Barbie

Review Rating: 4.5 out of 5 Knight Heads

Barbie is (debatably) the biggest blockbuster movie this year which reached over $1.3 billion globally in revenue. Directed by Greta Gerwig, Barbie has been a global phenomenon ever since its release in July. On the other hand, Oppenheimer, directed by the renowned director Christopher Nolan, surpassed $900 million in the global box office.

Barbie is enjoyable for both children and adults because it combined elements of magic with real-world problems like equality and women’s rights. While maintaining a feminist point of view, Greta Gerwig successfully told a story that united all women from different backgrounds. In the movie, Barbie goes on an adventure to the “real world” upon realization that she is malfunctioning.

On her journey through the “real world” Barbie encounters many frightening masculine ideals that seem to over dominate the world, to an extent that women are unseen in the work environment. Soon enough, Ken, who goes to the real world with Barbie, travels back to the real world and brings masculinity to a new stretch in “Barbieland.”

On her way back to her homeland, Barbie realizes that she must bring women to power again forcefully, in order to empower women in society again. Greta Gerwig expertly incorporates the struggle for women to maintain their equality amongst men into a movie about a renowned toy doll.

In my opinion, Barbie was extravagant, empowering, and life-changing for little girls looking at the world around them. Barbie teaches little girls to not let masculinity diminish who they are and what they want to do when they grow up, while also illustrating a striking picture of modern society where women must maintain their autonomy and power from men.

Additionally, besides the exceptional story line, Margot Robbie as Barbie and Ryan Gosling as Ken were both the perfect pick for portraying these characters. Robbie brings the beauty of Barbie to life, while also highlighting the emotion that makes women strong and empowering in society. On the other hand, Gosling is an amazing pick for the portrayal of the frivolity of toxic masculinity in modern society. Gosling also is the center of humor in Barbie, as he highlights a world in which a male-dominated world is laughable, because women do not have complete freedom in society. Gerwig implies that a world in which men and women are not equal, is humorous and something to make fun of because of the vast development of our society.

Ultimately, the humor, great acting, and theme of feminism made Barbie directed by Greta Gerwig a 4.5 out of 5 Knight Heads in my opinion.

Oppenheimer 

Review Rating: 4 out of 5 Knight Heads

Despite the large number of viewings that Barbie received because of its many feminist themes and laughable moments, Oppenheimer by Christopher Nolan had phenomenal acting that spectacularly told the story of the invention of the atomic bomb. The striking real story of the atomic bomb was one that certainly put me in awe and fear of the power of humanity at its greatest height.

Nolan expertly creates a clever story that tells the real story of Oppenheimer himself, who created the atomic bomb but then appeared to regret it after seeing the chaos and destruction formed by it. Oppenheimer begins by showing the early life of Oppenheimer, where he is eventually appointed to work on the top-secret Manhattan Project (a project that created the first atomic bomb during World War II).

Oppenheimer works diligently on the invention of the atomic bomb. When it is first tested, Christopher Nolan showed off his expertise in film-writing and videography by filming the explosion of the first bomb in iMax without the use of CGI. Additionally, the movie highlights the drama of Oppenheimer’s private hearing regarding his Q clearance. Eventually, the Personnel Security Board revokes Oppenheimer’s clearance, resulting in large amounts of damage to his public image.

Along with the spectacular story-telling and videography utilized by Nolan, Cillian Murphy, Emily Blunt (Oppenheimer’s wife) and Florence Pugh (Communist Party member) brought the characters to real life on the big screen.

Murphy’s acting cleverly depicted the seriousness and horror of the effects of the atomic bomb on both society, and Oppenheimer’s reputation. Nolan makes it clear that Oppenheimer did not intend to destroy the world with his invention, with Murphy’s stellar acting. Along with Cillian’s acting, Blunt and Pugh’s acting showed the power of women in a society where science was primarily run by men. One of my favorite scenes was where Emily Blunt (Oppenheimer’s wife) argued against the Personnel Security Board and swayed them away for a second from accusing Oppenheimer of correspondence with a communist.

Overall, Oppenheimer had a shocking storyline, phenomenal acting, and amazing videography that made Christopher Nolan’s latest movie a 4 out of 5 Knight Heads.