Widely regarded as one of the most highly anticipated movies of 2023, “Barbie” does not disappoint.
“Barbie” has been the talk of the summer with people wondering if director Greta Gerwig will once again make a hit like her films “Little Women” and “Lady Bird.” Upon its release, many people criticized the movie for not being kid-friendly, despite the fact it was not advertised as such and has a rating of PG-13.
Despite the criticism, this film has been nothing short of a success. According to Axios, “Barbie” brought in over $160 million on opening weekend, setting a record as the largest opening weekend figure for a film with a female director.
“Barbie,” set in the fictional Barbie Land, is home to many variations of Barbie and Ken, including Stereotypical Barbie (Margot Robbie) and Beach Ken (Ryan Gosling).
The design of Barbie Land is vibrant and visually pleasing, filled with life-size “Dreamhouses” that resemble the various iconic doll houses produced by Mattel throughout the years.
All variants of Barbie and Ken live in a “perfect” matriarchal society in Barbie Land, where every day is wonderful and nobody has any negative thoughts.
The wonderful environment of Barbie Land changes when Stereotypical Barbie begins to have sudden thoughts about death and mortality, leading her to the real world, with Ken joining, unbeknownst to her, in search of the reason behind these thoughts.
Barbie and Ken learn quickly that the real world is different than Barbie Land. It is a patriarchal society, which Ken takes special interest in.
Barbie finds the child who played with her, Sasha (Ariana Greenblatt), and her mother, Gloria (America Ferrera), who then join her on her journey. They travel back to Barbie Land and discover the matriarchal society has changed to a patriarchal society due to Ken.
Upon their return to this new, patriarchal Barbie Land, Gloria tells of the reality of being a woman and never feeling enough: “It is literally impossible to be a woman. You are so beautiful, and so smart, and it kills me that you don’t know you’re good enough. Like, we have to always be extraordinary, but somehow we’re always doing it wrong.”
The overarching theme of female empowerment throughout “Barbie” was beautiful and well done. Barbie gets to see how women come together to help and inspire one another to achieve a common goal. She goes on a journey herself of figuring out what she was made for, including a touching scene she has with Barbie’s maker, Ruth Handler (Rhea Perlman) towards the end.
From start to finish, the soundtrack did not fall short. The movie featured original songs from Dua Lipa, Nicki Minaj and Ice Spice, Billie Eilish and dozens more. Many of the songs are simply catchy and fun, such as “I’m Just Ken” from Ryan Gosling, while others such as Eilish’s “What Was I Made For?” brought raw emotion to the upbeat comedy.
Margot Robbie’s performance as Barbie was superb and lived up to the hype, while Ryan Gosling was subpar in his role of Ken. Robbie embodied her role and took viewers on a journey full of emotions whereas Gosling fell short. While Gosling did a fine job in his role and provided a laugh or two, there were times that his performance felt empty and overly comical.
“Barbie” is a film for the nostalgic woman who lived in a fantasyland as a child, playing with Barbie, and grew up to find the reality and pressure of being a woman in the real world. It is a film for anyone who ever felt like they do not know their purpose and need a reminder that life is about the journey.
“Barbie” is a film that has already made history since opening and will forever be remembered for its underlying message of hope and empowerment.