Barbie: A Journey through Pink, Laughter, and Womanhood

I may have bought tickets for the Barbie movie, but it was my young self, who loved playing dress up, dancing, singing, and playing with dolls, who watched it — she was the one to feel the warm embrace of Barbie.

One of the hottest movies this summer and earning US$1.38 billion at the global box office, Barbie had been a topic of conversation for many weeks past its release date, continuing to capture the interests of individuals and families alike.

The movie is pure eye candy, with hundreds of shades of pink spread out over the big screen in Barbieland. I gasped, recognizing the dreamhouses and the small but endearing details of the set created identically to the original toys and the ways children would play with them — no milk or juice in the cups, the refrigerator door having plastic bottles and condiments with the back side merely a sticker, and Barbie floating from the top floor to her car as a homage to the memories of young children never walking her down the stairs.

The Barbies’ outfits were each mesmerizing, and I would have loved to dress my dolls in Margot Robbie Barbie’s pink and white gingham dress. I wished I had her magical closet, as all I would have to do was wear today’s outfit, and tomorrow’s appeared before my eyes! If I could, I would go to Barbieland and never return to the real world!

Naturally, a Greta Gerwig movie would be incomplete without commentaries on womanhood. With themes like gender equality, patriarchal and matriarchal societies, mother-daughter bonds, and the struggles and expectations set upon women, the Barbie movie is so much more than a comedic film about a children’s toy.

The Gerwigian monologue that the Little Women (2019) director is renowned for including in her films was certainly not disappointing, delivered by America Ferrera in this particular movie, who plays a human mother in the real world, expressing her experiences with unrealistic expectations set on women, such as the belief that women should never be rude, never show off, never be selfish, never show fear, never get out of line yet are rarely shown appreciation despite following all the rules, juxtaposing the well-known phrase that women can be anything, instead suggesting that women should be everything.

Barbie has always advocated that “women can be anything”, but sometimes it feels more like “women should be everything”.

The segment between Stereotypical Barbie and Ruth Handler, the creator of Barbie, was yet another scene I found meaningful. Depicted as mother and daughter, Handler says, “We mothers stand still so our daughters can look back to see how far they have come,” encouraging us to reflect on the sacrifices mothers make for their children to succeed and how much love they have for them.

Aside from these themes, the Barbie movie reconnects and resurfaces nostalgia, especially in girls who used to play with Barbie dolls as young girls and have now grown up, such as the movie referencing a “Weird Barbie” with a face covered with marker drawings and hair which had been cut and colored with markers in wacky ways. Several who were watching may have had one in their childhood as well, igniting laughter and perhaps “I had one too!” echoing in the theater.

Through its blend of comedic references and themes surrounding womanhood and being human, the Barbie movie has brought audiences laughter, nostalgia, and tears, leaving them exiting the theater with an unfeigned heart.