Suburban Dad Pop

By now you have seen or are at least aware of the cultural phenomenon that is Barbie, and if you aren’t familiar, you must be living under a hollow, plastic rock. Or maybe in a Dream House.

Directed by Greta Gerwig and co-written with partner Noah Baumbach, Barbie parallels and pays homage to Dorothy’s journey in Wizard of Oz: A seemingly helpless young woman travels between different worlds, via magical circumstances, while discovering her inner strengths and eventually uncovering the fact that society is run by men behind literal and/or figurative curtains. Of course, both tales include a cast of fantastical characters, musical numbers, and are a reflection of the times they are filmed in.

The difference is that the Wizard of Oz allegory pertaining to the American populist movement of the early 1900s is replaced by a narrative that shines a light on the modern American patriarchy.

Gerwig takes a lot of chances, and is frequently rewarded, with the way in which she pokes at the patriarchy. Barbie Land, where Barbie dolls exist, is a peaceful utopia run by women, the overwhelming majority of which (aside from a few discontinued models) are named Barbie. In this world, women have all of the jobs and make all decisions. From garbage collectors to attorneys to the Supreme Court to the Presidency, women make the trains run on time and as a result, their matriarchal society flourishes as it is absent from the pressures applied to women in the real world.

Inversely, in Barbie Land, all men are named Ken, largely have no influence, and are beach bums, which they hilariously consider a position of power. The lone male exception in Barbie Land is a singular and discontinued Allan (Michael Cera), who although marketed as Ken’s best friend, often sides with the Barbies and shares none of the Ken’s juvenile antics. Personally, I would have liked to see more of Allan (more on this later), as Barbie could have benefited from more of Cera’s sardonic delivery and comedic timing.

However, all is not right in Barbie land as an existential crisis leads Barbie (Margot Robie) to the real world to connect Gloria (America Ferrera), an adult mother and Barbie enthusiast, and her disillusioned daughter Sasha (Ariana Greenblatt). Barbie, once in the real world is confronted with the opinion that her appearance has helped power the patriarchy and as a result experiences self-doubt, anxiety, and depression for the first time.

Adding to Barbie’s dilemma is the fact that ‘Beach’ Ken (Ryan Gossling), an insecure doll with a Barbie obsession, has stowed away to the Real World with Barbie and is complicating her mission with his constant need for attention and approval. Gosling sinks in teeth into this role, which is largely but not completely comedic, and sells the audience on Ken’s brainless, heartless, and cowardly tendencies.

An amalgamation of the Scarecrow, Tin Man, and Lion encapsulated into a singular character who encompasses the fragile male ego. Pretty damn brilliant.

Hopefully young people, particularly young women, will examine Barbie and Ken’s relationship and recognize the red flags. Ken’s jealousy and need for Barbie’s constant attention should jump out to anyone watching and alert them to the fact that relationships, where one person can manipulate the other into doing their bidding (such as taking them to the Real World) is not healthy, and needs to be stepped away from.

Robie, as a distraught and, by Barbie standards, disheveled life form who is having her first experiencing with cognitive dissonance completely shines while conveying human emotions at their most raw and vulnerable. Complicating Barbie’s life even further is the Wicked Witch of the West, in the form of unnamed Mattel CEO played by Will Ferrell, releases his corporate lackeys/Flying Monkeys to try and get Barbie back to Barbie Land and thusly stop a huge corporate scandal.

As Barbie gets deeper into her mission of self-reflection and discovery, Ken learns more about the patriarchy of the real world and does his best to implement those practices at Barbie Land while hilariously (and sadly) transforming it into an ode to Sylvester Stallone, Saloons, and Horses. Gerwig allows her creative juices to flow and movie travels to a uproarious and action-packed jaunt that encompasses more singing and spoofs such Hollywood classics as West Side Story, Top Gun, and Apocalypse Now.

I’m not going to lie – the version of my mid-twenties self would have loved the Mojo Dojo Casa House.

Eventually, the Barbies outsmart the Kens and return Barbie Land to its matriarchal nature. At the end of this journey Barbie reconnects with her Good Witch Glinda, the spirit of Mattel founder and Barbie creator Ruth Handler (Rhea Perlman), who alerts Barbie to the fact that she was always worthy of her mission. This scene coupled with Handler allowing Barbie to experience the gauntlet of human women’s physical and emotional experiences, thus ending Barbie’s existential crisis, induces goose bumps and is perhaps the crowning moment of Perlman’s illustrious career.

One change I would have made to the ending is that I would have liked to see Allan escape to the real world where he could have taught men about the importance of women and the dangers of fragile masculinity. Mattel could have made Ken a spokesperson, reissued his doll, and made a fortune, and simultaneously improved society.

Of course, now I feel like I am mansplaining a better ending.

In the end, if you like campy films and are secure in who you are, odds are you will enjoy Barbie. And if you are a man who takes offense at a movie about a doll who comes to life, empowers women, and points out the flaws of a society that needs to value women more, maybe you need to be more of an Allen and less of a Ken.

After all, the patriarchy isn’t about horses.

Fur Coats and Rollerblades

• I am sure that there were some refences I missed but from the 2001: A Space Odyssey to The Matrix to verbalizing The Shining joke, Gerwig was on fire with her pop culture odes and spoofs.
• The Push and Closer I Am To Fine needle drops were perfection and although obviously not written for Barbie, were every bit as tantamount to the story as If I Only Had A Brain and Somewhere Over The Rainbow were to The Wizard of Oz.
• I don’t think anyone could have done Weird Barbie as Kate McKinnon and am patiently waiting for a dramatic staring vehicle for her.
• The montage of Ken applying for a job still has me laughing.
• Gerwig fought the studio to keep the bus stop scene where Barbie compliments the woman waiting on the bus. This beautiful and simple scene did a wonderful job with its message while simultaneously showcasing Robbie’s chops in front of the camera and Gerwig’s skill behind the camera.
• Explaining The Godfather? Check. Talking about Pavement and Indie Rock while standing over a turntable? Been there. Acoustic guitar serenade? Guilty as charged. I felt particularly seen during this montage and it was hilarious.