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Greta Gerwig’s Barbie is a pink spectacular, original, feminist film that’s not only hilarious and smart, but serves as an existential crisis on the experience of being a woman. Never has a studio film so expertly explored the burden women carry in everyday life in any role in their lives. 

*This review contains mild spoilers for Barbie*

In one of the many trailers for Barbie, it was stated whether you love or hate the doll Barbie, this movie was for you. Barbie is every woman, and every woman can be a Barbie and that has never been truer than in Greta Gerwig’s latest directorial project, Barbie. From the film’s opening scene, Barbie explores what it means to be a woman in a world that doesn’t ever see fit to allow her the space to just be. 

The opening sequence, paying homage to Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey, shows that girls always had dolls, but they were always baby dolls. From a young age, girls are taught their role in society is to be mothers and it was expected of them to aspire to be mothers. Young girls and their playtime revolved around motherhood and servitude, never the idea of being anything she could imagine. Then came Barbie, she could be anything from an astronaut to a doctor to scientist to just a girl in a swimsuit!

When the Barbie doll was released in 1959, the plastic doll transformed the doll game forever. No longer were young girls utilizing playtime to imagine their lives as mothers, they could see themselves limitless roles in society. It basically solved feminism, right? This is the take Gerwig, and co-writer Noah Baumbach, use in Barbie to explore not just what the plastic toy means in the world after over six decades, but what it feels like to be a woman. In the film, there’s ‘Barbie Land,’ where the Barbies and Kens live their idyllic lives and think that Barbies have changed the ‘Real World’ for the better; Barbie solved feminism and changed the world to be a female-forward place filled with joy! 

In Barbie Land, the women rule the land in their own ways; there’s a President Barbie (Issa Rae), Nobel Prize Winner Barbie (Emma Mackey), the Supreme Court is all Barbies, and so on! As we watch each Barbie have their place in society, we focus on Stereotypical Barbie (Margot Robbie). Stereotypical Barbie begins each day the same with her effortless routine of waking up, waving to each other Barbie, getting ready from her perfect closet, and eating her nonexistent food. Her life is perfect…. or is it?

Slowly, as Stereotypical Barbie continues to have another best day ever, she begins to think is this all there is? The next day, Stereotypical Barbie wakes to a shock, she doesn’t feel she looks perfect, her breath stinks, her feet are flat, she has cellulite, and worst of all, she can’t silence the thoughts of death! While the film begins with showing how each Barbie is welcoming and loving, the introduction of Weird Barbie (Kate McKinnon) shows the Barbies can be a bit judgmental. The manner in which the Barbies react to Stereotypical Barbie’s flat feet show Barbie Land may not be all it appears to be. 

Once Barbie makes it to Weird Barbie’s house, she realizes she must venture to the Real World to repair an opening in the seam that keeps the Real World and Barbie Land operating simultaneously. As Weird Barbie explains to Barbie that the real person playing with her in doll form is the one feeling sad and that Barbie needs to find her to cheer her up, Barbie begins to wonder how different Real World is. Barbie leaves Barbie Land, with a surprise Ken (Ryan Gosling) in tow, and heads to the Real World. As Barbie and Ken arrive in the real world, at Venice Beach, Barbie immediately senses something is off. Barbie feels a violent, angry undertone in her interactions with the people of the Real World, but Ken feels at ease. For Ken, a man with no identity of his own, it’s easy for him to find solace in a world that caters to him. 

Gerwig and Baumbach really dive into the sharpest commentary on the patriarchy once in the Real World; there is no room to misinterpret what Barbie is saying about gender roles in society. While some viewers (let’s just say men) may be uncomfortable with this, Barbie the doll has been a misconstrued beacon of what women should be and seeing the doll’s theatrical feature debut used to explore this commentary is unexpected and completely works. It’s not just that men are objectifying Barbie, but women too are sneering their nose at her. Barbie isn’t the feminist savior she thought she would be in the Real World; she’s perceived as the enemy by women and young girls. Barbie grapples with the purpose of her existence realizing she is not making the world a better place and causes emotional harm on young girls all throughout the Real World. 

