The world of Mattel’s iconic fashion doll Barbie comes to life in a new way thanks to Academy Award nominee Greta Gerwig (Little Women, Lady Bird) who directed the highly anticipated Barbie movie co-written by herself and Academy Award nominated filmmaker Noah Baumbach (White Noise, Marriage Story). Early previews for Barbie combined with the official film release on Friday, July 21 racked up $70.5 million at the domestic box office. It is expected to reach up to a historic $155 million-plus opening domestically, which will make it the biggest opening day film of the year thus far and will solidify Greta Gerwig on the fast track to have the biggest domestic opening day for a female director in Hollywood.
In the live action adaptation of Barbie, Margot Robbie stars as the title character, the beloved pop culture icon Barbie, and Ryan Gosling stars as Barbie’s faithful sidekick, Ken. When the perfect, stereotypical Barbie (Robbie) begins to malfunction, she starts to question her existence and the picturesque world of Barbieland. Seeking answers with Weird Barbie (Kate McKinnon), Barbie embarks on a journey to the real world with tagalong Ken. She thinks the answers lie in a teen girl named Sasha (Ariana Greenblatt), but they are also tied to Sasha’s mother and Mattel worker Gloria (America Ferrera).
The film opens with the concept of how the plastic doll came to be and evolved over time with narration by Helen Mirren. Mirren’s voice can be heard throughout the film guiding viewers through the story and breaking the fourth wall towards the final act. One of the first things that came to mind when watching is how absolutely stunning it looked. Much credit must go to Production Designer Sarah Greenwood and Set Decorators Katie Spencer and Ashley Swanson. Barbieland leaps off the screen in a perfectly splendid array of plastic and pink.
All the attention to detail in the way the plastic food, cups, homes, and cars looked took me right back to my childhood. Jacqueline Durran’s costume design work should also be applauded. The attire the Barbies and Kens wore gave a vintage vibe with a modern twist. I wanted everything the Barbies were wearing, which was another callback to my childhood enjoying dressing my dolls in their different outfits and wanting their clothes for myself.
Margot Robbie’s performance was flawless. She was able to capture the gleeful and carefree nature Barbie is known to have on screen in animated adaptations such as the 2012-2015 series Barbie: Life in the Dreamhouse and Toy Story 3 (2010). When Barbie started to experience human emotions, Margot captured the raw nature of women feeling the need to be everything and expected to be nothing at the same time. This notion was also explained further in America Ferrera’s showstopping monologue as Gloria during an emotionally gripping moment. The monologue sparks a conversation on the layers of womanhood and the role Barbie played in it all for the millions of girls who played with her in their youth.
Now, the film wasn’t all about girls. It’s hard to believe anyone doubted the “Kenergy” Ryan Gosling could bring to the character of Ken in the live action film. If you’re a fan of his work or watched any late-night talk show appearance of his then you’re completely aware of the genius comedic timing Ryan can bring to just about any moment. His comedic prowess was on full display as Ken, and I wanted more. Any time Ryan’s Ken appeared on screen full attention was commanded that reached a heighten state during his camp worthy performance of “I’m Just Ken” from the official movie soundtrack. While Barbie is having an existential crisis, so is Ken. He learns about patriarchy and questions who he is without her. He’s realizing he’s “Kenough.”
The ensemble cast is also what makes the movie so enjoyable. Issa Rae, Alexandra Shipp, Emma Mackey, Hari Nef, Sharon Rooney, Dua Lipa, Rita Arya, Nicola Coughlan, and Ana Cruz Kayne play Barbies, and Simu Liu, Kingsley Ben-Adir, Ncuti Gatwa, Scott Evans, and John Cena play Kens, with Emerald Fennell as Midge, Michael Cera as Allan, Will Ferrell as Mattel’s CEO, and Rhea Perlman as Ruth (a very important character to keep in mind). Outside of Ryan’s Ken, many of the laughs came from the ensemble cast but they were underused. It was a large cast and relatively brief film so it’s understandable everyone wouldn’t get the same amount of screen time, but Issa Rae’s President Barbie and Michael Cera’s Allan were a few fan favorites that could have used more moments in the movie.
Overall, the entire message behind Barbie for me is rooted in identity and how outside factors can tarnish the way men and women feel about themselves. It’s a movie based on a childhood figure, but it goes beyond that by cleverly inserting commentary about human experience that will leave you nodding in agreement, crying, laughing, and maybe even picking up a Barbie to reignite imagination and jovial freedom of expression.
Barbie is now playing in theaters.
_
Amber Dover is a multimedia journalist with over a decade writing about pop culture. Cat mom with a deep love of horror, you can follow Amber at @Glambergirlblog on Instagram and Twitter.