Barbenheimer, the Goldilocks Dilemma and Oscar 2024
by Paulette Reynolds * January 24, 2024
by Paulette Reynolds * January 24, 2024
“It is literally impossible to be a woman. You are so beautiful and so smart, and it kills me that you don't think you're good enough… You have to never get old, never be rude, never show off, never be selfish, never fall down, never fail, never show fear, never get out of line.”
America Ferrera, as Gloria, in Barbie, 2023 *1
America Ferrera, as Gloria, in Barbie, 2023 *1
The speech delivered by America Ferrera’s character, Gloria, highlights the Goldilocks Dilemma faced by all woman who have ever lived on this androcentric planet. We walk on eggshells in every interaction involving men, hoping to strike just the right balance between the minefields of their biased views, and still be acknowledged, in order to reach our goals. And nowhere is this more true than at Oscar time.
Remember Barbenheimer? Did this cultural phenomenon simply sprout up organically? The truth is, this marketing ploy (pushed mainly by Oppenheimer & Co.) used gender bias in the guise of “friendly competition”, to ramp up ticket sales - mainly for Oppenheimer. Hoping Barbie’s positive vibes would be just the trick to lure unwilling moviegoers into viewing another film that would otherwise be ignored at the box office. This testosterone maneuver misfired however, as Oppenheimer limped in at $955.6 million, almost half a billion in sales revenue behind Barbie’s success.
And of course, just as the awards season kicked off, the Oscar buzz began separating the faux Barbenheimer portmanteau, with articles suggesting that Oppenheimer was the “serious”, “intellectual” and most “Oscar-worthy” choice - especially when it came to Best Director (and by extension, Best Film).
The making of Barbie was a worthy goal, inspiring and entertaining millions of fans, and audiences are still rewarding Greta Gerwig’s creation to the tune of $1.446 billion dollars. When Barbie took home an award for the 2024 Golden Globes “Cinematic & Box Office Achievement”, it was met with smarmy cracks, revealing Hollywood’s existential dread of female success in Tinsel Town.
But no one told Barbie’s fans of Hollywood's double standard during the race for Oscar. No Oscar nomination for you, Margot Robbie, because after all, you just played a doll, and Cillian Murphy portrayed the father of the atomic bomb - so he’s going to get the nomination and the Oscar.
Remember Aaron Sorkin, screenwriter and Oscar pundit? He suggested that all female actors have to do is show up and act, “That’s why year in and year out, the guy who wins the Oscar for Best Actor has a much higher bar to clear than the woman who wins Best Actress.” Ironically, Sorkin’s remark really explains the Goldilocks Dilemma for women in Hollywood, especially during the annual awards season.*2
And NO, Greta Gerwig, you are not on this year’s short list for Best Director, because Androcentrism says so, that’s why. (We’re going to give it to Christopher Nolan - or some other male - anyway.) *3
On another note, it wasn’t surprising to see Ryan Gosling’s nomination for Best Supporting Actor for his Ken doll performance. The “Kenough” movement underscored the very real confusion that men face, now that women are becoming fully invested in their own empowerment. And yes, the Super Ken Dance-Off musical number was pretty exhilarating. Kudos also goes to America Ferrera, as Gloria, who delivered that knock-out, We’re-Never-Good-Enough monologue, to win a Best Supporting nomination.
The Barbie experience is both an opportunity and something to be frightened of, depending on who is doing the dreaming and who is still not fully awake. Barbie contains multiple and never-ending subversive messages for girls and women on their journey to becoming three-dimensional authentic people.
Plus, there are plenty of “ah-ha!” moments, especially the point that it’s not a woman’s responsibility to play mom and fix the men around her. After all, it’s a huge job just changing the environment and the male worldview that created it.
Hopefully, women filmmakers will learn to resist the temptation to go along with such cheap stunts as Barbenheimer; and I look forward to women in the Academy membership fighting for equal recognition at awards time.
As a wise Barbie once said, “Kenland contains the seeds of its own destruction.”
