Barbie (2023)
No, you can't make use hate Ryan Gosling.
Presentation:
This film crushed the boxed office for its spectacle. Sets are vivid and colorful drawing in a unique color palette that only a Barbie themed film could support. Dazzling and unapologetically flamboyant imagery. Being a Barbie film, you should expect nothing less than a movie promoting female empowerment. Although there are definitely some unnecessarily offensive representations of men, it is actually relevant for the theme of this film. The problems is the script treats the commentary against male patriarchy with the same outdated humor of 2000s films like Freaky Friday or The Hot Chick, which ends up just not being funny for the most part. I’m talking about random screaming from Will Ferrell. This kind of explicit social commentary is tired and simply not appropriate for a film meant to immerse you in escapism fantasy. The film tries hard to convince you how bad men are but I couldn't help myself being more drawn to the Kens as Ryan Gosling is simply too charismatic in this role. The Kens are naturally funny and the Barbies over-compensate their competence and seriousness, which ends up feeling insecure. Politics aside, the film tries to make you dislike men but I actually wanted to see more of the Kens screen time and less of the Barbies.
Conclusion:
A polarizing and regrettably successful film, which was so boring and cliché that both Chili and I did not bother to finish the movie. The final message does somewhat have redeeming qualities. You either love this one or hate it, but it's a wonder how a film designed to be fun has such a negative outlook.
Recommendations
No wonder no one wants to get married.