Authorities in Kuwait, Algeria and Lebanon focus their objections less on feminism than on the film’s alleged LGBTQ themes.
“Barbie,” Greta Gerwig’s hit romantic comedy about a doll who becomes human and enters the real world, faces its own real problems: censorship boards in parts of the Muslim world.
Kuwaiti authorities banned the film for promoting “ideas and beliefs alien to Kuwaiti society and public order”, according to a statement from an official news agency. Algeria’s culture ministry has sent notices to cinemas across the country to stop showing the film, declaring it “harmful to morals”, according to local reports.
In Punjab, Pakistan’s largest province with more than 110 million people, a film body suspended screenings of ‘Barbie’ for 10 days because it was found to contain ‘objectionable content’ . She was cleared of those charges on August 1, when the film reopened in theaters there.
Not all conservative Muslim countries reject the film. Saudi Arabia, long an icon of conservative Islam, allowed ‘Barbie’ to appear in its films earlier this month and many moviegoers got into the spirit of things, donning pink abayas, the long dress traditionally worn in the Persian Gulf region, and eating lightning pink. It was also released in the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain.
Although the censors haven’t explained why they banned the film, it seems to have less to do with criticism of real-world patriarchy, and more to do with lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender themes.
Lebanon’s culture minister called for the film to be banned last week. The film “promotes homosexuality and transgenderism and promotes the ugly idea of denying parental guardianship,” he wrote on social media platform X, formerly Twitter.
The film features several LQBTQ actors, including trans actress Hari Nef, who plays one of the Barbies. Some conservatives in the United States also criticized the film for allegedly promoting a trans agenda. However, none of the characters in the film are presented as being part of the LGBTQ community.
Censorship — whether it’s cracking down on comic books, arresting protesters, or banning “Barbie” — has long been the weapon of choice for the authoritarians who control much of the Islamic world, both to silence critics and to “mobilize citizens”, Faisal said. Devji, historian of Islam at the University of Oxford.
“It’s not something that is limited to Muslim-majority countries,” he added. Barbie has also been banned in Vietnam, where authorities have accused her of selling a pro-China version of the nine-dash line, an issue related to Chinese claims to the South China Sea.
But these days, some of those leaders, like Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, also want to appease digital-savvy youngsters, who are plugged into secular global trends and can resort to public outcry. The Middle East and most Muslim-majority countries like Pakistan are among the regions of the world with the youngest median ages.
In Saudi Arabia, it was not a silent launch. In Riyadh, VOX Cinemas hosted top-notch party nights with a DJ, photo booth and hairdressing station. On the menu: a unique pink popcorn slushie combo for the Barbies and a blue slushie combo for the Kens.
On a recent Thursday night at the AMC Theater in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, there was a sea of pink abayas. At the entrance, there was a life-size Barbie Box photo booth.
Basma Salem, a 51-year-old banker, attended the screening with her 13-year-old daughter, Shahad. “I love that it shows that women need to use their brains now and not just rely on their looks,” she said. “It’s a great message for the younger generation.”
“My husband was concerned about all the talk about the LGBTQ+ agenda, but honestly, I didn’t notice anything obvious or disturbing. I think they cut some scenes as well, but it doesn’t show in the movie. It’s definitely not a theme of the movie in my opinion.”
In some ways, the different reactions in certain parts of the Muslim world reflect changing social and political mores.
A group of four Kuwaiti brides took to social media to document their road trip from Kuwait to the Saudi city of Dammam – nearly five hours away – to see the film there. They took selfies at the cinema with their pink slushies and pink bags. A Kuwaiti man commented on his posts: “Things have changed, before (the Saudis) used to come to us for the movies and now we go to them!”
Depicting LGBTQ themes and symbols is a step too far for many conservative leaders in the Muslim world. In Malaysia, authorities this month banned Swatch products containing “lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and + more” themes, the interior ministry wrote on its Facebook page.
In Saudi Arabia, not everyone is excited about the film’s release or the extensive local marketing campaign.
“It’s like they suddenly discovered the women here in Saudi Arabia, and now it’s women this, women that. It’s too much,” said Sarah Amin, 53, a homemaker and mother of four.
Source: Latercera
I’m Scott Moore, a professional writer and journalist based in the US. I’ve been writing for various publications for over 8 years now, and have been working as an author at athletistic for the past five years. My work has been featured by some of the leading sports websites and magazines across Europe.
