I’m pretty sure I mentioned a few weeks ago how “Barbie” wouldn’t pass the smell test in any Middle Eastern countries. Today’s news that it might be banned there isn’t all that surprising.
Barbie’s middle eastern exhibitor, Vox Cinemas, has pushed back the release of Greta Gerwig’s film to Aug. 31 after initially setting a July 19 rollout out date for “Barbie” in the Middle East.
The reason for the delay, according to a knowledgeable source, is that Warner Bros. has been trying to work out edits requested by censors related to alleged LGBTQ-related narration and dialogue in “Barbie.”
Long story short, the requested cuts will most likely not be approved by Warner Bros. Therefore, “Barbie” is destined to get banned in countries like top market Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Kuwait and Egypt.
Did I miss something when watching “Barbie”? I didn’t notice any queer content, just a lot of feminist ideals — which, I’m betting, is what’s pissing these countries off. Robbie even told LGBTQ magazine Attitude last month that the dolls don’t “actually have sexual orientations” in the movie.
Variety adds this …
Several previous “Barbie” movies made for home video were banned in Saudi Arabia a decade ago due to racy clothing and the portrayal of women in non-traditional gender roles. And even though Saudi society is rapidly opening up, the film may just simply be too camp while also posing too great a challenge to traditional male authority for the Middle East.
The fact of the matter is that most Arab nations are horrified by anything that empowers women, and “Barbie” does just that. It’s not the LGBTQ content, or lack thereof, that’s pressing them, that’s just being used as cover for their bigger concerns.
The short version: "Woman Unknown" was a compromise. The jury deadlocked over "Possible Love" and "NAZA," not able to com to terms, fell back on their #3, May el-Toukhy's film.