Barbie is no stranger to controversy—the iconic doll that has influenced innumerable childhoods. She has faced criticism for reinforcing gender stereotypes and promoting unattainable beauty standards over the years.
One of the most talked-about movie moments of 2023 is the actress America Ferrera’s monologue from Barbie, in which she lists some of the many dangers of womanhood in a patriarchal society with the fervor of a rallying cry. Gloria, played by Ferrera, has a nearly three-minute monologue in which she angrily denounces the double standards that women have to live with daily.
While many have praised the actress for her performance, others have attacked Greta Gerwig’s film and speech for oversimplifying feminism. But Ferrera refuted these claims in a recent interview with The New York Times.
America Ferrera Defends Barbie: Dispelling Feminist Myths
America Ferrera responded to the criticism of Barbie and the claim that the movie oversimplifies feminism by saying that, sometimes, that is precisely what the world needs at that moment. In the film, she is portrayed as the one who helps Barbie understand the complexity of womanhood. And in a three-minute monologue, it serves as its central idea. Greta Gerwig, who also helmed Little Women and Lady Bird, is known for such a powerful sequence, which condenses the film’s major themes into a short chapter.
In the monologue, Ferrera says, as Gloria, “It is literally impossible to be a woman.” She gave a passionate speech exposing the many injustices and double standards that women have to live with daily, which divided opinions. Some praised the scene, but others thought it was overly simplistic.
In an interview with The New York Times, Ferrera does, however, remind everyone that some people do need that. She said:
“We can know things and still need to hear them out loud. It can still be a cathartic,” she said of the speech. “There are a lot of people who need Feminism 101, whole generations of girls who are just coming up now and who don’t have words for the culture that they’re being raised in.”
In the film, Ferrera plays Gloria, a mother and Mattel employee who helps Margot Robbie‘s Barbie in her fight against patriarchy in Barbie Land. Even though the speech may have been “basic feminism”, Ferrera contends that it fulfilled an important purpose and that it struck a chord with many women.
Even if it is ‘Basic Feminism’, America Ferrera’s Speech Served an Important Purpose
America Ferrera also noted that many of the younger Barbie audience members may not have heard these ideas expressed out loud and also discussed the speech’s impact on male viewers. “Boys and men who may have never spent any time thinking about feminist theory,” she continued, should also take advantage of this opportunity. She added:
“If you are well-versed in feminism, then it might seem like an oversimplification, but there are entire countries that banned this film for a reason.”
As per Far Out Magazine, the $1.442 billion film was banned in Algeria for encouraging “homosexuality and other Western deviances”. As she continued, Ferrera completely flipped the argument, saying:
“To say that something that is maybe foundational, or, in some people’s view, basic feminism isn’t needed is an oversimplification.”
The actress feels the speech is both powerful and essential, reminding people that not everyone has previously had access to this school of thought:
“Assuming that everybody is on the same level of knowing and understanding the experience of womanhood is an oversimplification.”
In last year’s interview with Vanity Fair, Ferrera disclosed that the monologue took two days to film and that she shot “probably 30 to 50 full runs of it, top to bottom”.
Anyway, the movie earned a $1.44 billion box office haul, favorable reviews from critics, and a number of other accomplishments. It also became the highest-grossing movie of 2023 and the fourteenth highest-grossing movie of all time.
Barbie is streaming on Max.
