＂Hi, Barbie!＂ Movies that set a new box office record highlight the political and social differences in the United States

On July 21st, local time, the film Barbie directed by Greta Gerwig was released in North America. According to the data released by Box Office Pro, as of July 24th, the box office revenue of Barbie in North America was as high as $162 million, making it the highest domestic opening box office film in American history, surpassing the $146.4 million opening box office of Super Mario Bros. released in April this year.

Warner Bros. released the stills of the movie Barbie, a scene of Issa Ray in the movie. Vision china diagram

Barbie is also the highest-grossing film ever directed by a female director in the United States. Moviegoers from all over the world appeared in cinemas wearing all kinds of pink costumes, and the Barbie wave swept the streets and lanes of the United States. In addition, the "pink wave" set off by Barbie provides American politicians and commentators with an opportunity to make a big fuss. In the movie Barbie, Barbie can be anything she wants to be: astronaut, mother, teacher, doctor, princess, president. When she came to the real world, her identity became politicized and turned into a "new traffic password" to manipulate American politics, which triggered a more radical discussion between American conservatives and progressives.

"Hi, Barbie!"

On the street, people in pink themed clothes greeted each other, "Hi, Barbie!" " "Hi, Ken!" (Note: Barbie’s address to each other in movies). Short videos recording similar moments quickly resonated on the Internet. At the same time, according to The New York Times’s report on the 24th, American Democratic politicians also joined the pink wave after the promotion of the movie Barbie.

"This iconic Barbie doll was not only born in Malibu, California, but also embodies many values that make California a’ golden state’." California Governor and Democrat Gavin Newsom pointed out in a post that there are more than 200 jobs in Barbie’s world, and California "has more scientists, researchers, professional sports teams, engineers and Nobel Prize winners than any other state." He also praised Barbie as a defender of climate activism and "drove her electric car on the road".

On July 14th, 2023, in Washington, DC, USA, at the "Barbie World" costume show held by Red Bear Brewing Company, the costume actor Dax Exclamation Point dressed as Barbie and danced in the crowd. Vision china diagram

Gretchen Whitmer, the governor of Michigan and a Democrat, posted a Barbie doll similar to herself on social platforms with the caption "Come Barbie, let’s be in power". Raphael Warnock, a senator from Georgia and a Democrat, also pushed a clip in this movie to a more politicized direction. After the US Supreme Court overturned Luo v. Wade, "Ken is pushing for the elimination of maternal death. What does this mean?"

However, because the film involves gender issues, the power relationship between men and women is particularly sensitive in the discussion about "patriarchy" and "female awakening". Although there is still a trace of warmth between Barbie and Ken in the film, the increasingly extreme emotion of "opposition between men and women" in real life has become an elephant in the room. Kyle Smith, a commentator on The Wall Street Journal, complained that the film "attacked patriarchy more than Ms. Magazine did in a year".

Last week, US Congressman and Republican Matt Gaetz and his wife cingil Gaetz wore pink suits to attend the Barbie reception in Washington. "Barbie, who grew up with me, once represented infinite possibilities. She embraced all kinds of professional and female forces." Cingil then wrote on the social platform, "Unfortunately, Barbie ignores any concept of faith or family and tries to normalize the idea that men and women can’t live together." She believes that the hero in the film is portrayed as "unmanly".

Cingil’s views are not few. In American blockbusters, the hero is often an invincible tough guy. Under the influence of the trend of equality between men and women, the practice of showing equality between men and women in film and television circles is generally to strengthen the image of women. For example, Wonder Woman and other female superhero movies try to show that women also have great power. Barbie highlights this equal relationship through another logic, which also leads to more discussions.

Movie poster of Barbie Dream House, California, USA, June 27th, 2023. Vision china data map

Will the politicization of Barbie bring greater polarization crisis?

Faced with great influence, "Barbie" has gained various comments with mixed opinions. In the eyes of progressive critics, Barbie is a colorful, humorous, lively and deeply introspective film, and feminism is also the highlight of the film. However, in the eyes of conservative commentators, this is a film that sensationalized, provoked opposition between men and women and even hated men.

Ben Shapiro, a conservative commentator, published a video called "Destroy Barbie in 43 Minutes", which received over one million views. He claimed in the video that the message of the film is "either you are a feminist and really hate men, or you are brainwashed." Musk, a billionaire and Twitter owner, mocked the film’s handling of the patriarchal theme. He wrote on Twitter: "If you take a sip of tequila every time you hear Barbie say the word’ patriarchy’, you will get drunk before the movie ends." Jack Posobiec, a far-right media person, also made similar remarks, calling Barbie a "awakening propaganda feast of hating men", criticizing the film for portraying Ken as clumsy than Barbie, and criticizing the film for not only opposing patriarchy, but also being "anti-male".

On June 2, 2023, local time, Mattel Company of the United States launched several Barbie dolls that resembled Margot Elise Robbie, as well as dolls that resembled Ryan Gosling and other characters in the film. Vision china data map

The heated discussion on Barbie highlights the long-standing contradiction between conservatives and progressives in the United States, and the film released by the "liberal fortress" represented by Hollywood is even more challenging to prevent conservatives from deceiving young voters. Nevertheless, some right-wingers still believe that progressivism will not succeed. For example, last year’s non-political patriotic theme "Top Gun: Maverick" in the United States was a great success, and so was this year’s Super Mario Bros. Movie, which is suitable for children. In contrast, right-wing critics believe that Disney’s remake of The Little Mermaid (played by the black actress Halle Bailey) failed to meet the producer’s hopes, which also caused some public opinion to bite back.

On July 9, 2023, in Los Angeles, California, USA, actor Margot Elise Robbie made a dress appearance with black sequins and tube tops on the red carpet at the premiere of the movie Barbie. Vision china data map

According to Forbes magazine, whether Barbie is "feminist" has been a controversial topic for a long time. In the early years, Barbie products only showed a single image of tall and thin women, which critics said was a body discipline for young girls. In order to survive in the politically correct trend of supporting aesthetic diversity, Mattel (the world’s largest toy company) launched a variety of Barbie dolls in 2016. Although its largest Barbie doll is still "curvy", its attitude is still appreciated.

Nowadays, the discussion triggered by the film Barbie has become more specific, but behind the controversy, the seesaw of conservatives and progressives has become more and more emotional. After the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the case of Rowe v. Wade, the discussion on women’s basic rights and interests in various states became more divided, and the conservative’s more extreme attitude towards abortion caused quite a rebound. The appearance of Barbie has intensified the opposition between the two factions, but what is certain is that compromise is no longer a solution to the problem.