A Woman Is ‘Warning’ Audiences About A Line In Barbie You Might Have Missed
Fine, we'll go see it again.
One of the best things about the Barbie movie that’s sweeping the nation is the sheer amount of easter eggs, references, and double-meanings that are scattered throughout the film. So much is going on in the film that it’s pretty much impossible to catch all the details and all the meaning in just one watch.
And that’s too bad, because many of the subtle things that are hard to catch the first time around also have huge feminist implications, and important messages for both girls and women.
Over on TikTok, Brittney Garcia-Dumas found a deeper meaning in one line that she wanted everyone to look out for.
"Just a warning about the beginning of the Barbie movie — when they're accepting their awards, they don't say, 'thank you,' they say, 'I worked really hard for this and I deserve it,’” she says in the video.
"... And it will truly make you feel like you can walk through a wall,” she adds.
Later in the movie, when the Barbies are brainwashed by the Kens, they forget that they ever even won the awards.
Garcia-Dumas told Buzzfeed that it took her a bit to process the line.
"When I first heard Barbie say, 'I've worked hard for this and I deserve it,' I was a little taken back and kind of offended,” she said. “Why didn't they say 'thank you?'"
"It hit me. OMG WAIT A DAMN MINUTE...WE DON'T HAVE TO SAY THANK YOU. *I DO* work hard for this and *I DO* deserve it,” she continued. “I caught myself experiencing my own internalized disempowerment and misogyny. If I'm committed to being a part of the solution, I need to make sure I am identifying where my own processes could use some empowerment!"
Down in the comments, many women didn’t notice the line during their first viewing, or they heard it, but missed its significance.
“How did so miss this? So much to unpack,” one person wrote.
“Fine, I’ll go rewatch Barbie,” multiple people joked.
Other women totally felt the full brunt of the heavy line.
“When they didn’t thank anyone else, I realized that I have always thanked someone for my accomplishments,” one woman wrote.
“It made me so anxious at first bc I was waiting for the other shoe to drop (someone to say something negative) and then it DIDN’T and it was amazing,” another wrote.
“I have not stopped thinking about that part. Just the mental paradigm shift I absolutely needed.”
“I came out of the movie feeling EMPOWERED.”
“This is where I started crying and I never stopped until the credits stopped rolling,” said another.
Other pointed out that it wasn’t the only time that people in the movie owned their accomplishments.
“And when they say ‘you look pretty’ they say ‘I feel pretty’ we should be able to say that,” one person observed.
“And when Barbie calls the lady at the bus stop beautiful, she responds with ‘I know it,’” another person pointed out.
Garcia-Dumas, who owns a marketing company that centers marginalized groups and who is a single mom, encouraged everyone to catch the movie, even if they’re unsure of why everyone is discussing what at first just looks like a light summer movie about dolls.
"Just go see it,” she told Buzzfeed. “Even if you feel like you'll hate it for whatever reason. Look for the places you, like I, felt a moment of discomfort and ask yourself, 'What is this saying about how I view myself and other women?' I promise you'll learn something. And that's a WIN. For us. And all the girls that come after us.”
