Barbie is a glitzy and ultimately suspicious barrage of feminist gender politics. Storywise, it’s the latest of many, many movies to feature a fictional character experiencing the “real world” for the first time, having left a cheerful, cartoonish utopia. But it changes the playbook somewhat, because rather than the character helping out humans by bringing some of that cheer into our gloomy world—as in Elf, The Smurfs, Alvin and the Chipmunks, Paddington, etc., etc.—in this film, the character brings the gloominess back to her own. And the results are…odd.
We’ll get back to that.
There’s no questioning that this film is sold on the ideals of contemporary feminism. Women can do or be anything. Men often try to stop them. Still, nothing can erase that the movie’s hero is, by any reasonable accounting, the modern feminist antichrist. In one scene, a teenage girl dresses down Barbie as a “bimbo” who promotes “consumerism” and threatens female empowerment and mental health. Well, she’s right, isn’t she? So why is a feminist blockbuster celebrating this villain?
Therein lies the inherent discomfort. Talented director Greta Gerwig has made a deal with the devil, so the movie guiltily wants to undo itself, to atone for existing. It accomplishes this, but what was the point of it all? The marketing team pumped up Barbie, and now the movie has deflated her again. (She spends much of the film crying about how disliked she is.) It’s over, and we’re back to where we started.
Part of the problem may be that feminist doctrines, like all doctrines, don’t lend themselves well to being filmed. For instance, multiple characters in Barbie emphasize that women should be able to choose any path they like. That’s a great principle, but the movie has to be about somebody. It can’t be about every woman living every kind of life. Pure equality can only be spoken about, not shown onscreen. Thus, Barbie grinds to a halt in its second half, as various characters give speeches about female empowerment. These motivational diatribes belong on TikTok, and luckily, there’s no shortage of creators who have obliged us. But movies have to get on with the business of storytelling.
Prior to this, Barbie does tell a story, although it’s a strange one. The gist is that Ken, having learned about patriarchy during a brief visit to Venice Beach, brings it back to Barbieland. This causes the previously hyperfeminine paradise to become a dude haven, complete with…fur coats? And…mini-fridges? And…pull-up bars? And…the music of Rob Thomas?
My doubts about this vision of unchecked masculinity aside, the choices made in this section will date the movie rapidly. But then again, that may be inevitable for any social justice-oriented film. What’s progressive today is regressive tomorrow. Piss off conservatives in 2023, feel the wrath of liberals in 2028.
I’m analyzing because I want to provide good content. But to be honest, I was skeptical from the first act. Because the movie’s central conceit is that although, yes, Barbie has damaged society, Barbie herself doesn’t know that, so she’s still sympathetic.
I don’t buy it. Look at those eyes.
She knows.
–Jim Andersen
For more reviews, see my review of Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part 1.
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