Barbenheimer is upon us. The phenomenon has seen arguably two of the biggest blockbuster films of the year, Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer and Greta Gerwig’s Barbie, released on the same day. Resulting in the biggest Australian Saturday and Sunday one-day total box office intakes in history. I saw Barbie first, in an absolutely packed cinema, so let’s talk about that:
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I’m really surprised that it has taken this long for a Hollywood Barbie movie to hit cinemas. There are countless animated films that have kept fans content, streaming for a while, but where is that real movie magic? I’ve gotta say, I’m glad that this wasn’t released years ago as a quick cash grab. A lot of thought and love has gone into the big screen debut of the world’s most recognisable doll, and if this is how long it has taken to get us this version, I’m grateful they put the time into it.
The movie kicks off in Barbie’s iconic Dream House – it’s an absolute delight. The sets are incredible, faithful to the toys that they are based on in design and all that popping pink. Barbie’s world is so fun. Every day is a party, that is of course, until Barbie starts thinking about death.
*Minor spoilers ahead*
Turns out this is because whoever she is connected to in the real world, somebody who used to play with her, is having these same thoughts. So, Barbie makes the journey to our world in an attempt to cheer up this depressed soul and hopefully in turn reverting back to her perfect life.
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This is where things get really interesting with Barbie. When she arrives in the real world, things get real. The movie courageously addresses a lot of things that are wrong with society. I’m not going to go too much into the social commentary here (that’s a whole essay in itself) but I can’t help but applaud how they have handled it.
Director Greta Gerwig expertly navigates the film through these sticky topics, dancing the fine line of keeping the movie fun while providing a strong message. Ultimately pointing a finger in almost every direction, reminding us we’re all a bit crappy, but there is still hope for us all to be decent human beings. No party is fully villainised.
The strong themes are only driven home by 10/10 performances from both our leads. Margot Robbie embodies ‘Stereotypical Barbie’ perfectly. She nails the party vibe that is pumping at the beginning of the film, but her transition as she realises just how messed up things really are is incredible. The range this chick has is outstanding. Ryan Gosling is nothing short of hilarious in his portrayal of the love-sick Ken. Every moment he is on screen had me smiling ear to ear. You can’t help but feel sorry for him, even when is acting like a complete idiot.
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Hat’s gotta’ go off to Mattel, the toy company that produces the Barbie doll. They poke fun at themselves throughout this entire movie. Pointing out where they have failed, including strange, discontinued dolls showcased along the way. They could have just as easily not even mentioned themselves.
I could challenge some of the logic problems in Barbie, but to be honest, I don’t want to. The film keeps everything fairly light in that department, inviting you to just go with it. I did just that and had a really good time.
This is event cinema at its finest, Barbie will be spoken about for months, if not years to come.
Mainly because EVERYBODY is seeing it! It will be the movie that a lot of families need to own physically. Which is super rare these days. I’m impressed, what could have easily been a greedy, money-grubbing venture is actually a super important film for the times we live in.
