- stratdax
- Sep 14, 2006
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contrary to the conservative freakout over this movie, the overall message was pretty clearly not anti-men but anti-patriarchy.
That's the same thing to them.
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Jul 24, 2023 03:53
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May 21, 2024 09:53
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- stratdax
- Sep 14, 2006
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Finally watched this. Overall I enjoyed it but I was getting whiplash from moment to moment on having a great time and being so bored.
Basically, whenever the film slowed down to deliver a direct point on patriarchy I felt like it was overplaying it's hand. I get why - this is a film that will have a big child/tween audience and they want to be direct and make sure the message is delivered, but I think being so direct about it only revealed how rarefied the perspective on feminism in this is. Talking about having to be everything as a woman - I've never actually heard a woman in real life talk this way, or say it is a pressure they feel. Some aspects of it, sure, but I think this is something connected and priveleged women feel acutely due to their circumstances and pressure they put on themselves as much as is coming from the outside world. It also felt pretty out of date, things have improved to the extent that most of the patriarchy criticism isn't relevant anymore except possibly in the circles of CEOs which again, rarefied.
Otherwise, the film was good fun and I enjoyed the comedy of the Ken's, although yeah their form of macho is probably about 15 years out of date but that makes sense considering Gerwig and Baumbauch are behind this and are a bit older. That even sort of plays into how the standout moments of the film mostly come from Ken - he gets most of the laugh lines, and the Ken's get the big musical number, while the Barbie's are generally just smart and capable. It's a dynamic straight out of a 90's sitcom, really.
I appreciated Ken's general arc from a toddler to a rebellious teen to a young man finding the start of self-acceptance. That came through clearly. Barbie's arc didn't, and the movie even highlights this at the end, having to directly interrogate what her ending is. I do like the line about wanting to be the one who imagines and not that idea, but I think the movie was really struggling to find satisfaction here having to go to a montage of random girls and woman and having the weirdly inserted Ruth Handler character show up.
Interesting movie.
I was bored when Barbie was onscreen but I liked the Ken bits. Also, I've never heard a woman say exactly the things said in this movie about patriarchy, so the point is moot, even though the movie was written and directed by a woman. Anyway, patriarchy doesn't exist anymore.
What the gently caress.
Edit: Denying that this is the experience so many women face is certainly.. a privilege. Unfortunately I guess the message of this movie is lost on the people who need to hear it the most. "things have improved to the extent that most of the patriarchy criticism isn't relevant anymore except possibly in the circles of CEOs which again, rarefied."? Oh? Is that what you have personally experienced?
stratdax fucked around with this message at 07:17 on Oct 19, 2023
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Oct 19, 2023 06:33
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Jul 24, 2023 03:53
