Barbie has arrived, and fans are going to the movies in their pinkest dresses to see Greta Gerwig’s flick. Anti-woke critics have panned the picture, though.
The picture, starring Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling as Ken, has defied box office projections with Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer, which was released on the same day.
Barbie, which stars Simu Liu, Will Ferrell, Emma Mackey, Michael Cera, and Kate McKinnon, has gotten mostly excellent reviews, with many appreciating its feminist themes.
On the other hand, some moviegoers have called Barbie’s journey to the “real world” to remedy Barbie land’s wrongs “anti-men” and “too woke.”
Conservative political analyst and online star Ben Shapiro recorded a 43-minute tantrum in which he melted Barbie dolls in protest of the film.He called the film “angry feminist claptrap that alienates males from women” and “one of the most woke films I have ever watched.”
He called Gosling’s Ken “annoying and ludicrous” and criticised President Barbie’s Issa Rae and Doctor Barbie’s Hari Nef.
Human Events editor and alt-right political activist Jack Posobiec similarly aired his upset over the film, calling it a ‘man-hating Woke propaganda fest.’
‘They teach Barbie fans about rising up against “the patriarchy,” and Ken is portrayed as beta and borderline retarded. It’s a horrorshow,’ he said in a Twitter post.
He also posted a clip of Ken’s I’m Just Ken song that features in the film as he questions his ‘blond fragility,’ with Posobiec calling it ‘possibly the most anti-male film ever made.’
They made Barbie a man-hating Woke propaganda fest
They teach Barbie fans about rising up against ‘the patriarchy,’ and Ken is portrayed as beta and borderline retarded
It’s a horrorshow
— Jack Poso 🇺🇸 (@JackPosobiec) July 20, 2023
Here is Ken singing about 'blonde fragility' in the insanely woke new Barbie
This is possibly the most anti-male film ever madpic.twitter.com/7Lr98Cy4h0
— Jack Poso 🇺🇸 (@JackPosobiec) July 21, 2023
Thinking about watching the Barbie movie?
I'd recommend sticking to getting outfit inspiration and skipping the theater. Here's why:
The Barbie I grew up with was a representation of limitless possibilities, embracing diverse careers and feminine empowerment.
The 2023 Barbie… pic.twitter.com/AsparSgvS4
— Ginger Gaetz (@GingerLGaetz) July 18, 2023
Ginger Gaetz, wife of Florida’s 1st congressional district representative Matt Gaetz, went all out and called for a boycott of the film for failing to “address any notion of faith or family” and seeking to “normalise the idea that men and women can’t interact productively.”
The duo and other attendees at the film’s premiere wore pink costumes.
Senator Ted Cruz called Barbie “Chinese communist propaganda” for presenting the South China Sea as Chinese territory on a map, causing Vietnam to ban the film.
Conservative author Peachy Kennan also made a horrific dig at the film over the casting of Nef in a Fox News segment, calling the film an ‘insidious packaging of feminist cliché and trans grooming.’
Gerwig has previously spoken out about the film’s feminist themes, telling ABC’s 7:30 Report: ‘It most certainly is a feminist film. But it’s feminist in a way that includes everyone; it’s a ‘rising tide lifts all boats’ version of it.’
Margot Robbie also gave her verdict on the film, saying that ‘it might be feminist.’
‘I think some people hear the word “feminist” and think that means it doesn’t mean men… And I’m like, anyone who believes that men and women should be equal is feminist.
‘If you look at Barbie Land from the beginning… the Barbies are on top and the Kens are kinda disregarded… that’s not equal.
‘So, whatever the opposite of misogynist is actually what Barbie is, Toward the end when they balance things out..then it might be feminist.’
After its Friday release, the picture grossed $300 million (£233 million) worldwide, defying critics.
Gerwig’s picture beat Captain Marvel’s opening weekend record.
