I live in a Show Business Awards house – my mom and dad really get into it – my dad especially.  The bookshelves in our downstairs office/library are lined with books on the Oscars, Greatest Movies of All Time, The Tony Awards – the list goes on. So naturally, at this time of year when awards are being handed out almost every week, we take notice and watch whenever possible.  So when the Academy Award nominations were announced last Tuesday, it was with a bit of surprise that there were certain names not called out.  What was truly surprising, and maybe it shouldn’t have been, was the outrage over two “snubs”: Margot Robbie and Greta Gerwig for Barbie the Movie.

So before I decided to write this article, I watched the Barbie movie to judge for myself.  I knew it was the highest-grossing film of 2023, and you had to be in an Aaron Rodgers-like retreat for a few months not to have heard the media firestorm surrounding its release and reception all summer.  My reaction? I thought it was entertaining, thought the best part of the movie was Ryan Gossling’s “I’m Just Ken” number, and found that the movie tried maybe a little too hard to make some misplaced points about feminism. 

That last part probably threw a few of you – so let me explain.  First – this is a movie about Barbie we’re talking about.  At the end of the day, no matter what message or movement the movie is trying to further – it’s still about one of the most iconic toys of all time.  To further prove my point consider this: the Marketing Budget of the movie was more than what it cost to MAKE the movie.  To those who called it an hour-and-fifty-four-minute commercial for a toy – they kind of had a point.  Mattel reported a 9% increase in profit the same quarter that the movie was released globally – remarkable given that their annual profits have shrunk every year for several years running now. 

Now let’s talk about some of the misplaced feminist outrage the movie has raised.  First, in the movie, we are shown the Mattel Board of Directors – all men, and led by Will Ferrel playing a dimwitted CEO who doesn’t seem to know up from down.  In fact, the Mattel Board of Directors is made up of six men, and five women – a far cry from the male-dominated version we are given in the movie.  And while we are talking about the way things are presented in the movie, let’s talk about how the creator of Barbie is portrayed in the movie – like a Supreme Being cheering on the necessary changes needed to bring women up to equals with men.  Barbie meets the spirit of the Mattel co-founder and creator of Barbie,  Ruth Handler, and she encourages her to “go girl” and do anything she can.  That’s nice, and a great message for millions of young girls – but wasn’t it Ruth Handler who created Barbie in the extremely archaic image of the 1950’s, and kept doubling down on that image for decades? Sure, Barbie as a toy line evolved over time – but even though there have been all kinds of iterations of Barbie over the years – she still represents mostly a fantasy.  Where does Barbie live? In the Dream House.  What does she drive? A hot pink sports car.  Malibu Barbie is fun – but it sure isn’t reality.

Now to talk about the “outrage” over the film’s lack of certain nominations.  If you think that playing the character of Barbie, even though she moves on to the real world in the end, is the type of role that the Academy just loves – you’re living in your own fantasy world.  Take a look at the five women, yes women – not men as the cries of “sexism” would require, who are nominated for the Academy Award this year portrayed.   Three portray real-life women, all of whom tell unbelievable stories of adversity, perseverance, and tragedy.  One is Emma Stone giving what some are calling the performance of a lifetime in Poor Things, and the other deals with murder, adultery,  a false accusation, and the secrets all families keep.  Noticeable missing from the nominations – Fantasia Barino.  She was not nominated for her role in The Color Purple – a performance that received massive acclaim in one of the most celebrated stories of black life in the early 1900s ever written.  I didn’t see many outrages or cries of unfairness over her “snub”.  

