Barbie (July 21, 2023) - No One is Going to Beach Anyone Off

[Ksandra]

Saw it last night with the kiddos and had an absolute blast.

Woke up today and enjoyed repub tears over the wokeness and how more people are seeing it than that qanon sound of freedom film.

Really was a film that embedded smart topics in completely stupid fun, and I enjoy comedies like that.

I did feel personally attacked though at the

Spoiler: show

Pride and prejudice miniseries. Omg that’s so me. I watch that miniseries annually, just reread the book for the millionth time, and just watched Austinland. Lol!

Kids (11 and 9) had a blast, too. There’s some debate over whether kids should see it, and I say yes. The adult stuff really is mild enough that it goes over their heads. And there’s tons of silliness in it that the kids enjoyed, so they were never really bored. I also was proud my son:

Spoiler: show

Kept rooting for Allen and said if he was in this world he’d want to help Allen, too. Raising my kid right!

I hope Gosling gets an Oscar nod. He won’t because of the film type, but man that dude went all in. He was the perfect Ken for this film.

Side note: If you never saw the Netflix documentary The Toys that Made Us there’s an episode on Barbie I highly recommend watching before seeing the film. It will help you understand some side comments made in the film regarding the creator. It also really shows the connection between what Mattel thinks of Barbie and how that framed what this film is about.

[Krandor]

Gosling prolly will get an Oscar nod. Giving the noms to bigger movies that have no chance to win but made it big in the box office is pretty standard these days to try to convince people to actually watch the awards show. Moreso since it's not a superhero movie

[Yuri-G]

Saw it last night with the kiddos and had an absolute blast.

Woke up today and enjoyed repub tears over the wokeness and how more people are seeing it than that qanon sound of freedom film.

Really was a film that embedded smart topics in completely stupid fun, and I enjoy comedies like that.

I did feel personally attacked though at the

Spoiler: show

Pride and prejudice miniseries. Omg that’s so me. I watch that miniseries annually, just reread the book for the millionth time, and just watched Austinland. Lol!

Kids (11 and 9) had a blast, too. There’s some debate over whether kids should see it, and I say yes. The adult stuff really is mild enough that it goes over their heads. And there’s tons of silliness in it that the kids enjoyed, so they were never really bored. I also was proud my son:

Spoiler: show

Kept rooting for Allen and said if he was in this world he’d want to help Allen, too. Raising my kid right!

I hope Gosling gets an Oscar nod. He won’t because of the film type, but man that dude went all in. He was the perfect Ken for this film.

Side note: If you never saw the Netflix documentary The Toys that Made Us there’s an episode on Barbie I highly recommend watching before seeing the film. It will help you understand some side comments made in the film regarding the creator. It also really shows the connection between what Mattel thinks of Barbie and how that framed what this film is about.

literally just watched that show tonight! my friend said we needed to watch it after the movie.

for the movie itself, what can I say? I was emotional the entire time, when I wasn't laughing out loud. I think I knew when (early spoiler)

Spoiler: show

Barbie said "do you guys ever think about death" in the middle of the party

that I was going to love this, and I was right. the inclusion of a trans barbie made me feel things, too. fuck anyone who thinks representation doesn't matter, fuck anyone who is mad this movie "didn't speak on faith and family," fuck all those people. this was a triumph of the most simple, elemental form of humanity - quite honestly I think the feminist themes were secondary to the humanist themes. they talked about depression, they talk about creating your own meaning in life, they talk about conformity and identity... this movie just went deep and didn't stop. it definitely hit the feminism themes hard af too though, and America Ferrera's monologue toward the end was sublime on that note. also props to Kate McKinnon who just makes everything better. and last but not least... the voiceover line about (near end spoiler)

Spoiler: show

Margot Robbie being a bad choice if you want to try and make the point that she's beautiful even when she stops being stereotypical Barbie

just slayed the whole theater. so good lol

[Uzor]

I loved the movie, although I can understand people's complaints about it being "too feminist". I don't agree with it—it's the point of the movie—but I can understand people complaining about it.

[Ksandra]

I loved the movie, although I can understand people's complaints about it being "too feminist". I don't agree with it—it's the point of the movie—but I can understand people complaining about it.

I can only understand it in the sense that I understand people not willing to actually think about the meaning behind a Barbie movie and/or forgot what it was like to play with Barbie’s at a young age. (I get you don’t agree with them, just figure I’d continue the convo.)

Cause like a lot of what the movie was saying really does apply to the way girls interact with Barbie and Ken when playing. Fun fact about why Gosling accepted the role (or at least what he’s telling people is why):

Spoiler: show

He got offered the role and went out into the backyard to think on it, and saw his daughter’s Ken doll lying facedown in the mud next to a crushed lemon. Jimmy Fallon has an interview with him where you can see the picture.

And honestly, that legit is Ken. I didn’t even have a Ken doll growing up. My daughter did. I asked her if she ever played with him. She said no. Ken has like no accessories outside of outfits and whatever comes in his box. He doesn’t have a house, a car, or anything. If a girl plays with him, he’s just a tool to do whatever Barbie needs in her mind. My daughter has like 20 different Barbie’s, but only one Ken and never asked for any more. I almost want to say the only reason she has the one she does is because he came in a set with a Barbie that she wanted.

Like that’s legit the movie’s Barbieland. How girls perceive Barbie and Ken while they play. And it actually wouldn’t make sense to make Ken equal in Barbieland because girls simply do not play with him that way.

Maybe this is a way of Mattel saying they’re going to push a Ken line to get girls to play with him more. Lol

I actually like how Barbie wasn’t in love with Ken, because again, little girls don’t have that as much on their mind as one would think. Like, I did have two dolls (not babies) that were “in love” but that was modeled after what I saw from my parents and tv. It was very innocent. I wouldn’t be surprised if a lot of girls didn’t give their Ken doll the time of day in that regard.

The movie is pretty brilliant in that regards.

[Krandor]

I think the people complaining about it being too feminist or whatever is heavily overblown and doesn't exist outside of Twitter (like 90% of controversy these days).

But like... wtf else was a Barbie movie going to be about? I mean maybe if we had gotten the Amy Schumer monstrosity when it was originally being developed it would have just been some dumb comedy with no real message

[Yuri-G]

I mean the movie wasn't even straightforward feminist, it was a lot more complicated than that. It's a feminist movie, but it turns inward and critically examines feminism via

Spoiler: show

the treatment of Ken in Barbieland as well as the rejection of "Weird Barbie" by the greater Barbie populace

and also uses feminism as a lens to explore common experiences within general human condition regardless of gender. but if you're Ben Shapiro it's threatening :shrug

[Andalusian girls]

asking for any critical thought on gender beyond PENIS = MAN is immediately gonna talk you past a very emotional 40% of the country

[Astylla]

I'm pretty sure I'm the only woman I know personally who didn't care for the Barbie movie. I enjoyed some moments , nostalgia was real as I had many of the items featured and some good laughs.

I absolutely expected it to be feminism forward but for me personally was over the top but also knew what to expect from the director. Definitely not a kids movie as the few kids in the theater were bored and annoying, like all of them were under 10 if not younger.
That ending scene was..weird.

Margot Robbie killed it in the role though.
But my favorite parts were with the Kens and Ryan Gosling.

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[Andalusian girls]

finally sawr this, loved it, hilarious with some solid thematic messaging targeted at both men women and humans. couple surprisingly emotional beats. Gosling #1 mojo dojo casa house. 3/4 absurdist gender deconstructions + humanity affirmations

[Tomiko]