I was going to hop on the 'Barbenheimer' train, until I realized Comic-Con International also arrived this week, so it's a 'Barbie Con' for me. Sure enough, Barbie mania was also felt at the convention as people dressing up as Barbie and Ken popped up here and there.
Director Greta Gerwig, Margot Robbie (“Babylon,” “The Wolf of Wall Street”), Ryan Gosling ("First Man," "La La Land,“ "The Ides of March," "Drive”) and team have creatively hyped up the movie to a viral level that is unexpected. The good news is the movie not only is a doll, but also substantive.
Stereotypical Barbie (Margot Robbie) lives a blissful life in Barbieland, where all Barbies are happy and powerful. Women have all kinds of occupations in the pink-powered society and the Kens exist to be by Barbies' side, including the main Ken (Ryan Gosling).
Every day is a Barbie day and every night is a girls' night, filled with beach activities and dance parties. Awash in pinks and pastels, and cardboard shapes and cutouts, the cotton candy-colored fantasy land looks and feels magically artificial, yet real. Shoutout to the design team for the inventive visuals and details.
When Barbie begins to have thoughts of mortality, things change. Her perfectly arched feet become flat, not all her skin is porcelain-like, she wakes up with a morning breath, and she can't simply glide down from her second story Dreamhouse to her Corvette. After chatting with Weird Barbie (Kate McKinnon), Barbie realizes that she needs to go to the real world to find the human in charge, the sad girl who plays with her and makes her happy again.
When Barbie goes, Ken tags along, of course. When Barbie and Ken venture out to the real world, they are shocked how reversed the reality is. Patriarchy rules. Women are treated as objects by men and some women even hate women. Barbie is seen to have contributed to consumerism, unhealthy body image and poor self-esteem. The icing on the fuchsia cake is that the majority of Mattel leaders are men. Ken, on the other hand, feels strikingly emboldened by the way men dominate society, which lead to hysterically scene-stealing situations.
Barbie is experiencing a full spectrum of human emotions for the first time, including sadness, anxiety, fear or inferiority. It turns out, there's a lot more to life than simply being happy and powerful all the time. Robbie is flawlessly natural, glamorous and authentic, perfectly embodies both the plastic nature of a doll and realness of a human being.
Barbie crosses path with a female Mattel employee, Gloria (America Ferrera) who's been feeling down and creating drawings of gloomy Barbie. Mattel CEO (Will Ferrel) would like Barbie to get back inside the toy box. Pursued by Mattel men-in-suits, Barbie, Gloria and her daughter, Sasha (Ariana Greenblatt) end up in Barbieland. They are shocked to see Barbieland being transformed into a Ken-centric society.
Barbie gets a full lesson from Gloria about the virtually impossible standards and complexities of being women in the real world, and the tough and delicate line women must paradoxically walk every day to fit in. Ferrera is tasked with long monologue duty, which is a bit heavy-handed, but she goes for broke and the impact is felt. Truer words have never been spoken. The trio must find ways to unite all the Barbies and get them to take back their land so everything would return to the way it used to be.
It's not all about girl power, however. “Barbie” cares about the Kens too, so the story is also about Ken's journey, who he is and what he wants to be, even without Barbie. The filmmakers have smartly crafted a movie not merely about a doll toy, which would have traditionally appealed to girls or young women, but somehow an inclusive story that has a broad appeal to all genders, races, ages, and even body types. The movie is delightfully self-aware and breaking the fourth wall drew a lot laughter.
At the core of “Barbie,” giddily wrapped in a pretty, rosy-colored package, is a social satire. It's a story about existential crisis and self-discovery, and sharp commentary about our society and gender relations, especially women.
If you love Barbie, absolutely go see it. If you hate Barbie, still go see it. If you feel indifferent about Barbie, you may make up your mind after you see it. Gorgeous, uproarious and ingenious, “Barbie” will be remembered as one of the defining pop culture movies for years to come.
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Full monologue: https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/america-ferrera-full-barbie-monologue-173314494.html
Barbie Selfie Generator: https://www.barbieselfie.ai
Comic-Con:
