Barbie (film)/YMMV

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These things about Barbie (film) are subjective - not everyone will agree with all of them.

• Americans Hate Tingle:
  • Reception on France is noticeably colder than in other countries, with local website Allociné registering notes of 3.4 from critics and 3.5 from audiences, out of a maximum of 5. A good part of it can be attributed to the feminist undertones of the film, that French audiences found repulsive and alienating.
  • Japan excelled that. In the country's box office, the movie opened at seventh, behind several franchise movies, the Pixar movie Elemental, and the Studio Ghibli's movie How Do You Live. Part of it was attributed to the marketing mishap that was Warner Bros acknowledging the Barbenheimer meme, that most people on Japan found it to be of extreme bad taste, given the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki by nuclear weapons.
• Broken Base: Encouraged, for the entire movie. The tagline was, "If you love Barbie, this movie is for you; if you hate Barbie, this movie is for you!" Unfortunately, a lot of folks really hated the idea, even before the premiere.
• Everyone Is Satan in Hell: Somehow a number of fundies accused the film of being satanic and pushing a homosexual agenda towards the youth.
• Genius Bonus: Hardcore Barbie enthusiasts might recall how Mattel used to have factories in the Philippines making Barbie dolls following Ana Cruz Kayne's appearance in a Filipiniana gown. At some point during the 90s and subsequent decades, Mattel released Barbie dolls in traditional costumes representing the Philippines.
• Hilarious in Hindsight: With this scene in the 2018 historical drama Mary Queen of Scots where Robbie played the role of Queen Elizabeth I, whose wig and lead-caked face hid her less-than-flattering appearance.
• Memetic Mutation: With Oppenheimer, whose premise is about the famed nuclear scientist behind the Manhattan Project. The film happened to release on the same day as Barbie whose premise is diametrically opposite to the dystopian tone of the World War II biopic, leading to humorous mashups and even commentary on the meme's societal implications.
• Unfortunate Implications: The Barbenheimer meme understandably sparked controversy in Japan as people there felt that poking fun at a devastating weapon they had first-hand experience with is something not to be ridiculed. Most Japanese-market trailers were dislike-bombed and some Japanese netizens went on record to comment about how insensitive the meme is to them. Despite this, (of course), many racists, nationalists, and other Asians have taken to bullying and attacking Japanese people (and anti-bomb people in general) for sympathizing with the victims, accusing them of being apologists for fascism, using commonly cited excuses such as "it saved lives", "ended the war", "they were warned", and claiming they deserved it (some people even argue they should have attacked more) and use whataboutism with Japan's military and government, Nanking, Unit 731, and Pearl Harbor as excuses. Many people have called out not only the general racism and hypocrisy, but also some have mentioned how America didn't go after Berlin or Rome, the people, especially Asians and the double standards of fighting and condeming the actions of Hitler and Hirohito, but often doing the same thing. There also are fanfics, some of which ship Barbie and Oppie or literally are racist, and glorify the murder of an entire population.
• Unpopular Popular Character: Weird Barbie was an outcast in the movie, but fans of the movie thought otherwise. She was one of many dolls released to promote the movie, and despite the $50 price tag, online stores sold out fast. Unfortunately, many critics say this design kind of misses the point.
• What Do You Mean It's Not for Kids?: Despite the ostensibly colourful and garish premise seemingly marketing it as a family film aimed especially towards young girls (case in point the prior direct-to-video specials), the film's deeply philosophical themes and irreverent, off-colour humour made it decidedly more adult than some families thought it to be before watching it. Though they did make a LOT of bank from selling toys which tied in with the film, so there's that.

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