I suppose I’m a bit of a prude when it comes to Barbie. There was so much hype about this movie, that I wasn’t going to go see it.
I mean, I started sewing for Barbie when I was literally three years old. I’ve had a relationship with this doll longer than the CEO of Mattel has been alive.
They couldn’t possibly make a movie I could relate to…
But they did.
My oldest daughter and I were sitting at the kitchen table having a chat, and the topic of the movie came up.
I opened my mouth, and the words just plopped out… “Do you want to go see it?”
Thirty minutes later, we were in the car, headed to the theater.
And yes, the movie is everything they’re saying about it:
- Cast — five stars.
- Comedic moments — five stars.
- Nostalgia — five stars.
It takes you back to the doll you loved the most — no matter which doll it was. They’re all in there.
And the comedy! Holy Moses! I laughed until I cried.
Kate McKinnon plays a character called “Weird Barbie,” and there’s this awesome montage where you see a flashback of a little girl cutting Weird Barbie’s hair, drawing green lipstick on her with a Sharpie, and generally making a disastrous mess out of her.
OH MY GOODNESS! Kate McKinnon probably won’t get an Oscar for this part (because talk about prudes— they never give Oscars for comedy) but she RRRREALLY deserves an Oscar for this one.
And now for the best spoiler of all…
My favorite scene was when Alan went all karate-chop on the other Ken dolls!
Because let’s face it… who played with Alan? I know I didn’t!
That doll had some pent up frustrations that made total sense to me!
At least in my childhood, poor Alan always had to stay inside the Barbie carrier while Barbie flew her jet airplane to Tahiti and learned how to hula dance. Ken stood beside Barbie, downing margaritas, and all the other Barbies played bit parts in my storylines, but poor Alan! He never got taken out of the Barbie case!
So I now have a warm place in my heart for Alan, and I can see why people have so many great things to say about that doll online. Michael Cera was the perfect guy to play this doll!
What was your favorite part of the movie? Leave your thoughts on the Barbie movie in the comments section please.
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I was given my first Barbie in 1959 at the age of 9–I’ve love Barbie, Ken, Midge and yes, Alan since those early years. I absolutely laughed and laughed–and loved Kate McKinnon as “Weird Barbie”. I understand the movie and Barbies had to start from a place in time, but was sad that the early Barbies and Midge didn’t have a bit more of the early history. I have my old ’59 Barbie and some early ’60s Barbies and Midges and a few parts of original wardrobes.
Yes, I get that. I kept thinking, “Where’s Brad?” and “Where’s Christie?” because I grew up in the 1970’s, when Black Barbie was called Christie and Black Ken was called Brad.
However, if you read the article on Wikipedia called, “List of Barbie’s friends and family,” you can see why they couldn’t possibly feature every incarnation of each character ever associated with Barbie in the film. It would have taken too long!
But they did pay homage to key turning-point characters in the opening montage, which I’m fine with. Some of the ones that really made me laugh were pregnant Midge and Growing Up Skipper! I loved when America Ferrera’s character showed her daughter how Growing Up Skipper’s arm-turning trick works! That was hilarious!
Somehow… maybe because my best Barbie bud was my Native American cousin (who had all the racially diverse Barbies), I really felt like a piece of Barbie history was missing because Brad and Christie didn’t get mentioned as key turning points in Barbie’s past.
However racial diversity was truly well-represented in the overall cast of the Barbie film, so I guess I need to let that little nugget of Barbie history go and give them credit for making the Barbieland president an African American woman. That was truly cool!
If you want to see an overview of all the dolls in one big picture, there’s a great Barbie family tree on Flickr.
Thank you for adding to the discussion with your comment!
Hi! I totally enjoy your emails and you tube videos. I got my Barbie ay age 4…in 63. Barbie and I were born same year;) the first 5 years she had something that said the year she was sold. My Baby is a 4th year model. She has the black pony tail. I never really got into the blonde ones particularly with all that pink!. The next year I got the first year model Midge. I love her! Also got Skipper too! I got Ken for my 6th birthday and Alan soon after. Alan is a first year model as well. I loved him more than Ken! Over time I got another Ken, a Ricky (Alan’s little brother who was Skippers boyfriend), a Penny Bright, Tutti, Francis and Stacey. I still have them all. My mom made clothes as well as bought them. I bought a reproduction blonde Barbie in white wedding dress in 19 only because of her ponytail! I don’t really want to see the movie cause she is of the pink era.. so don’t like the trailers I’ve watched either. Your opinion is the first good review of someone that I actually trust who loves Barbies like I do. Thank you so much. I may see it just for Alan!
If you do go see it, Roberta, take a friend with you or a family member. Not a manly-man (like my husband who would never have understood half the jokes), but someone who played with Barbies as a child.
Like I said in this article, I took my daughter, and her favorite “Barbie” growing up, was this silly little dog that Barbie could feed, and it would poop! That silly dog actually made an appearance in the film, and as soon as my daughter saw it, she connected with the movie in a meaningful way.
There’s truly something for every Barbie fan in this movie. ❤️