The box office sensations, “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer”, were both released July 21, 2023 to entertain summer audiences. The former being directed by Greta Gerwig, the latter directed by Christopher Nolan. Both of these directors are known to be renowned filmmakers. However, where did the rivalry between the films stem from?
The enthusiasm surrounding both films has sparked the concept of ‘“Barbenheimer Day” (watching the movies back to back). “Barbie,” being only two hours, is usually watched first followed by its counterpart, a three hour film. Many opinions are cultivated between audiences who participate in Barbenheimer Day.
What raises the question on which film is better is the impact both films have on their audiences. The concept of girlhood is the most agreed upon impact of “Barbie”. With the film’s audience being mostly female, the focus is on women empowerment including growing up as a female, body image, and togetherness. While “Oppenheimer’s” theme is almost the complete opposite, focused on a man who becomes powerful and irrelevant, his creation of the atomic bomb, and how he affected the outcome of the world by advocating control over nuclear weapons.
“Barbie” opened to $150 million in ticket sales, surpassing the former summer blockbuster, “Super Mario Bros.” The film now sits at $1.2 billion in ticket sales worldwide. Many fans of the film are beyond pleased with the success of the film. “Oppenheimer,” after being predicted to only make $50 million in ticket sales its first weekend, opened with $80.5 million and now sits at $650 million. “Oppenheimer” earned a 93% critical score in rotten tomatoes, while “Barbie” earned only an 88%. In terms of reviews, “Oppenheimer” is the victor, however financially, “Barbie” blows “Oppenheimer” out of the water.
However, money and reviews aren’t everything. Public opinions play major roles in both films’ success.
Negative opinions against “Barbie” and its female lead are abundant. One of the film’s biggest critics is Ben Shapiro. Shapiro reviews “Barbie” in his YouTube video titled, “Ben Shapiro DESTROYS ‘The Barbie Movie’ For 43 Minutes.” He goes on to say, “It is one of the worst movies I’ve ever seen.”Shapiro also posted on Twitter, “My producers dragged me to see ‘Barbie’ and it was one of the most woke movies I have ever seen.”
However, in Shapiro’s review of “Oppenheimer,” the columnist’s opinions are completely opposite with a considerably kinder title compared to the one he gave “Barbie”. “It’s a brilliant film because Christopher Nolan is amazing. It’s kind of a masterclass, it really is. I mean, just on a film making level, the thing is beautiful to watch,” said Shapiro in his YouTube video titled, “My Review of ‘Oppenheimer’.”
In conclusion, there is no proper winner as both films are uniquely different and appeal to different audiences. Movies are meant to entertain and appeal to different audiences. There will always be debates on whether or not one movie is better than the other. “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer” are good examples of this and should be reviewed equally as they both have redeeming qualities and provide entertainment to their viewers.