Barbie is quite a movie.
An entire world populated entirely by every single variant of Barbie and Ken4. All named Barbie and Ken, all living their lives in the most ‘we’re sort of toys and sort of real’ way possible. Drinking your morning coffee? Tip the empty cup to your mouth. Need to get out of the second floor? Just jump down! And of course…
Ken: I thought I might stay over tonight.
Barbie: Why?
Ken: Because we’re girfriend and boyfriend.
Barbie: To do what?
[pause]
Ken: I’m actually not sure.
Oh this movie is weirdly(ly on point) at times.
Then we get the ’toy in the real world and DOESN’T UNDERSTAND THINGS’ scenes. I feel like a lot of those were dialed up just to the edge of over-parody, but really, it somehow just works? Barbie is so out of sorts and just doesn’t realize it… until she does.
Things go wrong… and suddenly the movie isn’t just the Barbie movie anymore. Now, it’s all about Ken. And the PATRIARCHY.
Ken: To be honest, when I found out the patriarchy wasn’t just about horses, I lost interest.
I knew that we were going to have some major conflict there, in a world (almost) entirely populated by Barbies and Kens… who else is there? But it’s kind of weird. I feel like Ken honestly has more of a story arc for a lot of the movie does than Barbie. Which… feels kind of against the entire point of the movie?
It works though.
And of course, we have the big Mattel in the room. Of course we have to have a dig about companies making toys for girls run by powerful men. But man, did they dial that one up to 11 on a rediculous scale. A bicycle built for… a boardroom. That is all. Will Ferrell is a delight as the CEO. After Lord Business in The Lego Movie… this is a weird role to be typecast as, but it really works.
Speaking of casting, I did love Margot Robbie as Barbie5.
Barbie: [in tears] I’m not pretty anymore!
Gloria: What? You’re so pretty!
Barbie: I’m not stereotypical Barbie pretty!
Narrator: Note to the filmmakers: Margot Robbie is the wrong person to cast if you want to make this point.
She just … epitomizes Barbieness in the movie? I don’t know who esle could possibly have carried that role quite as well. Kate McKinnon as Weird Barbie was great as well.
And Ryan Gosling as Ken6. This one I think could have been differently cast with less issue, but he still did a wonderful job.
One thing that stood out was how at times uncomfortably on point Barbie managed to be on various social commentary issues.
Sasha: You’re a fascist!
Barbie: How can I be a fascist?
[through tears]
Barbie: I don’t control the railways or the flow of commerce…
[cries]
Oh this movie.
Overall, it was a movie better than it had any right to be and far better than I expected, even with generally positive reviews going on. Worth watching. Not sure it’s necessary to Barbenheimer it though…
Oh right. Of course… we have this:
That is all.
A year and a half late, but better than never, right? ↩︎
Totally missed her. ↩︎
Doctor… Ken? ↩︎
And a few one offs like Allan and Midge… but that’s not really the point. 😄 ↩︎
And Issa Rae as Barbie. And Kate McKinnon as Weird Barbie. And Alexandra Shipp as Barbie. And Emma Mackey as Barbie. And Hari Nef as Barbie. And Sharon Rooney as Barbie. And Ana Cruz Kayne as Barbie. And Ritu Arya as Barbie. And Dua Lipa as Barbie2. And Nicola Coughlan as Barbie. I am so glad they did the credits this way. ↩︎
And Simu Liu as Ken. And Kingsley Ben-Adir as Ken. And Ncuti Gatwa as Ken3. And Scott Evans as Ken. And John Cena as Ken. You get the idea. ↩︎