And how are the nominations even determined?  I had to look it up – but members of the acting branch of the Academy are the ones who put forth nominations for acting in the four acting categories, the same can be said for directors, screenwriters, and so on.  So for all of the actors who tweeted out outrage – why didn’t YOU vote for her?  The same goes for all those famous directors who called Gerwig’s “snub” outrageous.  It’s also worth noting that a woman WAS nominated in the Best Director category this year – her movie wasn’t about one of the most beloved toys of all time, so I guess that doesn’t count.  I’ll voice my own outrage – I don’t think Gossling or Ferrara should have been nominated – I don’t!  I found their performances fun, and yes, her monologue towards the end of the movie is inspirational – but not Oscar-worthy – not by far. Gosling even spoke out about the nominations and the “snub” of Margot Robbie and Greta Gerwig, “There is no Ken without Barbie, and there is no Barbie movie without Greta Gerwig and Margot Robbie, the two people most responsible for this history-making, globally-celebrated film. To say that I’m disappointed that they are not nominated in their respective categories would be an understatement”. I have to say I disagree with Gosling on this one. Towards the end of the movie, Ken has a meltdown because he thinks he can’t just be Ken. It’s always been Barbie and Ken. However, Barbie convincingly talks Ken down to tell him he is enough just as Ken. Some might even say he is “Kenough”. So, Gosling gets the nomination for his performance as Ken, notice just Ken, not Barbie and Ken and it’s still not enough for the Barbie fans. 

I’ve also heard that Barbie is not being treated the same as say, Oppenheimer, is because it isn’t a “serious drama”.  Yes – the Academy does tend to focus on those types of movies when it comes to Awards time.  But if all a movie needed to do was be popular at the box office and do really well when it came to exceeding expectations – well then, why isn’t the Super Mario Bros. movie nominated more?  It came in 2nd overall at the Global Box Office last year, and just like Barbie – very entertaining and based on a wildly popular toy/video game line. Where is justice for Mario & Luigi?

There are ten movies nominated for Best Picture, a change made not too long ago when people thought too many “popular and well-reviewed movies” were being left out.  But there are still only five nominations for director and in the acting categories. Someone is going to be left out. 

We also need to remember that there are many instances where the Academy got it wrong.  Gwyneth Paltrow has an Oscar…Shakespeare in Love…the same movie that won one for Judi Dench for under six total minutes of screen time – yes, you read that right.  Glenn Close lost her best chance at Oscar gold to Cher for Moonstruck – a great movie with a fantastic performance by Cher.  But I don’t know many people who are really into this type of thing that don’t look at Close’s performance in Fatal Attraction as one of the most memorable of the entire 1980’s and think what were they thinking?  Close is considered one of the best actresses of her entire generation and has been nominated eight times without ever taking home that little gold guy. She’s not alone – many of the greatest actors of all time never won one.   

Of the four major entertainment awards: Oscar, Grammy, Emmy & Tony (representing film, music, television, and theater) – the Oscar is by far the most coveted.  Just having “Academy Award Winner” next to your name puts you in a class of show business royalty that represents some of the greatest entertainers of all time. Just consider these people, not known for movies primarily, who won an Academy Award: Frank Sinatra, Carly Simon, Jennifer Hudson, Adele, John Legend, Elton John, Stevie Wonder, Lionel Richie, Eminem (that one hurts me), and here’s one that was known for movies although his specialty was comedy: The Late Great Robin Williams. 

At the end of the day, a lot has to do with what comes out the year your “best chance” at winning does.  Some people hit it big more than once – Tom Hanks was the last person to win back-to-back Oscars for two wildly different characters in Philadelphia and Forrest Gump.  It doesn’t just apply to acting, however. It was just a few short years ago that movies like The Artist (a black and white silent movie), CODA, or Parasite from Korea, won Best Picture.  The year they came out they were considered innovative, groundbreaking even – but they will never be looked upon like some of the other movies to win Best Picture – it was just their year that year. 

Margot Robbie has already had a very impressive career, and has taken on several very serious roles – she’ll be back.  Or maybe she won’t.  Yes – if you win they hand you a trophy. But we can’t allow the Academy Awards to become a victim of the “Participation Trophy” generation. Otherwise, I’m starting a write-in campaign to get Seth MacFarlane (the voice of the teddy bear Ted) his long overdue Oscar for his funny, inappropriate, and childish behavior in both of the hilarious Ted movies. Take that Barbie.