Barbie has swept the nation. It decidedly beat Oppenheimer on opening weekend, set box office records, and, as of this writing, is the most-watched by ticket sales and the highest-grossing movie of 2023 – and it’s unlikely that either of those statistics will change.
Barbie-mania is just as strong going into the fall. Schools across the country are choosing Barbie – both the doll and the movie – as a theme for homecoming-related activities. Many an elementary-aged child is throwing a Barbie-themed birthday party. We expect to see lots of dolls as Halloween costumes. Barbie has always had a foothold on the culture, but her influence is particularly strong now thanks to the Greta Gerwig juggernaut.
But not everyone has seen Barbie yet. There are a multitude of people who were waiting for it to hit streaming services, and those viewers’ lucky day will hopefully come soon because the film is expected to be available to stream before the end of the year. We expect that Barbie will attract theater-goers who want to re-watch it, as well as an onslaught of those aforementioned viewers who haven’t yet watched it. And with that, we also expect further discourse on the film.
Barbie Has Been Dissected Ad Nauseam
Even if you haven’t seen Barbie, you’ve likely seen that it was lauded by many, particularly women, for its feminist themes. (For a very quick and reductive context, in the film, Barbie discovers toxic patriarchy.) And you might’ve felt like everybody was suddenly a film critic, or at the very least a cinephile, boasting about how brilliant the film was, how America Ferrera’s monologue hit home, and how well it depicted what life is like for females in the world.
Now don’t get us wrong – all of those points are true. Barbie is a feminist manifesto (and a good one, at that). But don’t go into the film thinking it has to be yours.
If you want to watch Barbie, it might be because you played with Barbies as a child, and you’re looking forward to a couple of hours of nostalgia. Perhaps you want to watch Barbie because you like movies with an element of escapism, and you know the film provides that. Maybe you just want to unwind for a bit and watch a movie about a doll. Your reason for watching this film doesn’t have to have anything to do with feminism or the state of the world at large. Any reason you have for wanting to watch Barbie is valid.
Margot Robbie in ‘Barbie’
Barbie Can Be Anything
There’s unspoken pressure to both like this film and fully understand its feminist ideals, but that pressure is unwarranted. You might go into Barbie with zero expectations and come out an activated feminist. Just the opposite might be true. Wherever you’re at before and after you watch Barbie is fine. Not finding value in Barbie because of its feminist themes doesn’t make you a bad person, a bad movie-watcher, or even a bad feminist.
You can like Barbie because it’s funny, features an excellent cast, and has beautiful sets and costumes. You can like Barbie because it was directed by one of the greatest directors of our time. You can like Barbie because it reminds you of your own childhood, because it speaks to what it’s like to be a human being, or for any other reason. You don’t need to write a dissertation on the cross-section of toys, media, and feminism after watching it. You can just like it.
Barbie will be streaming soon, but until then, it’s available to rent.