Barbie is no longer just a doll. After many years, the well-known Mattel toy finally got her own movie, which hits theaters this Thursday, July 20. The movie, like Barbie, is perfect. From beginning to end, the differences between Barbieland and the real world are made clear. Only director Greta Gerwig could have taken on such a project. This, alongside Margot Robbie's performance, makes Barbie one of the movies of the summer and, surely, of the year.
Greta Gerwig is an expert in making movies with a feminist touch where she criticizes the hetero-patriarchal society. She did it in "Little Women" and "Lady Bird" and now she has done it in masterfully in "Barbie." She has managed to perfectly capture both Barbie's ideology and that of the real society, which the doll is unfamiliar with. For this reason, Barbie considers her to be a role model for girls. Greta captures this throughout the movie.
Barbie considers herself to be an inspiration to women all over the world. Barbieland is full of dolls of different professions, sizes and races. Soon, however, one doll begins to stand out from the rest.
That would be the one Barbie who shouldn't: the stereotypical Barbie (played by the brilliant Margot Robbie). She, overnight, begins to experience factory defects that force her to travel to the real world.
That's when she comes face to face with reality: women do not adore her. In fact, 21st-century teenagers hate her because, in their opinion, she represents everything that is wrong with the world: sexism, environmental problems and consumerism. This changes Barbie's mentality, but she will not stop fighting to regain her lost perfection.
To do so, she will have the help of Gloria (America Ferrera) and Sasha (Ariana Greenblatt), a mother and daughter who will do whatever it takes to save both the real world and Barbieland.
They aren't Barbie's only companions. She also has Ken (Ryan Gosling) by her side. He will also make a discovery about the real world that will lead him to want to change things in Barbieland. They could make an entirely separate movie about his role. Mattel's management deserves special mention. This group of men tries to solve Barbie's problems in the most parodic way possible. They prove, once again, the need for a woman in charge, especially when it comes to designing dolls for girls.
In the end, that's the message Greta Gerwig wants viewers to take away from the movie. Women can and should be able to be in charge. They can be anything, such as a lawyer, doctor or president. Even a stereotypical Barbie, with enough motivation, can change not only Barbieland but the real world, while dressed in pink. She can save the world in style.
