It’s the movie that everyone is talking about, and a lot of people are seeing. The new Barbie movie has made waves internationally, raking in US$560 million from its first weekend in cinemas and breaking records in the process.
But amidst all the “Barbiemania”, are the conservatives who are starkly against Greta Gerwig’s feminist film and her progressive representations of the 1950s doll.
Right-wing commentators and public figures like Ben Shapiro, Ted Cruz, Matt and Ginger Gaetz and more have critiqued the film for “man-hating”, neglecting notions of “faith and family”, and even as being a piece of “Chinese communist propaganda”.
In a 43 minute video, US conservative columnist and YouTuber Ben Shapiro “destroys” the Barbie movie, calling it “one of the worst movies” he’d ever seen.
“The movie is a sh**show. Conceptually, the movie is a sh**show,” Shapiro said in the video, which has had 1.3 million views so far.
“The basic sort of premise of the film, politically speaking, is that men and women are on two sides and they hate each other.
“And literally, the only way you can have a happy world is if the women ignore the men and the men ignore the women.”
Texas Senator Ted Cruz, in an interview on Jesse Watters’ segment on Fox News, claimed Barbie was “Chinese communist propaganda” created in an effort to have the film played in China, and therefore get a larger box office return.
A map of the world drawn in crayons, featured in the film, caused controversy amongst conservatives because of “nine dashes” drawn in the South China Sea, indicating China’s power and control in the region.
“What those lines indicate is the communist party… asserting sovereignty over the entire South China Sea,” he said.
“All of their neighbours disagree… Vietnam has banned the movie because of these nine dashes.”
Cruz accused Warner Bros and the creators of Barbie of trying to “kiss up” to the Chinese Communist Party to sell the movie in China.
At the time of his appearance on Fox News, Cruz had yet to watch the film.
Ginger Gaetz, the wife of conservative Congressman from Florida Matt Gaetz, disapproved of Barbie also.
In an Instagram post, Ginger said the film “neglects to address any notion of faith or family” and felt “let down” after seeing the film.
Meanwhile, Sky News commentator Piers Morgan called the film “an assault on men”.
“All the male characters in the Barbie world are simply called ‘Ken’,” he said.
“So it’s pretty clear where this movie is going. This is an assault on not just Ken, but all men.” He too made the comments before seeing the film, or he’d know about all the characters that are also called ‘Barbie’.
People on social media have hit back against conservative critiques of the movie.
“Conservative men only hate the Barbie movie because it’s done something they could never do, which would be showing a woman a good time for 2 hours,” one Twitter user wrote.
“These Barbie reviews by conservative men are fueling me. Just incredible. Yes, it must be so infuriating when your entire gender is painted to be ignorant, vapid and superfluous. I can’t imagine,” said another.
“I wasn’t going to see Barbie, but since it triggers conservative men so much, I think I am taking my daughter, Thanks, Ben Shapiro,” wrote a third.