In "Barbie," America Ferrera's character Gloria tells us that it's impossible to be a woman, while "Oppenheimer" demonstrates that the violence of patriarchy also makes it impossible to be a good man.
When faced with the consequences of their own actions, both Robert Oppenheimer (Cillian Murphy) and Barbie (Margot Robbie) seek to exercise strong leadership that is remorseful, accountable and rooted in feminist values of repair and community — but in Oppenheimer's patriarchy, as in the patriarchy of our real world, practicing feminist leadership is punished.
