding, or launching… pause > Learn > Then move forward with intention.
Too many brands “rebrand” by changing colours and slogans but keep the same mental models. That’s costume change, not character development.
Brand Takeaway:
Strategy is memory in motion. Learn from the past, but don’t let it fossilise your future.
Reinvention isn’t betrayal. It’s loyalty to growth.
One of the most confronting parts of Poor Things is Bella’s sexual, intellectual, and social liberation.
She moves.
She experiments.
She explores.
Her identity is in motion.
That movement terrifies the world around her, yet it’s also what sets her free.
Brands too must embrace fluid identity.
The key is to experiment without losing sight of your mission, your vision, and your customer at the centre.
🚫 Being static ≠ being consistent.
(Too often, businesses mistake communication for strategy, when it’s only the expression of it.)
✅ Being curious ≠ being confused.
(Exploring channels, testing engagement, and refining how you connect is part of growth, it doesn’t have to be set in stone from day one.)
Think of Eminem: his essence, raw honesty, rebellion, and storytelling, hasn’t changed since The Slim Shady LP. But he has navigated fatherhood, addiction recovery, business ventures, and cultural shifts, all while staying true to his voice. He didn’t abandon his mission making authentic rap that connects and translate his own truth; he evolved with it.
Look at brands like Netflix, which constantly experiments with formats, pricing models, and content to stay relevant while still holding onto its mission of “entertainment everywhere.”
Or Nike, which adapts campaigns fluidly to cultural moments, from athlete-led stories to social justice stands, without ever abandoning its core “Just Do It” ethos.
Even Glossier, once a DTC darling, pivoted from rapid retail expansion back to digital-first community focus, proving that adaptation is not confusion, it’s survival.
A brand that explores its voice, tests its offers, and listens to its people is a brand that lives.
When building strategy, your values and beliefs are non-negotiable. Those don’t shift with trends. What can evolve is how you express them, through your message, your channels, and the way you interact with your audience.
Authenticity isn’t about staying still. It’s about staying true while daring to move.
Here’s what Bella, and the movie, teach us about becoming:
Symbol in Film | Strategic Brand Lesson |
Reanimation / Frankenstein Motif | Rebranding isn’t cosmetic, it’s alchemical. Rebirth demands intention, not just a new logo. |
Childlike Curiosity | Adopt a beginner’s mind. Stay naïve on purpose. Creation thrives in not-knowing. |
Shamelessness in Learning | Perfectionism is a branding poison. Try, test, fall, rise. Growth loves mess. |
Rule-breaking & Transgression | The best brands are heretics first, icons later. Lead with rebellion, but anchor it in meaning. |
Dialogue over Monologue | Authenticity isn’t declared, it’s negotiated. Identity emerges in conversation. |
Bella’s transformation isn’t linear. She grows in loops, by exposure, by resistance, by experience.
And that’s how strong brands are built.
🚫 Not through copy-paste templates.
🚫 Not through “what everyone else is doing.”
But through intentional, sometimes uncomfortable, becoming.
🚫 Your brand is not what you post.
✅ It’s what you practice.
It’s the fire behind your message. The clarity beneath your design. The why under your words.
So ask yourself, are you building a brand that reflects your past, or one that imagines your future?
Because becoming “yourself” is the a path that can lead to a real authentic strategy.
Your brand is not your visual identity.
It’s your existential posture.
Are you mimicking relevance, or are you risking something?
Remember: It’s very hard to create a community, if you don’t have a persona behind it.
At its core, Poor Things is a cinematic essay on what it means to come alive, socially, sexually, politically.
Brands, too, are living systems.
Their growth is less about messaging and more about meaning-making.
Strategy isn’t a plan. It’s an act of philosophical courage to define how you will position your brand to connect with your hero (customer).
So next time you sit in a brand workshop or a boardroom, ask better questions:
Because branding, like Bella’s journey, is ultimately not about becoming what the world wants or a formula you should follow.
It’s about discovering what you were always capable of becoming, if only you dared to expose the reasons why you started your company.
Don’t just reposition. Reimagine & Rebirth
The age of safe strategy is over. What remains is the raw, radical, and real.
Are you ready to step out of the cave?
If you agree you can do better marketing, if you agree you can improve your marketing strategy to see more results, contact Chama today!
