Barbies have been around for decades, so it is no surprise that the Barbie movie was one of the year’s most anticipated films. However, this is not a child’s movie. The messages for adults are genuine, and for many young teens, the Barbie movie opens the way for meaningful conversations about female strength, empowerment, and resilience. It also shows the importance of male and female relationships and open communication. Of course, the inspirational messages in the Barbie movie go way beyond any gender conforms. The messages are for us all, no matter our gender or our relationships.
Barbie has long been a feminist icon to young girls – she can do anything. We have seen Barbie dolls in almost every career imaginable. The biggest flaw has always been the unrealistic body image portrayed by the doll.
Now, we cannot blame body image issues solely on Barbie, as other toys, movies, magazines, and TV shows are equally to blame. Thankfully, recent additions to the doll have addressed diversity issues, including inclusion, disabilities, ethnicity, and different body types. Is more needed? Of course! But it is a start in the right direction.
So, what messages are the movie trying to get across?
Let us look at things we can learn from the Barbie movie and how we can use them today.
Problems That are Illustrated in the Movie
The movie rapidly shows us an unrealistic view of life via the “Barbie world.” Each Barbie has her dream life; no matter her role or job, she loves what she does. While it would be great to say everyone loves what they do, that is not always the case. Too many people “work” at jobs they hate, making it the true definition of “work.” When you love what you do, you will never work a day in your life. It becomes your passion, illustrated by the joy the Barbies take in their daily lives.
Another problem, rarely discussed, is how fast young people grow up these days. There was a time when girls played with Barbies until they were 9, 10, or 11. With all the options today and the fast-paced way children grow up from television, movies, and social media, we often find them saying goodbye to their Barbies at a much younger age. Video games, which inhibit the imaginary play crucial to development, stand in the way of exploration.
Here are some other problems illustrated in the movie:
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Gelotophobia or Pinocchio Complex
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Need for equality in the world
Undoubtedly, this is not a world of equality – neither was Barbie land. There, the Barbies held all the power; the Kens (and Alan) were merely there for show. Alan was the one male who wanted more, realizing there was more to life than he saw in the Kens.
When Barbie and Ken make it to the real world, Ken discovers the patriarchy in a bit of an exaggerated viewpoint. Or is it? Yes, many women hold CEO and other high positions in companies once dominated by men, yet in 2020, male CEOs outnumbered females by seventeen to one. Today, only thirty-three of the Fortune 500 companies have female CEOs.
Ken’s return to Barbie Land brought the patriarchy back, putting men in charge. However, even brainwashing the Barbies did not bring them purpose or truthful satisfaction. Equality is the only way for all people to feel appreciated and validated, which is all Ken wanted in the first place.
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Ruining the patterns and standards of beauty
As always, the standard of beauty presented to young girls begins with these dolls that have unrealistic body shapes. Today, we see women using all sorts of corsets to shrink their waistlines, crowding their internal organs, and pushing them where they should not be, all in the quest for that “Barbie” figure.
Of course, let us be honest – no one really wants to see a “cellulite Barbie” on the toy shelves. However, we all have flaws – no one is perfect. The more we can present to young children that it is ok to look the way they do we will be doing a massive service to future generations.
One way the Barbie movie helps is by showing us a variety of different Barbies with different looks to highlight more than one beauty standard.
4 Things We Should Learn from the Barbie Movie
There are many layers to the Barbie movie, all providing us with ways to reexamine our lives and beliefs. We learn that it is sometimes hard to be a leader, the creator does not control all aspects of our lives – we have the power to make decisions, you must figure out who you are without another person, change can be terrifying, and you are good enough just being you.
One of the other things to consider is that all women, although we need to stress, all people, can be happy and powerful. At one point, Barbie states, “All men look at me like an object; girls hate me.” Sadly, to this day, many males throughout the world view women as objects or possessions. Girls hate the “image” of Barbie and the perfection it requires. Even worse is the comment, “Women hate women, and men hate women – everyone hates women.” It seems that no matter what a woman may do or how hard she tries, there will always be those who stand in her way, are jealous of her accomplishments, or want to push her down.
Here are four powerful takeaways from the Barbie movie:
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Life is not that easy, so do not give up
We sadly live in a throwaway society. If you do not like something, move on to something else. Whether a job or relationship, people can be too quick to give something up. In one line in the movie, we hear, “I’m not good enough for anything.” When that is your belief, you may never accomplish success as you give up too quickly. Success takes work, continual work, and growth.
Sadly, too many people believe that relationships should not require work – they should just go along their way without hassles. That is an unrealistic belief, as you must work on your relationship every day of your life. If you stopped performing on the job, you would get fired. Why should a relationship be any different? Ken knew that – he kept trying to advance their relationship, yet Barbie was happy with the status quo. It takes two people to make a relationship work.
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You can be anything
Barbie teaches us that anyone can be anything they want. Yes, there may be those individuals who try to hold us back. Parents who insist we go to college and pursue a specific career rather than the one we want. In some cultures, parents view their children as failures if they do not become lawyers, doctors, politicians, accountants, or other prestigious figures. Being an actor or musician may not be approved in their culture.
Yet, if there is one message that needs to be heard from this movie, it is this – it takes all kinds of people doing all different jobs to make the world work. Being joyful in your career is the most important thing. Money is not everything – even Mattel’s CEO knew that. He did not get into the business for the bottom line – but for little girls and their dreams – in the least creepy way possible (one of the movie’s funnier and more cringeworthy lines).
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Dream big
Barbie helps young girls dream big, showing them that women can be anything they want. Of course, many young boys today playing with Barbies learn that lesson, as well. Gender identity does not preclude a person from accomplishing anything; dreaming big is the only way to get where you want to go.
Barbie had the biggest dream – to leave her fantasy world and enter reality, where life is finite and has a beginning and end. With her creator’s help, she could follow her dream – something every one of us can do at any time.
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Life does not have to be a picture-perfect fantasy…
…so do not let society ruin your life! Nothing in life is perfect. The grass is not always greener on the other side. One of the best moments in the Barbie movie is when mom Gloria delivers her big monologue, letting us know what is expected of women. It is a fantasy to think that we must “be extraordinary, but somehow we’re always doing it wrong.” As she continues with her rant, she reminds us to “never get old, never be rude, never show off, never be selfish, never fall down, never fail, never show fear…” As Gloria reminds us, we are not only “doing everything wrong, but also everything is your fault.”
There is no picture-perfect fantasy. Barbie realized it; Ken learned it.
Conclusion
The Barbie movie takes us on an emotional rollercoaster filled with laughter and tears. It gives us comedy, crisis, drama, introspection, relationships, and awakening. Through it all, we journey back to one of the most compelling of all relationships – the mother/daughter bond.
For good or bad, mothers set a role model for their daughters. In turn, those daughters may go on to hold their standards for themselves as they saw in their mothers or chart an opposite course away from what they saw.
Our goal today, to help our daughters and future generations, is this – let them know they are enough. Tell them they can do anything, be anyone – and encourage them to dream big. While we are at it, tell that to our sons, too. All children need to hear the messages of love and acceptance and that it is ok to be who they are. Validate through love.
