'Barbie' keeps it fun and safe

Barbie
English (Theatres)
Director: Greta Gerwig
Cast: Margot Robbie, Ryan Gosling, America Ferrera
Rating: 3.5/5

As we step into the whimsical world of Barbie, it brings back a sense of familiarity, nostalgia as well as good play on the humour in things that we missed when we were younger.

The colours and recreation of the Barbie doll houses and characters brings the movie alive, transporting us to captivating realms of pink.

The mystical world of Barbie and our more jarring world of reality are merging, discovering loopholes that have been ignored when creating this role model figure. Barbie, played by Margot Robbie is astonished to find that young girls are not simply inspired by Barbie, but also face many insecurities and expectations because of the “Barbie” image.

This movie is not exactly for children playing with the dolls but for those who grew up with the idea of Barbie.

America Ferrera playing ‘Gloria’ in the film left the audience in the theatre clapping and cheering in agreement. She vocalises her feelings on multiple expectations from a doll, which she sees as only a tiny glimpse at the multitude of expectations that are placed on a young girl or a woman.

The message seems to be deliberately obvious and handed to us, but the satire, choice of music and dialogues blend it into a rollercoaster of emotions. It seems as if the narrative takes a dig at Barbie itself while providing a new perspective, crafted intentionally by Greta Gerwig and co-written by Noah Baumbach.

Even though some of the dialogues in the beginning of the film get redundant, the movie strips its sugary coat of perfection and pink by the end of the film when the choices in the Barbie world turn into either patriarchy or a war of genders started by Ken played by Ryan Gosling's search for his own identity in the real world.

Ryan Gosling carries the role of Ken charmingly, creating the "She's Barbie, He's Just Ken" conflict. The perfect, women- run society, is threatened by a looming presence of an unjust reality.

The movie tiptoes on the brink of some problems regarding Mattel’s Barbie, but it sticks to less serious issues and conceals them with hilarious one liners.