Barbie
Barbie is playing in theaters at the time of writing. Rated PG-13. Common Sense says 11.
STORY: B+
Each day is a playful breeze and every night’s a boomin’ party in Barbieland. And it seems that’s the way it’s going to be forever. At least until one of the Barbies (Suicide Squad’s Margot Robbie) is suddenly beset by flat heels and questions of mortality. Her only way to get things back to “normal” is to go forth and seek answers in the “real world.”
If you were looking forward to a light, amusing fish-out-of-water tale, you’re not going to be disappointed. But if that’s all you expected, then hold on to your Barbie Girls bucket hat.
In the midst of Barbie’s sunny journey, writer-director Greta Gerwig (Ladybird, Little Women) inserts an insightful primer on the patriarchy, gender politics, and self-image. The film doesn’t provide much in the way of answers, but Gerwig’s satire is precise, goofy, and above all, fun. Crafting her message in this way, Gerwig ensures it will be heard by those who need to hear it.
PEOPLE: A-
Among many other things, Margot Robbie is asked to dance like a party girl, wrestle with a life changing existential crisis, and battle patriarchy like a boss. Such a wide variety of tasks would pose a challenge for any performer, but Robbie is required to do all of these things while portraying a life-size, hard plastic doll. Her body control and her posture never make a false step while walking the wavering line between these wide-ranging demands. It’s a great example of how physicality can be used to create a fine performance.
Ryan Gosling (The Notebook) fully dives into Ken’s bimbo-hunk persona. It doesn’t always work, but his commitment makes his over-the-top character feel real. Ken’s discovery of the patriarchy is one of the funniest sequences of the film.
The most memorable moment of the film belongs to America Ferrera’s (Superstore) Gloria. Her speech explaining what it means to be a woman should be printed in textbooks, on t-shirts, and above boardroom office doors all around the world.
Mattel has made attempts over the decades to diversify Barbie’s image. They didn’t do a terrible job, but Gerwig populates Barbieland with a dazzlingly diverse group of women. She sets a new, high reaching bar for Barbie representation.
FILM NERD STUFF: A
See-through houses. Pastel Ferris wheels. Pink ambulances. Plastic ocean waves that have little-to-no give. Every Barbie accessory ever invented. Each and every single detail in Barbieland is executed to perfection.
Barbie and Ken’s journey to the world you and I consider real wouldn’t feel important if their own world doesn’t feel just as authentic. That authenticity goes a long way to building the film’s emotional stakes. The creation of Barbieland is a soaring achievement of production design.
AND YOU WERE TOSSING ME THE CAR KEYS … (Elective Class): A-
Some may look at Barbie (the toy, not the film) as nothing more than a doll. A kid’s toy. Nothing that contains any real importance. That couldn’t be further from the truth.
Before Barbie, dolls were almost always babies. Playing with dolls was essentially practice for being a mom later in life. Barbie exploded what the possibilities were for what a woman could do with her life. Here was Astronaut Barbie. Photojournalist Barbie. Farmer Barbie. Eye Doctor Barbie. Canadian Mountie Barbie. Barbie could be - and was - almost anything. Which meant girls could now dream of being anything as well.
Barbie’s impact wasn’t all positive. The doll also perpetuated an unrealistic ideal of perceived feminine beauty for far too long. It created the notion that “having it all” was the new norm, while never addressing the immense work and effort necessary to have it all.
The beauty of the Barbie movie is the way it explores both sides of Barbie’s contributions. But it doesn’t stop there. It smartly uses the Barbie phenomenon to spotlight the ways these issues manifest in society. Using Barbie - something people think of as a simple toy - to do this results in an effective and entertaining satire.
FINAL COMMENTS:
Some may look at Barbie (the movie, not the toy) as nothing more than a popcorn flick. A kiddie movie. Nothing that contains any real importance. That couldn’t be further from the truth.
Jump out of your Mojo Dojo Casa House and see this movie as soon as you can.