How old is Barbie supposed to be?
Barbie fever has officially hit the UK with its London premiere on Wednesday (12 July) to celebrate the upcoming arrival of Greta Gerwig's movie. Margot Robbie took to the pink carpet in a custom Vivienne Westwood gown, inspired by the Enchanted Evening Barbie from 1960. The pale pink gown had a corseted strapless top, floral detailing at the hip, a train and white opera gloves. She walked onto the red carpet with a ruffle around her neck – like the doll – which she later removed. Ryan Gosling, who plays Ken in the film, sported a 70s-inspired spearmint suit with a lighter-coloured shirt underneath. The event saw a host of stars, including Dua Lipa, Doctor Who star Ncuti Gatwa, Sam Smith, Leomie Anderson, Molly Mae, Andrew Wyatt, Rob Brydon and many more. With the film release just around the corner and the marketing team still putting in overtime to paint the world pink, some people's attention has wandered elsewhere with the very random, yet thought-provoking, question of how old the fictional doll is supposed to be. Now, on paper, the Barbie doll (formerly known as Barbara Millicent Roberts) has existed for over 60 years. The doll was first released in 1959, which would make her 64. Ken arrived two years later. Sign up for our free Indy100 weekly newsletter However, in the past, Mattel has said Barbie is frozen at 19 years old. Given her impressive CV as a dentist, vet, chef, dancer, designer, and photojournalist, among many more, we'd argue she's not doing too bad. Not to mention her DreamHouse and car ownership, "My whole philosophy of Barbie was that through the doll, the little girl could be anything she wanted to be," Barbie creator Ruth Handler wrote in her 1994 autobiography. "Barbie always represented the fact that a woman has choices." Barbie is produced by Robbie’s company LuckyChap and will be released in cinemas on July 21. Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.
1970-01-01 08:00
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'Sound of Freedom' movie becomes box office hit thanks to QAnon
Sound of Freedom debuted in theatres earlier this month and has earned more than $41 million at the box office so far, but the film has found itself at the centre of controversies and conspiracy theories. The film follows Tim Ballard (Jim Caviezel), a former Department of Homeland Security agents who catches child sex traffickers by staging sting operations. It is based on Ballard’s life who left Homeland Security roughly 10 years ago to found the group Operation Underground Railroad. The group catches child sex traffickers in other countries by working with local police. Former President Trump previously appointed Ballard to a State Department advisory council on human trafficking in 2019. However, two and half years before the film’s release an investigation by VICE found that the organisation has often exaggerated its role in the rescues. Multiple law enforcement agencies that partnered with the group said that the group’s support was “insubstantial”. But that isn’t the only controversy this group, and the film, has found itself in. Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter Sound of Freedom has been accused by many of being linked to QAnon as has Ballard and Caviezel, who portrays him in the film. Critics have accused it of playing into the belief of the movement that global elites run a highly organised child sex trafficking network to harvest their blood. Ballard had previously supported a debunked theory that the furniture retailer Wayfair was using its platform to sell children. And Caviezel has promoted numerous QAnon theories and ‘Q drops’ which refer to posts that are made by Q on sites such as 4chan, 8chan and 8kun. Caviezel has even been reported to have appeared at QAnon events. Speaking to Charlie Kirk - founder of the right-wing organisation Turning Point USA - Caviezel supported theories about the chemical compound Adrenochrome. QAnon theorists believe that global elites such as Hilary Clinton torture children and harvest the chemical from them. "Adrenochrome is a chemical compound that's been around since the 1930s. There is a natural form.. which is caused by torturing kids. I brought this up a few years ago and all of a sudden I was attacked by every media group,” Caviezel said in the interview. “The next day I never heard from my agency for 14 months. My lawyers let me go. My agency never called me after that.” In an interview with right-wing commentator Jordan Peterson, Ballard also affirmed his belief in the adrenochrome blood harvesting theory saying he had seen it himself when in parts of Africa, but that there is no evidence certain celebrities had done it. Ballard also said that he and his group have “condemned the majority of what they see with conspiracy theories.” In a review of the film, Rolling Stone criticised the film for “fetishising the torture of its child victims” and said that it may be used as a gateway for the audience to “far-right conspiracy theories”. Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.
1970-01-01 08:00