2023 film directed by Greta Gerwig starring Margot Robbie and Ryan Gossling. Barbie and Ken are having the time of their lives in the colorful and seemingly perfect world of Barbie Land. However, when they get a chance to go to the real world, they soon discover the joys and perils of living among humans.
The new Barbie film was one of the two biggest and most anticipated releases of summer 2023 forcing movie fans to pick between it and Oppenheimer to see on release day. The phenomenon now known as Barbenheimer. Many fans, myself included, didn’t pick and instead chose to see both in an epic double feature. The hype and pre-release marketing seemed to last a long time but did little to answer the question: What is this movie about? Is it the story of Barbie and all her Barbie friends living their perfect lives in Barbie Land before visiting the Real World and finding that what they believed about it was all wrong? Or is it the story of Stereotypical Barbie’s crisis of identity that changes everything and causes her to question her very existence? That’s the best part of this movie – it is both and also so much more.
I loved seeing the world of Barbie come alive visually in ways that mimicked the ways I played with my own Barbie dolls as a kid. Jumping off the roof of the dollhouse and landing in the car. Pouring fake milk into cups and pretending they were drinking. The painted, one-dimensional pool at the bottom of the slide that Barbie could also walk on. And the clothes!
The messages and history of the Mattel doll that has always empowered girls to dream about the things they could do as adults carried over into the movie where Barbie is all things from the President to a Nobel Prize winner and all occupations you can imagine. In Barbie Land they believe their vision of feminism and empowerment is mirrored in the real world. When they experience the real world, with all its sexism and gender norms that still favor the patriarchy, Barbie is shaken. Meanwhile, Ken, who has no job and isn’t a partner in Barbie’s world, loves the real world and decides he needs to recreate the empowerment he craves back in Barbie Land.
The way Gerwig illustrates and conveys the struggle of women was powerfully done and made this feminist’s heart swell. No spoilers, but that monologue! If you know, you know. And you’ll know when you see it if you haven’t already. I felt the middle sagged a bit with way too much dancing and singing, but I also am not a fan of musicals so that isn’t unexpected. It is also extremely silly in places which I wasn’t expecting and felt took away from the deeper themes that resonated with me. The ending comes together in a way that left me both satisfied and with a positive message about breaking away from expectations imposed on us by others.
What surprised me the most was hearing the mixed reactions others have about this film. Women who I expected to love it, didn’t. I suspect it is because they wanted a movie that was not satire, or went into it not knowing that it is just that, and therefor were disappointed. I also didn’t see any glaring evidence of an ulterior message sparking so much hate from those who saw an LGBTQ agenda forced on them. Ken isn’t portrayed as anything but a sad character whose identity is defined by Barbie instead of his own merits, thus questioning his place in the world. None of which has anything to do with gender or sexual identity. If you want to see a movie full of satire about the gender roles in society while feeling the nostalgia of a beloved childhood toy, this movie is for you.