Is Barbie really the feminist icon she claims to be?

     Since being released, the Barbie movie has been incredibly successful, even breaking records for highest grossing inaugural weekend. The movie's success can be partially attributed to its claims to being a “feminist” movie, intended to bring together women from all over the world. Part of my issue with the movie is the way that it seems to be catered to a very large audience, in order to collect the highest revenue, and offend as few people as possible. Although the story line is tied to concepts of gender roles, the individual aspects of the movie, along with the extensive history of Barbie dolls themselves fail to satisfy the ideals of feminism. 

The first Barbie we are introduced to is “Stereotypical Barbie,” played by Margot Robbie. The “stereotype” this barbie seems to fulfill is essentially that of the ideal woman: blonde, thin, feminine, peppy, put together, etc. The movie did highlight diversity, featuring Barbies of different races, weights, backgrounds and career paths. Although this attempt at diversity is appreciated, Mattel’s inclusivity of similarly diverse Barbie dolls have not been as highly regarded. In 2016, Mattel released what they labeled as “Curvy Barbie.” She featured fuller hips and legs, along with a slightly rounded stomach, however she still had a body that society would not consider “fat”; around a size medium. Despite this, young girls had extremely adverse reactions to “Curvy Barbie.” In a study conducted by Jennifer Harriger, girls were given an assortment of barbies with varying body types, one of which being the curvy barbie.” The girls were then asked questions about the dolls intelligence, beauty, and social interactions. A majority of the girls labeled the curvy barbie as having less friends, and being less smart and attractive. Additionally, they said that they were least willing to play with the curvier barbie and when asked why, responded that it was because she was chubbier. The dolls lack of success reminded me of the doll “Dusty,” who was criticized for her athletic body, and later changed to be more conventionally "feminine". Towards the end of the movie, it is pointed out how sad it is that dolls face the same sexism and discrimination pertaining to their appearances that women in the real world do. However, everyone in the movie –especially Barbie herself– is shown to be doing the SAME THING to “Weird Barbie,” who is ostracized and belittled throughout the movie. “Weird Barbie” lives alone with her dog on the outskirts of town; she is said to have been “played with too hard,” featuring short, dyed hair, wearing funky clothes and colorful face paint. All the Barbies refer to her as “Weird Barbie,” and Margot Robbie Barbie is disgusted when she is told that she must visit “Weird Barbie” in order to fix her “imperfections.” I can't help but feel as though the discrimination against “Weird Barbie” has something to do with her lack of typical feminine characteristics, and her stray from the female ‘stereotype’.

Although the Barbie movie featured plus size actors, there were still very few in comparison to thinner actors. Barbie additionally scoffs at the idea that she might have cellulite; deeming that it makes her imperfect. The cellulite bit reappears throughout the movie, as a way to scare Barbie into completing her mission. The Ken’s in the movie seem to be even less body-inclusive. All the Kens appear to have abs and be extraordinarily fit; including the ‘main’ Ken, played by Ryan Gosling, despite being a decade older than his co-star and fictitious partner, Margot. I find it ironic that a movie which criticized the patriarchal nature of capitalism highlights preconceived notions of ageism towards women in the entertainment industry by casting a female lead who is significantly younger than her male co-star, with whom she is supposed to be in a relationship with. 

Overall, I feel as though The Barbie Movie attempts an “offend nobody” approach to feminism, using comedic and over dramatized representations of the patriarchy. Although this tactic probably aided the movie in garnering the cult following that it has today, I think that it undermines the less straightforward side of feminism– which is more than just “men shouldn’t rule the world.” The smaller details throughout the movie reveal the reality that any movie that is being shown at this scale and is associated with such a large fan base will never be truly feminist.