I went with a large group to the Alamo Drafthouse in San Francisco to see a pre-release screening of Barbie. It was an official event complete with props and an opening presenter who shared their adoration for the famous doll. There was a palpable buzz among the groups of people dressed up, an excitement that was joyful with no undertone of negative tension that goes along with, say, a screening of a new Star Wars movie.1What I mean to say is, I don’t think anyone was at risk of breaking out into a fight for any reason. At the end of the movie, I was excited to see it again with Erin.
While waiting for the movie to begin, there was plenty of idle chatter with the three guys I was sitting next to. The realization I had is that the concept of Barbie seemed analogous to The LEGO Movie, except with the expectation that there would be more of a true-to-life message this time around. My point in making that connection is that I found The LEGO Movie absolutely delightful in a way that kept me smiling. I hoped that Barbie would be similarly charming and entertaining, based on the bits and bobs I’d picked up on over the last few weeks.
It delivered.
Perhaps the best aspect of this movie was its commitment to its conceit. First, we have an idealized world of dolls that immediately juxtaposes itself against the real-world culture of a male-driven society. The concision of various Barbie monologues, and the directness and insightfulness of each line, continued to masterfully force this point. One could argue that it was on the nose and repetetive2Two people from our group, one man and one woman, had this complaint. but I’d say that’s the entire point. There’s no need to be subtle or coy about the state of the world. I feel it’s entirely missing the point of the movie—women are always caught in a Catch 22 created by men—to complain that it’s “too obvious”. If it were more subtle, folks would just complain that they’re trying to make a girl’s toy too intellectual. A triumph of this movie is that it takes a strong, direct stance on the absurdities that women have to face, and throws it in your face visually and audibly.
However, there is a second level of commitment that holds this movie together: it’s a world of dolls. This movie finds a balance of being serious, without being self-indulgent to the point that the absurdity of the concept is ignored. We have cartoon physics while in Barbieland, modes of travel that harken back to Elf, and an overall plot that one must simply accept as a vehicle to make a point. It’s a modern fantasy that holds itself out as a metaphor, while also directly hitting you over the head with an explanation of that metaphor, all while letting you have fun during dance–fights. If it didn’t allow each of those elements to be an equal priority, this movie would have fallen flat. Instead they found a balance and made something meaningful and rewatchable.
I’m surprised by how strongly I feel about this movie. Maybe it was seeing it with the right group of people in the right circumstances. Certainly part of it was deciding that my goal was to be delighted, and it’s hard to not feel simply jazzed by each impeccable performance of the various Barbies and Kens. They began the movie with a particular tone that let the audience know Hey, you’re going to have some fun tonight, while still allowing space to transition into a thoughtful exploration of how Barbie is interpreted.
- 1What I mean to say is, I don’t think anyone was at risk of breaking out into a fight for any reason.
- 2Two people from our group, one man and one woman, had this complaint.