Barbie (2023) is an adventure, comedy film directed by Greta Gerwig, and co-written with Noah Baumbach. The film was distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures and released on July 21st.
The film follows Stereotypical Barbie [Margot Robbie] as she experiences a sudden change in mood and behaviour, falling into an existential crisis. As a result of this crisis, Barbie begins to lose her sense of perfection and must leave Barbie Land. Travelling into the real world, Barbie encounters the differences between our world and her own through interactions with the humans around her.
The film features an ensemble cast of performers. Amongst the Barbies are Issa Rae, Kate McKinnon, Alexandra Shipp, Emma Mackey, Hari Nef, Sharon Rooney, Ana Cruz Kayne, Rita Arya, Dua Lipa, and Nicola Coughlan. Amongst the Kens are Ryan Gosling, Simu Liu, Kingsley Ben-Adir, Nucci Gatwa, Scott Evans, and John Cena – but we didn’t see much of him. We are also treated to Midge, the pregnant Barbie, played by Emerald Fennell, and Allan, played by Michael Cera.
Thematically, the film features many important subjects: patriarchy, equality, individuality, perfectionism, and capitalism. That’s a lot of subject matter for a 114-minute runtime, and unfortunately it does ultimately leave a lot of the film’s points lacking in depth.
Visually the film is a whimsical spectacle, with huge, choreographed dance numbers, impressive sets, and engaging characters. This is juxtaposed against the real world, where we meet Mattel employee Gloria [America Ferrera] and her daughter, Sasha [Ariana Greenblatt]. The film’s discussion of capitalism centre around Mattel’s involvement in the film, spearheaded by CEO Will Ferrell. I thought some of the exchanges between the Mattel employees were some of the most relevant and astute in the film.
My least favourite thing about Barbie, is the underdeveloped relationship between Gloria and Sasha. It seemed the film was trying to say something about motherhood but was missing the scenes that led to the conflict resolution between the two characters. I can also understand criticisms of the film that address a lack of intersectionality and representation, and I think that if the film hadn’t tried to include so many themes, maybe it would have been more achievable. That being said, I appreciate the film is largely set in California and therefore will focus on a centralised experience.
Where Gerwig does excel with Barbie, is the exceptional attention to detail, managing to mirror imaginative play, balancing absurdity with bleak realisations. Despite its shortcomings, Barbie is whimsical, engaging, and meaningful. The dialogue is witty, and the performances are charming. The film doesn’t take itself too seriously, with its own narrator even picking holes at some points. The ultimate message of Barbie is about taking progressive steps towards equality, and whilst that viewpoint is somewhat superficial in reality, I don’t believe it was the role of Barbie to solve women’s rights in under two hours.
Rating: 8 out of 10.
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