evidence: Maddy Hamilton, 32, and Rhisa Muse, 31, said they had come to support "Barbie" and director Greta Gerwig, while also having an excuse to get their group of friends together for a girl’s night. They said they were excited for the film even if, earlier in the day, they had read a review of "Barbie" that claimed the film lacked depth. [...] Shrouded in Barbie’s iconic, hyperstylized pink, the movie takes on serious and systemic societal issues, examining the complexity and contradictions of modern womanhood. As Barbie makes her way in the real world, she must grapple with the overwhelming emotion and discomfort of being human, as well as a patriarchal system that would make her a secondary character in her own world. While Ken’s "himbo" character is the source of much of the film’s comedy, "Barbie" gives Ken humanity and vulnerability, all with the intent of showing how his character also suffers under the pressures of the patriarchy. [...] Still, "Barbie continues to be a fraught icon," Hannah McCann, senior lecturer of cultural studies at the University of Melbourne, said in an email.