This assessment is spoiler free.
“Barbie,” directed by Greta Gerwig (“Girl Hen,” “Little Girls”) and written by Gerwig and Noah Baumbach (“Marriage Story,” “White Noise”), follows Barbie (Margot Robbie) as she slowly notices her good world crumbling. Looking for her proprietor, the titular doll is thrust into the true world to revive her regular life.
Barbie and Ken soar from plastic packages to actuality by way of actors Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling, respectively. The duo basks within the limelight whereas giving one another area to shine in solo moments. Robbie expertly portrays Barbie because the Mattel golden woman, with appeal and positivity in each line of dialogue, even because the character devolves into an existential disaster when assembly folks in the true world.
In the meantime, Gosling performs Ken to his fullest ‘himbo’ glory, along with his obsession with Barbie driving his life till he faces the fact of his identification. Backed by a implausible forged of different Barbies and Kens performed by Kate McKinnon, Simu Liu, Alexandra Shipp, Hari Nef and extra, the main duo creates a dynamic ensemble and brings the movie’s whimsical surroundings to life. Michael Cera, the king of awkward but endearing characters, even seems as Ken’s greatest pal, Allan.
Gerwig continues to solidify her place as one of many nice administrators of this period; she put a lot care into each “Barbie’s” writing and its tonal and thematic course. Leaning into fast and blunt comedy, she makes use of her typical directorial type and cherry-picks music throughout necessary sequences — a pattern seen in her different comedies like “Girl Hen.” Gerwig takes a good larger swing by embracing campy visuals and meta-commentary however maintains her distinctive voice among the many shades of pinks and sparkles.
Comedic frenzy and thematic exploration of femininity, patriarchy and self-expression mix spectacularly all through “Barbie’s” runtime. Reasonably than punchy jokes abruptly changing into emotional monologues, comedic beats subtly result in deeper discussions concerning the human world. When Barbie first enters the true world, jabs on the miserable nature of the true world when in comparison with Barbie Land slowly give approach to the reminiscences and human feelings of Barbie’s unique proprietor.
Gerwig explores the consequences of the Barbie model whereas poking enjoyable at patriarchy and poisonous masculinity, reminiscent of a scene the place Ken assumes he can discover work in the true world just because he’s a person. Ken additionally learns to mansplain to impress the Barbies round him, one other humorous jab on the poisonous tendencies of masculinity. Very like the Barbie toys, “Barbie” encourages viewers to disregard the societal buildings that put them in containers by exploring Barbie’s experiences in the true world and highlighting the rocky relationship between a mom and daughter duo (America Ferrera and Ariana Greenblatt).
A implausible romp into the fictional world of Mattel’s iconic toy model, “Barbie” balances hilarity and social commentary to make for an interesting and thought-provoking expertise. Led by Greta Gerwig, the movie concurrently entertains and compels introspection. Coupled with a wonderful forged starring Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling, audiences may have the time of their lives in some of the spectacular movies to grace the silver display this 12 months. The ‘Barbenheimer’ hype is actual, and “Barbie” actually delivers a dream.
4 ½ Dreamhouses out of 5
