An Honest Review Of "Barbie" From A Feminist POV, As Well As Teenage Boys!

After seeing “Barbie” this weekend, I truly embrace the thought that we are “Barbie girls” living in “Barbie’s world.” 

I’m a girly girl who loves anything and everything pink. My computer keyboard, printer and mouse are even pink, as well as much of my home decor. I wouldn’t call myself a full-blown feminist, although others might, but I do live a life filled with a “girl power” attitude that fully embraces feminism and supporting my fellow woman. 

I’ve also loved the Barbie vibe my entire life, so it might have been a little shocking that I didn’t want to run out to see “Barbie” as soon as it came out in theaters. But now that I’ve seen it, I realize it is the ultimate girl empowerment film and is something I recommend both men and women of all ages see and really take in the messages in the movie.

Warning: there are some spoilers below, so if you haven’t seen the movie and want to without any outside opinions or information, save this for after you see the movie.

After two of my three sons saw the movie with their girlfriends and they all loved it, I figured it was time for me to go see it. So I asked my son who didn’t see it yet if he wanted to go, as well as one of his best friends and my middle son’s girlfriend (since he was on vacation and she wanted to see it again.)

First off, it’s a movie filled with subtle truths, in your face truths, and Easter eggs. TikTok has absolutely helped me to realize some of that. Here’s what I ultimately thought about the movie as a whole - LOVED IT! I loved everything about it, the amount of pink and girly girl stuff, the realization that women have to fight hard for what they have, the subtle hints that we need to empower ourselves as well as others around us, and the messages of self-love and self-esteem. 

In the beginning of the movie when the focus was on Barbieland, I literally thought to myself, I could live there and love every minute of it. From the glittery blanket on Barbie’s bed, changing outfits every few hours, being friends with everyone, seeing my boyfriend on my terms (past toxic relationships fueled that thought, but that’s a story for another day), and the women being in charge of everything - HEAVEN. And the high vibe, happy, positive attitudes…perfection!

There were some interesting facts dropped throughout the movie, that while they may seem quite obvious, many of us probably needed a reminder. One example was a moment where Barbie realizes that she and the other Barbies didn’t actually empower young girls and it made her wonder what she was made for. 

And then there’s Gloria’s (America Ferrera’s character) speech about being a woman and how tough it can be. I felt this was a pivotal moment in the film and I won’t lie, I got a little teary-eyed thinking about all the struggles that women face and just how true everything Gloria said was.

"It is literally impossible to be a woman. You are so beautiful, and so smart, and it kills me that you don't think you're good enough. Like, we have to always be extraordinary, but somehow we're always doing it wrong. You have to be thin, but not too thin. And you can never say you want to be thin. You have to say you want to be healthy, but also you have to be thin. You have to have money, but you can't ask for money because that's crass. You have to be a boss, but you can't be mean. You have to lead, but you can't squash other people's ideas. You're supposed to love being a mother, but don't talk about your kids all the damn time. You have to be a career woman but also always be looking out for other people. You have to answer for men's bad behavior, which is insane, but if you point that out, you're accused of complaining. You're supposed to stay pretty for men, but not so pretty that you tempt them too much or that you threaten other women because you're supposed to be a part of the sisterhood. But always stand out and always be grateful. But never forget that the system is rigged. So find a way to acknowledge that but also always be grateful. You have to never get old, never be rude, never show off, never be selfish, never fall down, never fail, never show fear, never get out of line. It's too hard! It's too contradictory and nobody gives you a medal or says thank you! And it turns out in fact that not only are you doing everything wrong, but also everything is your fault. I'm just so tired of watching myself and every single other woman tie herself into knots so that people will like us. And if all of that is also true for a doll just representing women, then I don't even know."

A TikTok creator named Brittney Garcia Dumas shared a video that’s now gone viral pointing out something that maybe some didn’t fully catch on to when watching the movie.

“Just a warning about the ‘Barbie’ movie. In the beginning when they’re accepting their awards, they don’t say’ thank you,’ they say ‘I worked really hard for this and I deserve it,’” she points out. “And it will truly make you feel like you can walk through a wall.” 

Some of her followers agreed in the comments. 

“And when Barbie calls the lady at the bus stop beautiful, she responds with ‘I know it,’” one follower pointed out. 

“When the lawyer says she can have hold both emotions and logic!!” another wrote. Another one other follower added, “And when they say ‘you look pretty’ they say ‘I feel pretty”’ we should be able to say that!”

“When they didn’t thank anyone else, I realized that I have always thanked someone for my accomplishments,” another follower shared. Another added, “I came out of the movie feeling EMPOWERED,” which I feel was the overall feeling for women as they walked out of the movie theater.

My bottom line is I feel this movie isn’t only great for entertaining you and bringing some nostalgic moments into your life if you’re older and grew up with Barbie, but it also offers many great lessons along the way. It really embraces everyone’s differences and quirks (thanks, Allan and Weird Barbie) and brings many empowering moments to the surface. 

And in case you're wondering what my 17-, 18-, and 20-year-old sons thought of the movie, they all enjoyed it.

But...they thought maybe they could've gone a little easier on the men, and I don't disagree with them. While we all understood that the movie was targeting the patriarchy, to a young boy who watches it who doesn't understand that, they might get the wrong message. Other than that, they all loved it and recommend everyone to see it.