Barbie

Yeah this slayed. The point of Barbie isn’t its depiction of surface-level feminism or America Ferrera’s speech - the point of Barbie was that after learning about what it means to be a human, and what it means to be a woman, Barbie CHOOSES to become a woman. SHE KNEW what that meant. Even after she and the Barbies fixed Barbieland and saved it from the Kens and she could have gone back to her metaphorical high heel lifestyle (as presented by Weird Barbie earlier on in the movie) she CHOSE to live and learn being a woman. She literally wears Birkenstocks in the last scene - “Come on babe, you have to want to know.” Knowing that life comes with difficulties, that despite its best intentions the Barbie brand did not “solve feminism,” that little work may be done and little change may be realized in one woman’s life time… Barbie chooses to be a woman. To experience the multitudes of sadness and joy that come with that choice.  That is the most profound takeaway from this film - that most women, if given the choice, would choose to be women again and again. That they would say yes EVERY TIME. That they would put on the metaphorical Birkenstocks. Because there is a flavor to life and an unwritten shared experience that comes with being a woman. As stated in the movie, humans die, but ideas live forever. Feminism and the work we do to further progress will outlive each and every one of us, and yet it is work worth doing. Life as a woman, though at times unbearable, maddening, and heartbreaking, is life worth living. Shit takes a long time to change in the real world and only ~48 hours to change in Barbie world. Despite knowing what she is giving up, all that she will gain as a human woman outweighs her losses. So she chooses to become a woman. She chooses to live with the pain and sacrifices and contradictions that come with making that decision. THIS is the takeaway of Barbie. That being a woman and being a feminist, no matter how difficult in this society, is a valuable, unique, profound experience. TO KNOW AND TO SAY YES. To know and to say yes. To know and to CHOOSE. Again and again. THAT is the takeaway of Barbie. Any criticism of the movie as surface level feminism (ignoring that many of those points were used as plot devices/literally for Barbie’s character and not the audience) is shallow and an easy way to disregard the film without thinking critically about Gerwig’s intentions and implications.