On Greta Gerwig and Chantal Akerman

CULTURAL OBJECTS—like Barbie the doll, like Barbie the film—do not themselves need to express feelings, evidence of interiority, or any political perspective to elicit these responses from audiences and critics. Barbies have always caused anxiety and served as objects for projection by mothers, daughters, and everyone else. Some worry about the effects that Barbie’s impossible physical attributes might have on the self-esteem of their daughters, and they reject Barbie’s over-the-top femininity.