Following its colossal impact across the globe, Barbie has been banned in Algeria 3 weeks after its release.
It comes after the film faced backlash from certain stratum of the internet for its so-called ‘anti-men’ sentiment. It has faced criticism for its feminist themes, but this isn’t why Algeria has allegedly banned the flick.
Now, Barbie is undoubtedly one of the biggest movie releases in recent years, and it’s no surprise really when you look at the absolutely dazzling cast, the critically acclaimed writing and directing team, and the fact that it’s all about one of the most iconic toys to ever grace this planet.
When the trailer dropped earlier this year and gave us an exciting glimpse into the world of plastic fantastic, there was one detail in particular that fans couldn’t get over – Margot Robbie’s feet!
Fans said the moment you saw her step out of her heels was ‘so iconic’, as the actress’ feet don’t change from their tiptoe position, just like the doll is always on her tiptoes.
One person called it ‘the most genius shot’ they’ve ever seen.
Another wrote: “Yes yes yes i agree! This is a universal and nostalgic core memory of little girls with their Barbie dolls. Personally, this is the first thing I remember about playing with my Barbie: the barely-touching-ground feet and fluffy pink sandals/heels. This is a perfect opening shot.”
A third said over the top of a snap of the shot: “This one screenshot has become my entire personality.”
But now the film has actually hit cinemas, it seems a large section of the internet is unhappy with the movie…
While the flick has received an incredible response from fans online, there are a few angry men that can’t help but slate the film and its alleged “man-hating agenda.”
One blogger wrote on Rotten Tomatoes: “For the first 30 minutes or so Barbie is a fun, feather-weight satire…Then the stuff about patriarchy kicks in and the film turns into a thinly disguised #metoo rant, trading comedy for man-bashing and a lot of confused point-scoring about sexism.”
Another added: “Margot Robbie, Ryan Gosling can’t save story captured by man-hating agenda.”
Over on IMDB, it was the same story, with one viewer writing that Barbie was “a shameful piece of cinema, unless you’re of a certain ideological bent, in which case you’ll love it. For everyone else: Avoid like the plague.”
These negative reviews were reportedly skewing the film’s audience score on the site, with Screen Rant reporting that it had dropped to just seventy-three percent for the unverified audience score. This is a far cry from the movie’s official score of eighty-eight percent, which is made up from users with a verified ticket for the film.
The difference in these figures show a review bombing campaign is likely underway from disgruntled people who have yet to see the film, but disagree with what they have heard of its content so far.
However, the government of Algeria have gone one step further in their condemnation of the film’s messages – they have banned the movie 3 weeks after its release.
Per Reuters’ ‘official source’, via Comic Book Movies, the country’s culture ministry was not happy with the film’s LBTQ+ representation, with authorities claiming it encourages “damaging morals”. They felt that the film “promote[d] homosexuality and did not comply with Algeria’s religious and cultural beliefs”.
It comes after the news that Barbie has been banned in Kuwait and Lebanon
