"Barbie Barbie" broke $300 million at the box office! From Kenny to see toxic masculinity, the absence of body impressions

Less than a week after its release, the movie "Barbie" has already set a global box office record of nearly $350 million.

Because of this movie we see how the over-inflated female hegemony and over-exalted patriarchy create the toxic atmosphere of society, but in these discussions, we may only start from the impression of classic Barbie, but ignore a key player who contributed to the discussion - Kenny.

Maybe you're curious, put your perspective on Kenny, what does he see in Barbie's world?

Image | "Barbie Barbie" stills

When Barbie is lifted, it must be accompanied by Kenny who is pushed down?

"Barbie has a great time every day, but Kenny is only happy when Barbie looks at him." In Barbie Land, Kenny is like a second-class citizen, who relies entirely on Barbie's attention to feel self-worth.

Barbie doesn't usually notice Kenny, and since it's girls' night every night, Kenny isn't allowed to stay, and the show doesn't even show whether Kenny owns his own home.

In addition, in Barbie Land, women dominate the government, the Supreme Court, and the whole world basically revolves around them, so we see that in addition to being ignored by Barbie, Kenny is at best a foil in the entire social environment.

Unfortunately, when talking about Kenny's revolution, although the plot points to the dilemma caused by the excessive tilt of society towards patriarchy or female hegemony, it does not spend much time exploring how overly tilted female hegemony leads to the revolution, but only follows the fragment of Barbie cheating men to regain Barbie Land and the iron-fisted rule of society, in addition to the lack of opportunities for reconciliation, but also leaves doubts about whether this move is only to deepen the confrontation between the two sides.

(Before talking about the male crisis, let's take a look at how the feminist movement began? ）

Image | "Barbie Barbie" stills

Exploring body impressions, the absent Kenny

"Barbie Barbie" directed by Greta Jevi is undoubtedly empowering, it directly points to the phenomenon of men producing extreme anti-feminist and misogynistic ideas under the culture of involuntary celibacy, but in the "body impression" section, there is no movie pondering.

Kenny has long been portrayed as a beautiful boy, a typical boyfriend, just as the movie is always about "Barbie and Kenny", and without "Kenny", Kenny is not a separate individual, but just an accessory of Barbie.

Therefore, when Barbie's parent company Mattel (Mattel) created Barbie with different skin colors, body shapes, and characters under the appeal of diversity and inclusion, Kenny did not have personality and diversity like the diverse Barbie we see today, on the contrary, all Kenny was slim, six-pack abs seemed to be a necessity, and the public's impression of Kenny was always flat.

We can even see the shadow of the old-time Barbie doll in Kenny - just consider the appearance, his personality, thoughts are gone.

Image | "Barbie Barbie" stills

Toxic masculinity, feminist communication is not only for women

Some people may say that the audience of the movie "Barbie" is not men, and men do not need such a wide representation, so Kenny does not have multiple body types, but is only trapped in a slim body, which actually has little impact.

However, Barbie is not just about women, it's a film for all genders, because it shows how patriarchy harms men and how women's governance is possible.

Moreover, just as we attack patriarchy and discuss equality, what we want is never a single sex behind closed doors, regardless of the enemies of society as a whole who warms up with the stratosphere and establishes different positions, but faces up to the fact that whether it is over-inflated patriarchy or even female hegemony, everyone can become a victim of it, and no one is spared.

Therefore, we can also say that Barbie's movie not only communicates with women, but also encourages this society to move towards Barbie Land (female supremacy), but balances the real world with Barbie Paradise.

(Guess what you want to see: "Toxic Masculinity" illustration book: Men also hurt and want to cry)

Image | "Barbie Barbie" stills

You are important enough because you are

After Barbie overthrew the patriarchal kingdom created by Kenny, Kenny fell into an existential crisis and completely collapsed because he realized that everything that symbolized masculinity had been stripped away.

Barbie is the antidote to patriarchal masculinity, encouraging Kenny to explore who he is and what he likes, not what he thinks he should like, let alone what he thinks others want him to like. It was enough for her to encourage him to regain his sense of self and motivate him to be himself.

At the end of the movie, Kenny embarks on a journey of self-search, trying to understand who he can be without Barbie, and perhaps he will finally understand that male insecurities and tears are allowed; He will find that he does not need to rely on other people's recognition to have meaning‧‧‧‧‧‧ maybe he will no longer be just Kenny, the movie does not give the answer, the answer is unknown.

The only certainty is that as this society fades more established impressions, Kenny's image in the eyes of the public will gradually become three-dimensional, and the words "Kenough" are revealing that he is "enough" without Barbie by his side.

Image | "Barbie Barbie" stills