A word about Barbie
This is definitely educational.
Barbie (2023) is a comedy/fantasy movie starring Margot Robbie as Barbie and Ryan Gosling as Ken. The film, released on July 21, 2023, was directed by Greta Gerwig, director of Little Women.
Barbie is the highest grossing film in Warner Brothers’ history, surpassing Harry Potter. By January 2024, it grossed $1.44B worldwide. Mattel reports that sales of Barbie doll increased by 16% as a result of the film.
Yesterday, the Oscar nominations from the Academy of Arts and Sciences were announced. Barbie was nominated for Best Picture, Best Writing (Greta Gerwig, Noah Baumbach), Best Actor in a Supporting Role (Ryan Gosling), Best Actress in a Supporting Role (America Ferrera), Best Production Design (Sarah Greenwood, Katie Spencer), and Best Costume Design (Jacqueline Durran).
Well-earned, all.
But the kerfuffle has arisen because of who wasn’t nominated:
To quote Charlotte Clymer, former press secretary for the Human Rights Campaign Fund, “The Academy nominated ‘Barbie’ for best picture—a film about women being sidelined and rendered invisible in patriarchal structures—but not the woman who directed the film.”
This.
This is infuriating. It’s happened to me.
Well, I mean, not like this. It is true that I have not created a feature film with John Cena featured as a merman that also ignited social discourse on women’s rights in a funny, heartwarming way. But I have built classes and curriculum and watched in abject horror as the credit went to the men on the team.
Many of the issues that were highlighted in the film were issues almost every single woman I know has had to deal with or is currently dealing with. Even if you didn’t like the movie, I feel like it can’t be denied that it was thoughtfully put together with a solid story and excellent and well-cast acting.
And the person who brought the literal bank gets no credit for it? Not even a nod?
