Hahaha! Right? At the same time, I was like, this feels like corporate feminism. It was like, “Hey, instead of being a girly girl, why don’t you be a person that owns an evil empire?” I think that there’s been this feminist adjustment that’s been happening for some time. I see my own femininity and hyper-femininity as things that shouldn’t be villainized, or things that should be considered like a tool of the patriarchy. In the ’70s, there was a protest of the New York Toy Fair, where people were protesting, in part, against Barbie and how sexist she was. It’s like what you said, there’s historically been a wave of articles critiquing her body and calling out these unrealistic proportions and the expectations they put on young girls. that help Barbie choose an exciting date and different ways to wear her boa. But no matter which way she wears her boa stole, Barbie always looks gorgeous, just like a royal princess that seems to float while strolling through the peach orchard! I am elated about this movie. Which might be a little bit of a surprise because in my book I do have criticisms. I’m sort of like a mother that wags her finger at a beloved child — in this case Barbie — being like, you could do better, you know? But I do love Barbie. My criticism is an act of love.

Obviously, I don’t think Slumber Party Barbie and her scale are making the cut in Greta Gerwig’s Barbie movie. I want to ask you where you think this all turned. Like everyone seems genuinely excited about this movie. How do we go from “Barbie is problematic” to now? Barbie’s big moment is one of those rare things that feels both like a fiery overnight phenomenon and a long-simmering success. To better understand Barbie culture, Barbie’s history, and what we mean when we talk about Barbie, I spoke to Maria Teresa Hart, a Barbie expert and author of Doll, which she describes as a “non-fiction pop-culture feminist critique of dolls, doll history, and doll culture.”

Purchase Parts

Okay, so there was this meme years ago going around. It’s this classroom of young girls that were having their photo taken, and it might have been costume day because they were all dressed like princesses. And then there’s one little girl that was dressed as Darth Vader. And then the caption was something like, “Be the Darth Vader you wish to see in the world or something like that.” Oooh. On that note — I wanted to ask you about criticism. I’m an old millennial, and I think when you see this excitement toward Barbie , it feels a little weird because, in my adult life, I think I’ve seen several different iterations of Barbie and Mattel criticized for being sexist. I think Barbie represents the pinnacle of womanhood and an achievement of that — and so she’s always going to be a mixed bag. We can think about supermodels or you know, young A-list starlets that are walking the red carpet or what have you. They are existing within the patriarchy and they are reflecting some of those values the Barbie does too. This Barbie is the “pinnacle of womanhood.” Courtesy Warner Bros. Pictures

There’s an entire wave of people that have grown up with this toy that feel this attachment and want to have this giddy moment. I see people planning their outfits or, what you saw last summer which you’re seeing again, which is the Barbie-core stuff coming — not just the clothes, but also the interiors, and really anywhere where you can have that moment of exuberant girliness.This fruity, creamy and boozy milkshake offers a grown-up twist on a childhood classic that will not disappoint: As you know my Barbie dolls collection is exclusive to the 70’s, 80’s, and 90’s. But my favorite decade is the 80’s! Barbies from 80’s are the best! Big hairstyles and extra long hair, the coolest accessories, prettiest superstar faces, and long flowing heavenly dresses that looked like Barbie was floating. If there’s a Barbie that’s all that, it’s Peaches ‘n Cream Barbie, made in 1984. Not at all. Barbies in the early days really doubled down on both unrealistic beauty standards and on diet culture. One of them was Slumber Party Barbie. I believe she came with a scale and had these little diet books with the “diet advice” in them that was like, “Don’t eat.” Right, it’s really damaging and damning stuff to put into a little girl’s head. The scales were set to a certain number, I think it was like 110 or something like that. The point is these toys were like an instruction manual, and you’re giving them to a little girl saying, “Do this.” And with these toys, you’re really starting them down this lifetime path of potential body dysmorphia and issues with weight. Barbie is definitely complicit in that historically, and I think we have to remember that Barbie, she has all these incredible careers now — but her very first career was teen model. Barbie is the type of movie that I think gets overlooked. Like it’s not created to be Oscar bait. That’s very much an Oppenheimer thing — you know, vehicles that are this hyper-masculine, very tortured, and have a dark and sinister type of vibe to it. That appeals to Oscar voters.