Is Barbie Peak White Feminism? Does It Matter?

Gerwig’s film tells a simple story about a Barbie doll (Margot Robbie) suddenly grappling with the existential worries and insecurities of a real-life woman. But in the candy-colored world of Barbieland, there’s no room for sadness, depression or self-doubt. Well, at least not for the Barbies. They are all beautiful, intelligent, successful, kind and constantly cheerful. Their president is a Black woman (Issa Rae). Their most respected doctor is a trans woman (Hari Nef). There are plus-sized Barbies, disabled Barbies, and they all seem to live in harmony with each other. It’s a girlboss paradise where men are an afterthought. While the Barbies are running the world, the Kens live an aimless life on the beach, playing amongst themselves as they wait for the Barbies to notice them.