As a wise Barbie once said, “Kenland contains the seeds of its own destruction.”
*1 Barbie * 2023: Film Quote via IMDb
“It is literally impossible to be a woman. You are so beautiful and so smart, and it kills me that you don't think you're good enough. Like, we have to always be extraordinary, but somehow we're always doing it wrong. You have to be thin, but not too thin. And you can never say you want to be thin. You have to say you want to be healthy, but also you have to be thin. You have to have money, but you can't ask for money because that's crass. You have to be a boss, but you can't be mean. You have to lead, but you can't squash other people's ideas. You're supposed to love being a mother but don't talk about your kids all the damn time. You have to be a career woman, but also always be looking out for other people. You have to answer for men's bad behavior, which is insane, but if you point that out, you're accused of complaining. You're supposed to stay pretty for men, but not so pretty that you tempt them too much or that you threaten other women because you're supposed to be a part of the sisterhood. But always stand out and always be grateful. But never forget that the system is rigged. So find a way to acknowledge that but also always be grateful. You have to never get old, never be rude, never show off, never be selfish, never fall down, never fail, never show fear, never get out of line. It's too hard! It's too contradictory and nobody gives you a medal or says thank you! And it turns out in fact that not only are you doing everything wrong, but also everything is your fault. I'm just so tired of watching myself and every single other woman tie herself into knots so that people will like us. And if all of that is also true for a doll just representing women, then I don't even know.”
America Ferrera, as Gloria, in Barbie 2023
“It is literally impossible to be a woman. You are so beautiful and so smart, and it kills me that you don't think you're good enough. Like, we have to always be extraordinary, but somehow we're always doing it wrong. You have to be thin, but not too thin. And you can never say you want to be thin. You have to say you want to be healthy, but also you have to be thin. You have to have money, but you can't ask for money because that's crass. You have to be a boss, but you can't be mean. You have to lead, but you can't squash other people's ideas. You're supposed to love being a mother but don't talk about your kids all the damn time. You have to be a career woman, but also always be looking out for other people. You have to answer for men's bad behavior, which is insane, but if you point that out, you're accused of complaining. You're supposed to stay pretty for men, but not so pretty that you tempt them too much or that you threaten other women because you're supposed to be a part of the sisterhood. But always stand out and always be grateful. But never forget that the system is rigged. So find a way to acknowledge that but also always be grateful. You have to never get old, never be rude, never show off, never be selfish, never fall down, never fail, never show fear, never get out of line. It's too hard! It's too contradictory and nobody gives you a medal or says thank you! And it turns out in fact that not only are you doing everything wrong, but also everything is your fault. I'm just so tired of watching myself and every single other woman tie herself into knots so that people will like us. And if all of that is also true for a doll just representing women, then I don't even know.”
America Ferrera, as Gloria, in Barbie 2023
*2 Dear Aaron Sorkin, If You Don’t Think There Are Enough Good Roles for Actresses, Write One Yourself
By Eliana Dockterman. December 16, 2014
https://time.com/3636226/aaron-sorkin-women-roles-hollywood/
*2 Androcentrism :
Androcentrism (Ancient Greek, ἀνήρ, "man, male"[1]) is the practice, conscious or otherwise, of placing a masculine point of view at the center of one's world view, culture, and history, thereby culturally marginalizing femininity.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Androcentrism
By Eliana Dockterman. December 16, 2014
https://time.com/3636226/aaron-sorkin-women-roles-hollywood/
*2 Androcentrism :
Androcentrism (Ancient Greek, ἀνήρ, "man, male"[1]) is the practice, conscious or otherwise, of placing a masculine point of view at the center of one's world view, culture, and history, thereby culturally marginalizing femininity.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Androcentrism
COPYRIGHT 2012/2024. Paulette Reynolds. All CineMata Movie Madness blog articles, reviews, faux interviews, commentary, and the Cine Mata character are under the sole ownership of Paulette Reynolds. All intellectual and creative rights reserved.