Many, me included, have wondered just how on earth Gerwig got away with telling this story with Mattel involved and for good reason. Mattel becomes a major part of the plot as Barbie winds up in the Mattel Headquarters after their CEO (Will Ferrell) discovers that a Barbie has entered their world. The Real World feels the opposite of Barbie Land, it’s not colorful, fun, or kind, but that’s the point. Barbie realizes quickly Mattel isn’t even run by women, the board is entirely run by men, and they have no idea what young girls need or want from a toy. Mattel, just like the Real World, isn’t what Barbie thought it was. 

We only meet one female Mattel employee, Gloria (America Ferrera). It turns out that Gloria and her daughter Sasha (Ariana Greenblatt) are the connection Barbie was looking for in the Real World. After a Charli XCX ‘Speed Drive’ through Los Angeles, they head back to Barbie Land. Once they return to Barbie Land, the trio realizes it’s not the place that Barbie had described. Barbie Land has become the Kendom with the Ken’s running the show with their patriarchal power Ken had picked up while in Century City. In the hands of other writers, Barbie could have become a joke as Barbie works with Gloria, Sasha, and Weird Barbie to save Barbie Land, but with Gerwig and Baumbach penning the script, Barbie is a sharp, insightful look at what women can do and what it means to be a human. Within the sincere exploration of humanity, there is still so much humor from Matchbox Twenty to The Godfather jokes that will make just about anyone laugh. 

At the heart of Barbie, outside of all the perfectly written and delivered jokes, is a sincere, emotional deep dive of what the experience of being a woman is. Ferrera’s Gloria delivers a brilliant monologue that is not only heart wrenching but is also completely earnest; it’s a scene that completely reminds Gerwig fans of specific moments in both Lady Bird and Little Women. There’s a tragic pain that women know all too well from day to day struggles to just simply be and finding this so expertly explored in a film about Barbie is nothing something many, me included, ever thought would happen, but never has a studio film so expertly explored the burden women carry in everyday life (in any role in their lives). As a mother myself, Barbie really hit hard on the exquisite balance of being a mother, a woman, having a career, and just trying to make it through the day. 

Outside from the script and stunning direction, Barbie is a beautifully crafted film. There aren’t words to describe how perfect Sarah Greenwood’s production design is and how Jacqueline Durran’s costumes are a triumph. The crafts on the film deliver Barbie World beyond your wildest dreams. Robbie delivers a perfect performance carrying such a weight that not only does she seem like a Barbie brought to life, but everyone who has ever struggled with their identity can see themselves in her moments of self-doubt. Gosling delivers a career best performance that we’ve been waiting for since The Nice Guys. The supporting cast is excellent and utilized perfectly. Michael Cera has truly never been better (would watch him as Allan all day). Rae, Emerald Fennell, Hari Nef, and Mackey bring the energy you craved from the film and bring a real life to their characters, no matter the screen time they’re given. Simu Liu and Kingsley Ben-Adir are delightful as Ken’s. Rhea Perlman portraying the co-creator of Barbie, Ruth Handler, absolutely devastates and inspires audiences at the same time. The final scene between Perlman and Robbie is a once in a lifetime experience to watch as a woman wanting to find her place in the world. 

Barbie isn’t just a film about dolls but is a film about freeing yourself from any expectations and letting yourself be anything. It’s a pink spectacular, original, feminist film that’s not only hilarious and smart, but serves as an existential crisis on the experience of being a woman. Barbie the doll has felt to some as an impossible feminine ideal and the film began to feel almost ‘too big to be good,’ but Gerwig and Co. deliver the goods. This Barbie is everything.  

Grade: A-

Oscars Prospects:
Likely: Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Original Song (What Was I Made For?), Best Production Design, Best Costume Design
Should be Considered: Best Director, Best Lead Actress (Margot Robbie), Best Supporting Actress (America Ferrera), Best Supporting Actor (Ryan Gosling)

Release Date: July 21, 2023
Where to Watch: In Theaters