Got your attention? I know it's sort of a cheap shot, but I couldn't resist the hype about these two movies. I will attempt to comment on both in terms of philanthropy.

Barbie, the timeless fashion doll introduced by Mattel in 1959, might not be the first name that comes to mind when thinking about philanthropy, but we can explore some history. I am putting aside (and I realize for some this is not possible) that Barbie has stood as a ridiculous/insane standard of beauty for (primarily white) girls for all these years and may have harmed many more girls than she helped.

This movie was made by Mattel (a collaboration between Mattel Films and Warner Bros. Pictures) and is mostly one big commercial, even if they poke fun at themselves for this in the process. I also had a Barbie doll when I was young, but I was not much of a doll person and certainly looked nothing like Barbie. I’m sure it did nothing to improve myself image and did not help me to become a feminist.

I do appreciate what Greta Gerwig created to counter the impossible Barbie image. However, the plot in Barbie did not flow that well and had more to say about men than women (not necessarily a bad thing but not what I was expecting). It does have one good dance scene.

It was a shock to learn that Ruth Handler, who is Jewish, created the Barbie doll. I discovered this about 20 years ago when the late Bob Zimmerman turned me on to a short Tiffany Shlain film named “The Tribe.”  She reveals that Ruth (shown in the movie) created the Barbie doll, and yet Barbie is far from anyone I knew growing up.

Mattel created “The Barbie Dream Gap Project” in 2019 to inspire girls and to give them resources to do anything, as the Barbie tagline suggests, they should be able to. The Barbie Dream Gap Project started with a $250,000 donation — and in total, has given $2 million. By comparison, “In 2022, the global revenue from Mattel's Barbie brand amounted to approximately $1.49 billion U.S. dollars. The company had net sales of 5.4 billion U.S. dollars that year.” Barbie has grossed $700 million globally (and Oppenheimer has made $400 million since its release.)

Many of Mattel's other donations consist of giving dolls away or getting others to give dolls away (which arguably helps the bottom line). Examples include:
“Mattel announced today that Barbie will donate a doll for each eligible career doll sold from May 14-May 17 to the First Responders Children’s Foundation, benefiting the children of first responders leading the fight against COVID-19.”

Mattel has a small sustainability program. Ocean-bound plastic makes up 90% of the material used to manufacture the ''Barbie Loves the Ocean doll," yet that is only one doll. “Ninety percent of toys are made of plastic and most of the packaging is single-use and non-recyclable plastic,” says Dune Ives, CEO of the ocean advocacy organization Lonely Whale. Based on Mattel’s sustainability report, a new goal is to reduce plastic packaging by 25% per product by 2030, --not exactly out to save the planet. 

In conclusion, the movie (or Greta Gerwig, who wrote the movie with Noah Baumbach) deserves credit for its originality, and it’s making fun of itself in the process, yet Mattel can do better in serving the many who buy their products.

In our second feature, we have Robert Oppenheimer, a prominent scientist renowned for his contributions to the development of the atomic bomb during World War II. Oppenheimer is a fascinating person, and the movie attempts to show this. I highly recommend seeing this movie for its history and the moral dilemma it presents.

For young Oppenheimer, the pursuit of intellectual excellence was paramount in his moral journey as an aspiring polymath.  He attended the Ethical Culture School for ten years, a symbol of secular liberalism. The school is “concerned with the plight of the poor, guided by ideals of social justice, relentlessly hopeful, earnest, and progressive.” 

I was particularly impressed that he learned Dutch in record time to teach a class.  It also tells a fascinating story of men and women during the wartimes; there was only one female scientist at Los Alamos (perhaps Barbie would have something to say about that).

Following the war, Oppenheimer actively supported the Federation of American Scientists, an organization focused on arms control and disarmament. He deeply regretted the destructive potential of the weapon he had helped create and spent the latter part of his life striving to make a positive impact through philanthropy and nonprofit work. He advocated for international cooperation in the quest for world peace and supported scientific research for the betterment of humanity. Yet, (Spoiler Alert) he was publicly humiliated in a security hearing where a colleague testified against him, and his security clearance was revoked. Many consider this an expression of anti-Communist McCarthyism.

Despite their different backgrounds and contexts, both Barbie and Oppenheimer have demonstrated the power of leveraging influence. Barbie's popularity as a cultural icon has allowed her to spread positive messages to young minds, encouraging them to believe in themselves, yet sets an impossible beauty standard. Conversely, Oppenheimer utilized his expertise and influence to advocate for peace and scientific progress, channeling his regrets into meaningful actions. Their tales serve as reminders that stories are a way to promote social change and can influence the world for the better.