I, like many of my family members, friends, colleagues, and social media users, referred to 2023 as the year of girlhood. We had many positive moments throughout the year, one of the most prominent being Taylor Swift with her re-recordings and the Eras Tour becoming one of the highest-grossing tours and movies. Even though Swift is one of my favorite topics of conversation, I do not believe she is the main reason that 2023 was the year of girlhood, that award should go to the Barbie movie.
From the moment Margot Robbie’s Barbie took over social media with the release of the trailer, women from around the globe gathered in anticipation, planning with their best friends and going together to watch the film. Social media buzz around the film and its opening day partner, Oppenheimer, created an event that even to this day I get asked, “did you see Barbenheimer?”. I did not, I chose Barbie over Christopher Nolen’s film about a theoretical physicist and his work on the Manhattan Project. Despite everything that I heard about the film, Barbie surprised me in many different ways. In fact, they brought me to tears in five separate scenes, including America Ferrera portrayal of Gloria with her monologue about womanhood and the very powerful end scene with the song, What Was I Made For? by Billie Eilish.
Barbie made over 150 million in its opening weekend alone, while Oppenheimer made a little over 82 million. Oppenheimer was nominated for 13 Oscars while Barbie was nominated for 8. While any award nomination should be celebrated and I am very happy for America Ferrera and Ryan Gosling, I can not help but feel disappointed that more Barbie women are not being celebrated.
Throughout my whole childhood, I always looked forward to award season. I loved watching my favorite actresses and actors walk the various carpets and even seeing a few of them receive awards. But as I grew up, I realized I would most likely always lose. The women I looked up to and respected for their portrayal in various emotional films would almost always lose. I would constantly hold my breath hoping but surprise, we did not win. One of my favorite seasons of the year became sickening as I watched men constantly win in categories they have won for decades. I am not saying that these individuals don’t deserve their awards and accolades, no, they won for a reason and for hard work. But other individuals of any age, around the world should not feel discriminated against or have their dreams crushed because of a lack of representation.
Disappointment in the academy would be an understatement, but sadly, it just does not surprise me anymore. Last year, less than a month ago, I got to watch women become comfortable in their own skin through social media, I got to watch women experience joy through dance at the Eras Tour, and I got to watch women find and relive their childhood through Barbie. I sadly didn’t anticipate that the year of girlhood would in fact be confined to just that, a single year.