Before “Barbie” had even come out, I remember having a conversation with my brother about the film, and whether or not we were planning to see it or if it would be any good, or had any purpose in being made. The early marketing or talk of the film was always very vague, and my brother and I both said that we actually had no idea what they were exactly attempting with “Barbie”; were they making fun of her, was the film pro-Barbie, or was it a satire of the Barbie phenomenon? As history has shown, the answer to all these questions was “Yes. It is all of those things”. However at that time, all I said to my brother was that I trusted the talent involved, particularly Greta Gerwig and Noah Baumbach, and I was sure that they were going to have a unique take on it all, and that the film would be worthwhile, as I couldn't see these filmmakers wasting their time on just fluff, or a propaganda piece for Barbie, or Mattel themselves. As we all know, “Barbie” became this massive phenomenon, and that was the biggest surprise of the year; just how audiences flocked to see and love this movie. And for good reason too, for the most part, it is absolutely genius!! “Barbie” is such a fantastic and great film, and at the time of my viewing, I thought it was a shoe-in for my Top Twenty list.
The first half of “Barbie” is flat-out brilliant; it was very funny, looked amazing, and the performances from everyone, (but particularly Margot Robbie as Barbie and Ryan Gosling as Ken), were outstanding. I thought everyone was such a good sport in this film, especially Gosling and Mattel themselves, as their past, failed and aborted additions to the Barbie line of toys are regularly made fun of, whilst Gosling is seen in some quite ridiculous and impractical costumes. Micheal Cera is hilarious as Allan, Ken's forgotten best friend, whilst Kate McKinnon rules the film with her rendition of “weird”Barbie; an old Barbie toy that has been disfigured via poor playing or poorer siblings. It is all very funny stuff, and then when Barbie goes to the real world, the film changes, but is still just as funny, whilst also adding some poignancy and heart to the proceedings. I feel that the film only loses its way when Barbie returns to Barbie Land and is followed there by the Mattel executives, with the CEO being played by Will Farrell himself. It is here that I felt that a lot of the jokes were becoming recycled, the film got a little too serious at times and they really didn't find anything interesting to do with the executives in Barbie Land, so this part comes across more like padding. I also wasn't convinced completely by the ending, however, this is such a great film that I do not want to harp on these minor negatives I had, because “Barbie” is essentially now a universally loved film (honestly, out of everyone I know that has seen it, no one dislikes it!)
I know I have kind of glossed over what makes “Barbie” so great, but c'mon, everyone has seen it and knows why it works so well, so I just wanted to briefly highlight the bind-the-scenes work by all involved. I read a very interesting conversation with cinematographer Rodrigo Prieto about just how hard “Barbie” was to light, particularly due to all of the pink that was used in the film, which would wreck havoc on the skin tones of the actors. To combat this, any part of the set that wasn't to be seen in a shot, had to be draped in a grey fabric to get skin tones back to normal. Challenges like this blew my mind because it is the kind of thing you would never think of whilst watching the film, which just moves effortlessly throughout its running time. One thing that is impossible not to notice while watching “Barbie” though is just how incredible both the production design and costuming is on the film (by Sarah Greenwood and Jacqueline Durran respectively), and the attention to detail on both. These look and feel just like a Barbie Dreamhouse or an oversized accessory (like Barbie's big hairbrush) would look like, in a living, breathing Barbie world. I loved that Barbie came across as a little too big for everything that she owned, like that the ceilings on her Dreamhouse looked too low, or her car that little bit too small for her, because the real-life dolls always struggle with this scale too. I was also very impressed by how glossy, and shiny (and plastic) Barbie's world came across as, and how this was countered by the real world aesthetics and dullness when they change worlds. The famous scene of Barbie and Ken arriving in the real world dressed in their skin-tight Lycra rollerblading costumes is hilarious and immediately shows the point of difference between both worlds in a very funny way. As I mentioned above, Greta Gerwig and Noah Baumbach's script is fantastic, with it being equal parts funny and at times deep, and I loved the aspect where they examine how the good intention of making Barbie powerful, beautiful and successful in her world, has led real little girls unprepared for the harsh realities of the real world, as they have been set-up with unrealistic expectations on what it is to be a young girl in the world. Gerwig also excels in the direction department by keeping the film incredibly fun, full of colour, and always moving. She is an excellent filmmaker, and this is another huge success in her young directorial career.
As you can tell, like almost everyone in the world, I am quite a fan of the “Barbie” movie (although I have to admit, sadly, it just fell short of my top twenty-five list), but what was the biggest surprise for me, and what I was not expecting from it, was that “Barbie” would turn out to be such a massive success all around the world. That said, it is definitely well deserved.
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