Why Greta Gerwig Sees Barbieland As ‘Almost Like Planet Of The Apes’

In an interview with Rolling Stone, Greta Gerwig was pressed on her repeated use of the term “humanist” rather than “feminist” while discussing her film’s point of view. She countered with this fascinating observation:

“Of course, I am a feminist. But this movie is also dealing with [the idea that] any kind of hierarchical power structure that moves in any direction isn’t so great. You go to Mattel and it is really like, ‘Oh, Barbie has been president since 1991. Barbie had gone to the moon before women could get credit cards.’ We kind of extrapolated out from that that Barbieland is this reversed world [where Barbies rule and Kens are an underclass]. The reverse structure of whatever Barbieland is, is almost like ‘Planet of the Apes.’ You can see how unfair this is for the Kens because it’s totally unsustainable.”

That’s a nuanced perspective that could upset viewers looking for a studio-financed fist-pump about female empowerment, but it’s the simple truth. Be it apes or Barbies, any civilization dominated by one particular class is inherently unjust. In “Planet of the Apes,” our simian relatives seize control of a world obliterated by nuclear war, and impose a theocracy that assigns species to specific functions while oppressing what’s left of humankind. Absolute power corrupts (and destroys) absolutely.

The hope in this particular case is that this realization will shake up moviegoers who thought they were in for two hours of unabashedly silly entertainment. More than being president or an astronaut, Margot Robbie pounding her fist in the sand as she looks upon the ruin of her Malibu Beach House could be Barbie’s finest hour.

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