Barbie is a fantastic film.
He-Man got his movie in the 1980s. Dolph! GI Joe as well, Don Johnson voiced Lt. Falcon. Then a couple GI Joe live actioners with The Rock. Transformers the Movie in the mid 1980s and subsequent live action films – another again in 2023.
When was Barbie ever getting a turn? Now is the time.
The conceit to get over is that the dolls are fairly self-aware they are dolls - much like the Toy Story crew. What they aren’t aware of is how much different the real world is compared to Barbie Land. How the dolls leave their homes (as if being held by children who are playing with them) is great stuff.
When the doll owners pick up anxiety that sometimes comes with age – the Barbie’s worlds change. The writing here isn’t woke, it simply plays on the matriarchy and patriarchy roles that are flipped in Barbie Land vs. the real world of the movie.
In Barbie Land – Ken is an afterthought. Everything is pink, and named after Barbie.
The movie truly takes off when Ken discovers "the real world" – and mistakes his perceived patriarchal advantages – he returns to Barbie Land to take it to infantile levels. Horse medallions. Lightning power headbands.
The Barbie Dream Mansion is now the Ken Mojo Dojo Casa House. This being said - the writing combination behind the script of Greta Gerwig and Noah Baumbach is great.
The real world is represented by Will Ferrell leading a host of Mattel Executives – and his interactions with Barbie are fantastic. As is Weird Barbie – who has short hair and marker on her face, and can do the splits because her dolls’ legs are broken. Helen Mirren plays the narrator, while Rhea Perlman is on board playing the creator of Barbie.
Margot Robbie is spot on as the title character – however doing the heavy lifting is a pair of Canucks - Kens Ryan Gosling and Simu Liu - both are fantastic.
