Critics from conservative circles, most notably Ben Shapiro, Senator Ted Cruz, and Ginger Gaetz, wife of Congressman Matt Gaetz, decried the film "Barbie." Painted as excessively liberal, the film, despite its stellar cast, proved divisive among these prominent figures, eliciting pointed criticisms aired through social media and Fox News.
Shapiro delivered a scathing review via Twitter, labeling the film as a radical epitome of 'wokeness' and disrespectfully dismissing it as cinematic trash. These strong words fueled the mounting controversy surrounding this widely anticipated movie.
Shifting the focus to geopolitics was Senator Ted Cruz, who criticized the film's stance on Fox News. The salient issue he personally took exception with was the film's decision to include the contentious "nine-dash line," associated with China's territorial claims in the South China Sea. Despite not having seen the movie, Cruz perceived this as pandering to the Chinese Communist Party in a bid to enhance the film's Chinese market appeal, an inclusion which resulted in the film's ban in Vietnam.
Ginger Gaetz voiced her displeasure via Twitter, expressing disappointment in the film's portrayal of Ken's character, particularly his ostensibly low levels of masculinity. This perspective was echoed by Jack Posobiec, Senior Editor at HumanEvents.com, who went as far as to label the film misandristic and imbued with strong progressive propaganda.
The conservative platform Fox News amplified the critique of the movie by featuring a review from Christian site MovieGuide, implicating the film in LGBT advocacy attempts. This resulted in an unsuccessful call to boycott the action-figure-inspired movie.
Despite the backlash, the film "Barbie" achieved remarkable success with audience members. It maintains a robust 90% approval rating on premiere review site Rotten Tomatoes and leads in box office previews— a testament to its remarkable reception among viewers.
