About 'Barbie'
Director: Greta Gerwig
Production: Warner Bros
Cast: Margot Robbie, Issa Rae, Kate McKinnon, Alexandra Shipp, Emma Mackey, Hari Nef, Sharon Rooney, Ana Cruz Kayne, Ritu Arya, Dua Lipa, Nicola Coughlan, Emerald Fennell, Ryan Gosling, Simu Liu, Kingsley Ben-Adir, Ncuti Gatwa, Scott Evans, John Cena, Michael Cera, America Ferrera, Ariana Greenblatt, Rhea Perlman, Helen Mirren, Will Ferrell
Genre: Adventure, Comedy, Fantasy
Runtime: 1 hour 54 min
IMDB Rating: 7.3/10
Rotten Tomatometer: Critics: 88%, Audience: 83%
My Rating: 4/5
Barbie is poised to be the movie of the year. The film has made such a splash in the entertainment industry that it's hard to miss.
Barbie lives a peaceful life in Barbieland until intrusive and worldly thoughts, such as death, start to seep into her mind. She goes to the Weird Barbie to find a solution to her unique problem, and so begins her adventure to find the peace she once cherished.
Barbie is a meta-commentary film. If you're expecting a children's movie, you'll be disappointed. It's definitely aimed at adult audiences who grew up playing with the toy.
You can view the film in two ways: politically and entertainingly. Because the film is a meta-commentary that uses metaphor and allegory to convey a message, politically charged individuals are having a field day tearing it apart, but they are also inadvertently giving it free publicity. However, there are people who go to the movies to be entertained, and Barbie does just that.
The cast of the film is flawless. Margot Robbie was the best casting decision. She does an excellent job with the material she is given. She has literally become the face of Barbie for me. I can't imagine a live-action Barbie any other way. Ryan Gosling is a lot of fun as Ken. He keeps the film light-hearted while also delivering the film's most important message. The cameos are also well-handled. They were entertaining and enjoyable.
The production design of this film is exceptional. The set is so well-done that I would be disappointed if it were dismantled after filming. The costume department did a phenomenal job in the fashion department.
The original soundtrack of the film was impressive. I like "What I Was Made For" by Billie Eilish the best, but I can't help but wonder if the film missed a major opportunity by not including "Boy With Luv (feat. Halsey)" by BTS. The song seems like it was made for a film like Barbie. However, there may have been corporate reasons why they were unable to do so. Nonetheless, I enjoyed the soundtrack a lot.
My favorite scene in the film was the conversation between Ruth and Barbie when she was trying to flee the Metal HQ and accidentally entered a room in the building. The scene was beautiful to me.
The only thing I didn't like was the speech about women before the climax. It felt like a short-form video skit taken from social media. It was too on the nose. I wish the writer could have found a different way to convey the same message.
The message of the film is up to the audience's interpretation, and that's brilliant. It encourages viewers to discuss and come up with their own theories, which generates buzz around the film. The message I took away from this film is that there are many people who claim that the Barbie doll promotes unrealistic beauty standards and is therefore a bad toy. However, the doll was never intended to convey that message. We, as a society, imposed that message on the doll. It was the most innovative thing at the time it was created. It gave young children the opportunity to see beyond motherhood and build careers.
Overall, I loved the film and the clever way the team made sure it reached the widest possible audience. It deserves the success it is receiving.
IMDB Blurb
Barbie suffers a crisis that leads her to question her world and her existence.
