Barbie movie

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Update:


took our very “forward” four year old to see it today as she hasn’t stopped asking to see it- and honestly I went to see it the Sunday of it’s release and I didnt see much that would be wrong with her seeing it - aside from-

the part at the beginning- I told her the girls were very naughty for smashing their toys up, the bit where Barbie punched the guy for smacking her butt (obviously not ideal), and telling the builders that she has no vagina and Ken has no penis- but my 4 year old doesn’t know these words anyway- otherwise I wasn’t worried BUT as I said… our little girl is and always has been beyond her years

so we went and she did enjoy it totally at the start, but as others have said- it’s political with themes of feminism and patriarchy and totally over the kid’s heads- so for all of the second half she was finding it hard to concentrate.

I would say, if you don’t mind leaving halfway if they get bored then go coz the first half is great but it’s probably too advanced for them.
 
My 15 year old daughter and I went to see it on Sunday. We enjoyed it for what it was. On the way home we met my friend and she asked us what it was about, plot wise. We couldn't really answer her! We looked at each other and then said "Er, I don't know really - there wasn't really a plot, so to speak". It was a nice escape from reality and my daughter and I both liked playing with Barbies when we were little so it was a fun, girlie, mother-and-daughter experience. Yeah the feminist message was maybe a bit OTT but that's 2023 for you, you're gonna get that.
 
LByrne74 said:
My 15 year old daughter and I went to see it on Sunday. We enjoyed it for what it was. On the way home we met my friend and she asked us what it was about, plot wise. We couldn't really answer her! We looked at each other and then said "Er, I don't know really - there wasn't really a plot, so to speak". It was a nice escape from reality and my daughter and I both liked playing with Barbies when we were little so it was a fun, girlie, mother-and-daughter experience. Yeah the feminist message was maybe a bit OTT but that's 2023 for you, you're gonna get that.
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There wasn’t really a plot?? Really!!!!!!!!!!!! Yes it wasn’t an award winning film but there was definitely a plot.
 
I went to see it with my husband for our wedding anniversary (22 years!) on Tuesday night - I absolutely LOVED it (he actually enjoyed it too, he surprised himself 😅) and I'm already making plans to see it again with my sisters and niece for a proper girly day out. I found it hilarious and unexpectedly moving. At some points I was crying with laughter, in others I was just crying.

Ryan Gosling was 'sublime' in the role 😉 and Margot Robbie was perfect as Barbie. I'm not normally a fan of Michael Cera but he was a brilliant Allan.

As for the 'there was no plot' comment... were you asleep during the movie? 🤷‍♀️
 
Lord people are reselling these odeon drink containers 😆
 

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As a 69 year old grandmother I went with my daughter ( who had already been with a friend ) and my seven year old Barbie mad grandaughter. I wasn’t sure to start with but I was surprised how much I enjoyed it and would go again. My grandaughter wants to go again but this time with her Dad!
Great music and costumes. The cinema was quite empty ( weekday afternoon ) and my gd was the only child there .
 
Currently watching it at home 😉 and it's just ok. I'm glad I didnt go to the cinema. It's one of those films where they story feels rushed or bits missing.
 
I don't know... it wasn't as clever as Lady Bird from Greta Gerwig and she had such good source material. I guess she had to have accessible blockbuster elements but I would have preferred clever feminism :)

Fun fact- if anyone knows her Lady Bird there was a row about it as apparently she copied a coming of age film that came out years earlier called Real Women Have Curves, that didn't get all the plaudits LB did as it was about a Latino girl and not praised by all the usual luvvies. That film starred America Ferrera who plays the mum with the daughter in Barbie :)
 
soph30 said:
I don't know... it wasn't as clever as Lady Bird from Greta Gerwig and she had such good source material. I guess she had to have accessible blockbuster elements but I would have preferred clever feminism :)

Fun fact- if anyone knows her Lady Bird there was a row about it as apparently she copied a coming of age film that came out years earlier called Real Women Have Curves, that didn't get all the plaudits LB did as it was about a Latino girl and not praised by all the usual luvvies. That film starred America Ferrera who plays the mum with the daughter in Barbie :)
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I thought it was incredibly clever and nuanced - there were so many layers to it, with a fairly lighthearted plot. I went to see it at the cinema and have rewatched it a few times and discover something new every time.

i can’t help but eyeroll at people who call it misandrist or criticise it for being feminist. Soso many movies we watch are sexist, make jokes at the expense of women… we get a handful of movies that ARENT like that and they get critiqued for being feminist or dismissed entirely.

in the movie theatre I was in, you could hear the entire place hold their breath during the monologue scene.

Some of my fav elements;
• the idea that women should just be allowed to exist as ordinary, run of the mill humans. Encapsulated by the ending when Barbie simply refers to having a vagina.
• the head nod/reference with the matchbox 20 song that ken sings and plays on the radio - it perfectly captures an angsty, sexist culture whilst poking fun at it.
• when barbie was drinking tea. Ruth was calm and supportive of barbie, letting her fumble through it, in contrast to the room of men who laughed it off and patronised her. It was also a reference to the Sistine chapel painting of Adam and god touching fingers.
• Ken’s great song that shows him overcoming the constraints that patriarchal systems place on men, ending with him saying he’s enough and accepting affection from the other Ken’s
• showing patriarchy and sexism as a diease and groupthink - the barbies being brainwashed and blithely accepting ken’s new version of Barbie lane perfectly captures how internalised misogyny works - with women completely blinded and insisting they enjoy those roles
• the fact Ken manages to pick up books to learn “patriarchy” from Sasha’s school is perfects a bit of a criticism and nod to how sexism and misogyny is entrenched in school systems and is something taught, unintentionally.
• the action “war” scene which pokes fun at a lot of action movies featuring similar macho OTT war scenes
• the core point of the movie is about humanising women - after thousands of years of women being dehumanised and reduced to nothing. Generic, stereotypical barbie who represents the average woman, on a literal journey to humanity.
• the poking fun at sexist tropes was just generally hilarious, especially when the resistance barbies were recruiting.
• barbies yellow dress at the end - a nod to yellow worn by suffragettes and marking her becoming more human as she wears less pink

it was also pretty nice to see a woman in a movie who… isn’t enamoured of the lead actor. Barbie takes real joy in her female friendships which are positive and supportive and doesn’t focus on talking about men.
 
