The real reason behind the Barbie movie backlash

In the days leading up to the release of the Barbie movie, directed by Greta Gerwig, the film has endured various attacks by right-wing figures, whose issue with the movie lies in what they say is a “woke” and “feminist” agenda. In a time of unprecedented attacks on women by conservatives, it’s not surprising that they’d also go after the things that simply bring us joy, like this movie.

One of the most outspoken critics so far has been Ginger Gaetz, the wife of Matt Gaetz, a Republican congressman from Florida who is anti-abortion and anti-trans rights. After attending the Barbie premiere and seemingly having a good time, she took to Twitter to rail against the movie, while praising the acting of Margot Robbie.

“Thinking about watching the Barbie movie? I’d recommend sticking to getting outfit inspiration and skipping the theater,” Gaetz tweeted.

Her reasoning? “The Barbie I grew up with was a representation of limitless possibilities, embracing diverse careers and feminine empowerment. The 2023 Barbie movie, unfortunately, neglects to address any notion of faith or family, and tries to normalize the idea that men and women can’t collaborate positively (yuck).” How ironic this critique is, when conservatives like her husband have made it their life’s mission to silence women who attempt to work with them to preserve abortion and trans rights. And want to talk about “family”? In the wake of Texas border patrol working for fellow Republican, Governor Greg Abott, allegedly being told to throw children into the Rio Grande , is this not an actual issue of “faith and family” to focus on?

Ginger Gaetz didn’t stop there. She also made a transphobic comment in her review, saying that the “low T” - meaning testosterone from Ken (Ryan Gosling) - and the “beta energy” from Barbie were huge turn offs for her. This sad, pathetic comment would almost not be worthy of comment if not for the power her husband holds, and the platform she is therefore given.

At first it seemed Matt Gaetz had a different opinion to his wife, largely believing the movie was worth seeing because he finds Margot Robbie attractive. But even he had to pepper his praise with transphobia. Many conservative commentators took to their keyboards to criticize the congressman for seeing a movie starring a trans woman actor, Hari Nef. To which Rep Gaetz responded,  “If you let the trans stop you from seeing Margo Robbie……the terrorists win…..”

But of course it wasn’t just the Florida congressman that had to have his voice heard. Ted Cruz railed against the movie for apparently spreading “communist propaganda” over a map of the South China Sea drawn in crayon in the movie. I suspect that Cruz’s concerns are less to do with imperialism, however, and more about spreading dog whistle resentment amongst his supporters over communism, feminism, liberalism – whatever ‘isms’ fit his narrative.

No one has to like the Barbie movie, but attacking it because it doesn’t address “any notion of faith of family” is not only ludicrous but untrue. Barbie shows its titular character surrounded by community and friends, and undergoes a journey whereby she gains more faith in herself through an existential crisis. Conservatives want to believe the only way to depict faith and family is by praying or being forced to give birth, but there are a myriad of ways for women to express these notions.

Barbie is so much about family, with a poignant and touching message about motherhood at the center of the narrative. And even faith is addressed, as Barbie has to have the faith to believe in the beauty of humanity, even though she understands it will mean her mortality. The movie is, overall, a fun watch. But there’s almost a serene sense of spirituality to these scenes.

The criticism sounds nonsensical because it is. Because none of these people are brave enough to simply admit why they hate this movie — it’s the first female-led summer blockbuster… possibly ever. And because conservatives hate women, they are going to attack this movie. It’s almost a natural law at this point that wherever you see women having fun, conservatives are lying in wait, frothing at the mouth, longing to destroy it.

The hilarious part is that Barbie isn’t even an explicitly feminist movie. It’s not radical, it just doesn’t hate women or denigrate them for the things they enjoy. Brazilian culture writer Nicole Froio wrote that Barbie is, in her opinion, part of the femme intellectual canon, but she notes that it’s not always feminist work. “The femme intellectual canon is a body of work that is usually enjoyed by women and femme presenting people. The femme intellectual canon does not denigrate the feminine, it uplifts, challenges and plays with it, while understanding that we live in a patriarchal society that is built on misogyny.”

Barbie is pink and fluffy and smart and tender and nostalgic and witty. It’s a good time and we, frankly, deserve a good time after conservatives have taken away our rights and made us scared to walk the streets alone, to send our children to school, to get pregnant, to get abortions, to transition into our genders. In a time of unspeakable rage at how we are having our human rights stripped, it’s a movie that is supposed to make us happy, not a call to revolution. But you know what? If conservatives keep acting a fool about it, maybe we should turn it into a call to revolution. After all, I’m not opposed to painting the halls of Congress Barbie pink.