When I watched Barbie this past Thursday night, I knew I was going to enjoy it. As a marketer and fashion enthusiast, I've been watching Barbie's marketing unfold since those first photos of Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling in their fabulous 80s rollerblading outfits surfaced online, and I've been impressed all the way.
It does not hurt that the idea of this movie appeals to the global hankering towards nostalgic media, without being a live-action remake of a classic childhood movie or an unnecessary addition to a franchise (I'm looking at you, Disney). It promised to be something actually new, not an old, low-risk story retold with some forced diversity (again, I'm looking at you, Disney).
And before I'm accused of being a bigot for criticising the diverse representation in reboots and franchises: I am all for diversity in media. But taking a beloved character and changing their race or gender doesn't do much more than make people angry at each other. It makes those upset by the woke reimagining of their favourite characters more resistant to real representation, and it makes the people who welcome this cheap tokenism throw around accusations of racism, misogyny, and homophobia. What we actually need is new, better stories, or old stories that already have complex characters of all genders, ethnicities, and sexualities. We know they exist. But for that to happen, we need the film industry to become less risk-averse. I shiver with antici… pation.
Anyway. Back to Barbie. I wore a hot pink turtleneck and a ponytail for the occasion, and I was not the only one who dressed up. The cinema was flooded with pink and white and sparkles. And stilettos, because we've all seen that iconic scene from the trailer. Charmed by the opportunity to dress up, and seeing that everyone else had done the same, I was even more primed to enjoy the movie.
And enjoy the movie I did. I expected it to be a visual delight, which it was. I expected it to explore gender dynamics, which it did. I did not expect it to be that funny. And I did not expect that it would make me cry.
When it got heavy-handed with the gender politics, I had to remind myself that this is a Barbie movie in 2023. If there were ever a movie that could speak so explicitly about the stereotypes surrounding men and women, this is it. And somehow, by the end of it, it managed to have a nuanced take (which is the thing that made me cry).
Barbie has become a politically controversial figure, accused of being antifeminist and promoting unrealistic body standards to girls. In response, Mattel has expanded their range to include a diverse cast of Barbies, with different ethnicities, careers (many of which are in traditionally male-dominated fields), and, to a limited extent, body sizes.
I mention this specifically because, unlike the tokenism I criticised above, the diversity in the movie makes perfect sense.
The main characters are white, thin, and without "real" careers (although I may have to chat to Ken about how I, too, can have a career in "beach"). They are meant to be the stereotype. The rest of the cast, however, is diverse. It's like Barbie in real life: she'll never be able to escape her stereotypical image, but she will always be surrounded by all her diverse incarnations.
The movie is an interesting exploration of the idea of a simple matriarchal utopia, in contrast with the complex real world. The simplification, especially when it comes to some of the lines, feels too on the nose at times, but then I remember what I'm watching. It cannot really be too on the nose.
Just when you think things are being oversimplified, Barbie throws in something about being a woman, a man, or just being human that strikes a chord. It's like in Crazy Rich Asians (2018), when Astrid, who has been downplaying her wealth and success to avoid denting her husband's ego, finally tells her husband, "It's not my job to make you feel like a man." While there is no one-liner in Barbie that strikes me right in the heart like that one, there are moments that evoke a similar feeling.
Margot Robbie is perfect as Barbie (because Barbie is, after all, perfect). From her stiff smile in the first scene to her giddy grin in the last, one cannot help but fall in love with her, like so many children have fallen in love with Barbie.
Ryan Gosling as Ken was apparently not a universally-supported choice. The argument was that he was too old, which I suspect came mainly from the youth-obsessed Gen Z, most of whom are too young to fully appreciate Gosling's status as a certified heartthrob.
Anyone who still believes Ken was miscast after watching the movie needs to have their eyes and sense of humour checked. Gosling is delightful in this role, and not just because of his excellent abs and arms, which are on display for a lot of the movie. His comedic timing is impeccable, and he somehow manages to steal Robbie's thunder in many scenes.
The set and costume design, especially in Barbie Land, are transportive. I'm not a hardcore Barbie fan in general, but even I could appreciate that many of the visual elements are based on real Barbie products. Some may dismiss this as shameless product placement (although many of the items are historical collector's items rather than things currently on the shelves), but others will admire the faithfulness to the source material. I'm part of the latter group.
Even though the central themes are quite heavy, and dealt with heavily at times, the movie still serves as an escape into a different, simple, highly stylised world. It is the centre of a pearly bubble that extends beyond the movie itself - not only into the myriad of brand collaborations but also into the atmosphere of the pink-clad audience and the "Barbie-core" content flooding the internet.
Barbie was not only fun to watch, but it was fun to anticipate as well. It will be fun to watch for the second (and third) time too.
Photo by Girl with red hat on Unsplash