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cee-bee said:
I thought it was incredibly clever and nuanced - there were so many layers to it, with a fairly lighthearted plot. I went to see it at the cinema and have rewatched it a few times and discover something new every time.

i can’t help but eyeroll at people who call it misandrist or criticise it for being feminist. Soso many movies we watch are sexist, make jokes at the expense of women… we get a handful of movies that ARENT like that and they get critiqued for being feminist or dismissed entirely.

in the movie theatre I was in, you could hear the entire place hold their breath during the monologue scene.

Some of my fav elements;
• the idea that women should just be allowed to exist as ordinary, run of the mill humans. Encapsulated by the ending when Barbie simply refers to having a vagina.
• the head nod/reference with the matchbox 20 song that ken sings and plays on the radio - it perfectly captures an angsty, sexist culture whilst poking fun at it.
• when barbie was drinking tea. Ruth was calm and supportive of barbie, letting her fumble through it, in contrast to the room of men who laughed it off and patronised her. It was also a reference to the Sistine chapel painting of Adam and god touching fingers.
• Ken’s great song that shows him overcoming the constraints that patriarchal systems place on men, ending with him saying he’s enough and accepting affection from the other Ken’s
• showing patriarchy and sexism as a diease and groupthink - the barbies being brainwashed and blithely accepting ken’s new version of Barbie lane perfectly captures how internalised misogyny works - with women completely blinded and insisting they enjoy those roles
• the fact Ken manages to pick up books to learn “patriarchy” from Sasha’s school is perfects a bit of a criticism and nod to how sexism and misogyny is entrenched in school systems and is something taught, unintentionally.
• the action “war” scene which pokes fun at a lot of action movies featuring similar macho OTT war scenes
• the core point of the movie is about humanising women - after thousands of years of women being dehumanised and reduced to nothing. Generic, stereotypical barbie who represents the average woman, on a literal journey to humanity.
• the poking fun at sexist tropes was just generally hilarious, especially when the resistance barbies were recruiting.
• barbies yellow dress at the end - a nod to yellow worn by suffragettes and marking her becoming more human as she wears less pink

it was also pretty nice to see a woman in a movie who… isn’t enamoured of the lead actor. Barbie takes real joy in her female friendships which are positive and supportive and doesn’t focus on talking about men.
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Thank you for this well written and thought out comment 🥰 I’d be interested to see a negative review from a woman with as much time/thought put into their feelings and a well reasoned theory that it isn’t their internalised misogyny that made them dislike it. The takeaway that it was just a silly little chaotic film is baffling to me.
 
I'd really like to see this, but going through a recovery so can't leave the house right now, guess I'll have to wait till it comes out.
I don't doubt there's a good moral to the story because that's what I'm seeing as a consensus. I think there's quite a bit I'd take from it and now I'm really curious.

The only thing that put me off was the sheer amount of promotions, like google turning pink and a load of overwhelmingly amazing reviews that seemed skewed or bought? Idk that was odd. Does anyone think some of those could be sponsored? or is it actually that good?
 
leigh213 said:
I'd really like to see this, but going through a recovery so can't leave the house right now, guess I'll have to wait till it comes out.
I don't doubt there's a good moral to the story because that's what I'm seeing as a consensus. I think there's quite a bit I'd take from it and now I'm really curious.

The only thing that put me off was the sheer amount of promotions, like google turning pink and a load of overwhelmingly amazing reviews that seemed skewed or bought? Idk that was odd. Does anyone think some of those could be sponsored? or is it actually that good?
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Greta Gerwig is a well respected producer and screenwriter. Margot Robbie is equally a well respected actress and producer - both of whom have recieved multiple academy award nominations, golden globes etc. in short, they are both industry heavyweights.

the entire cast of the movie was amazing, even small parts were played by talented and well known actors. Mark ronson - hugely respected musician - was in charge of the soundtrack. In short - it had a hugely talented cast and crew.

plus Barbie is a huge cultural phenomenon in her own right and an icon - particularly relating to gender politics.

I think there was always going to be a lot of hype over the movie. I’m inclined to feel the reviews reflect the depth of the movie, and the talent involved in the making of it.

there is currently a new wave of feminism which I think is reflected in the buy in into the movie - this body of research suggests feminism has gone through a resurgence at grassroots level in the last few years. https://www.sfu.ca/politics/feministmovement.html

From the MeToo movement through to social media campaigns which have been driving people’s participation in feminism. 4th wave feminism began in 2012 and focuses on the internet and intersectionality of feminism (again, reflected in the Barbie movie with its diverse cast). So culturally, I think, the Barbie movie is especially relevant and another reason why it’s attracting attention, hype and positive reviews.
 
Bleurghgram said:
Thank you for this well written and thought out comment 🥰 I’d be interested to see a negative review from a woman with as much time/thought put into their feelings and a well reasoned theory that it isn’t their internalised misogyny that made them dislike it. The takeaway that it was just a silly little chaotic film is baffling to me.
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How condescending! You have essentially "mansplained" this movie to women as if we don't have the mental capacity to understand the movie ourselves.
 
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