This is the first time in a while that I have been excited to go to the movie theater. After the pandemic, theaters seemed like sad, desolate places to be and there weren’t many movies that interested me enough to justify spending time in them. But this weekend was different. The atmosphere shifted and gave me a nostalgic feeling of giddiness. The excitement was palpable in the crowds for both Barbie and Oppenheimer as we settled into our seats.
I will spare the details for their respective sections, but I must say that both films captured me for their full runtimes. Completely different in style and method, they each displayed a message, to me at least, that much of what the world has known to be normal and correct for the past few thousand years is in actuality just a social construct generated by men. Men have shackled and chained humanity to a false anchor and it is time to enact social change in order to break those chains.
Barbie
“You’re either brainwashed, or you’re weird and ugly. There’s no in-between.” – Barbie
Iconic. Moving. Important. In my wife’s own words, “This movie is everything to me… It is the best movie I have ever seen.” Each bit of praise I can attribute to this movie would be an understatement. We saw this movie twice on consecutive days, and my wife readily stated that she would see the movie every night this week if she could.
Using a mirrored reality, Barbie not only explicitly called out the toxic patriarchal social construct we have all been abiding by, but it did so in a way that allowed the viewers to understand the implicit nature of oppression that women have been experiencing. Both insightful and reflective at the same time, Barbie is a movie for all humans made by and through the lens of progressive women, not something that we get to experience often in modern media.
The absolutely killer soundtrack, coupled with Monty Python-esque humor, provided the ideal emotional cushion to allow the audience to engage with such a weighted message while maintaining positivity and hope. I found many of the characters to be relatable and the cast diversity was a huge step towards the level of inclusion and representation our society deserves.
If you haven’t seen the movie yet and you don’t want any spoilers, now is your chance to bail or head down to my notes on Oppenheimer.
The mid-way monologue in this movie is absolutely impeccable. Themed on the impossibility of being a woman, Gloria (played by America Ferrera) thrashes the negative dual standards applied to women’s actions, behaviors, and looks. This campaign against the cognitive dissonance forced upon women served as the building blocks of regaining the autonomy needed to liberate Barbieland from patriarchal occupation.
After the Barbies restored their statehood, there is a scene where Stereotypical Barbie apologizes to her counterpart Ken. After my first viewing, I was trying to place the significance of this scene. My initial thoughts were about how the content of the apology suggested that men and women needed to separate the idea of dependence on their partners for fulfillment and status. But after talking with my wife, and seeing Barbie for the second time, I now believe that this apology is not only a reflection of an emotional difference between men and women but also a call to action for men in the world. We men need to acknowledge our role in the problem, truly put effort into understanding the perspectives of women, and apologize for the harm we have contributed.
Another role that men need to take is that of an ally. The good news is, the Barbie movie provided a fantastic example of allyship through Alan’s character (played by Michael Cera). He outwardly rejected the norms and actions set forth by the Kens, especially once they implemented patriarchy. He took a back seat in the decision and action process of the Barbies and was just there to lend a hand. Again, we men should adopt this role with the women we are involved with and we particularly need to be comfortable standing up to other men, confronting toxic ideology instead of letting it roll by.
Relatively early on in the movie, there was a moment when Sasha (played by Ariana Greenblatt) called out Stereotypical Barbie for being the representation of everything wrong with the modern patriarchal lens of women. It was never explicitly resolved or addressed, but I think overall it shows the advancement in progress to deconstructing the patriarchy. Barbie was created at a worse time for women, but it represented women having the power to imagine themselves doing anything in the world.
As time progressed, women’s needs changed and progressed past the point Barbie represented. The male-led industry just continued to use Barbie as another tool to make money and propagate what norms they think women should follow. We are now at the point in time where we are and need to continue making efforts to move into the next stage of progression. All of this is beautifully tied together with arguably the most iconic and powerful quote of the movie:
“We mothers stand still so that our daughters can look back and see how far they have come.” – Ruth
The only way I can think about this movie right now is that it is so important. It is so powerful and amazing and I truly am so happy that this movie was created.
Unrelated to what has been discussed so far, I would like to congratulate Chevy and Birkenstock for being the product placement winners of this production. Honorable mentions include SMEG, Duo-Lingo, Gucci, and Hummer.
Oppenheimer
“The truly vindictive, patient as saints.” – Kitty Oppenheimer
While this is unfortunately another story about white men obsessed with power and control, and arguably controversial on the grounds that it created a sympathetic narrative of Robert Oppenheimer’s story who many see as a villain regardless of historical context, this movie was intellectually gripping. As expected with Christopher Nolan’s films, Oppenheimer was a visual art form accompanied by a stellar sonic experience. The casting was superb and sprinkled with actors I was not entirely expecting.
This is a story that represents the parallel paths that science and war take in order to obtain a bigger stick than competitors to either usurp power or maintain it. The ideology behind this is predicated on an implicit, and at times explicit, belief that some people are just better than others. Thus constructing a biased hierarchy where those with the biggest stick make decisions for everyone else.
We have all heard of the famous Charles Darwin theory Survival of the Fittest. This theory has been twisted by non-scientists to fit their agenda of power and is no longer known for what it was actually trying to say about evolution. Survival of the Fittest is not about who is strongest, who has the biggest stick, or who can kill their predators (paradoxically, humans have found themselves to be their own predators). What the theory actually means, and I would encourage anyone to read Survival of the Friendliest if you are interested in this subject, is that a species will survive based on its ability to cooperate and produce viable offspring capable of withstanding natural challenges. Nothing more than that.
Humans now use survival of the fittest to justify acts of war, violence, and manipulation of their own species. Since the birth of culture, homo-sapiens have constructed societal competition between each other. This competition gave birth to ideas like national security, economic influence, and scientific rivalry.
What I found to be culturally beneficial from this movie is that it did seem to propagate an anti-war and anti-weaponry message. I also liked to see that the movie highlighted who really makes wartime decisions and how far distanced those people are from actually understanding what they are doing on a micro level.
I am still debating internally how I feel about this movie, but I did appreciate a lot of what it had to offer. Ultimately I enjoyed my experience seeing it in the theater. Hopefully, going forward, we can adopt and express a more progressive way of using historical cautionary tales. Using the proper historical context makes all of the difference in what we understand of the past, and we really need to think critically about what we know of history. The subject is inherently biased in favor of those who had power at the time, those who wrote their own story, so it is up to us to seek out the surrounding context that was left out of the original tale.
“Does anyone good ever tell the truth about what’s going on here” – Robert Oppenheimer
Author’s note: All of this post’s content is constructed from my own personal opinions and interpretations of the movies.
I loved reading about your insights, especially on Barbie. I thought your comment on the quote about mothers standing still was so thoughtful. Can‘t wait to see Barbie with you again!!
I appreciate your insights on both movies! I don’t see or hear any advertising and was confused why both of my kids went to see Barbie – until now! I’m going to make plans to go see it after reading your review. Thanks for the note about spoiler alerts!
While I’m still deciding about seeing Oppenheimer, I appreciate your comments about history and whose perspective it represents.