Cinematic Self-Criticism as a Method of Justification of Contemporary Politics: The Case of Barbie and Oppenheimer

Abstract

The role of mass media in the dissemination of political propaganda has been widely explored; however, this research focuses on more sublime political messages that are conveyed through films, particularly blockbusters that target relatively broad audiences. Since the beginning, Hollywood movies have served as a reflection of viewpoints that have been socially acceptable at a given moment. Nowadays, filmmakers and movie studios often use the method of mild self-deprecation as a way of legitimizing broader political messages. In other words, they criticize themselves to avoid much harsher criticism from the audience. We use the recent examples of Barbie and Oppenheimer to explore the current trend in strategies - such as limited self-awareness and pseudo-self-criticism - that are used to justify far more glaring issues with capitalism and (American) imperialism.