Film Review - Barbie (2023)

Barbenheimer phenomenon, given its shared release date with the equally great Oppenheimer, its success was largely its own. In an age where mainstream cinema is dominated by male-centric superhero or action franchises that just seem to get more lifeless with each new entry, Barbie provided idiosyncratic glitz and glamour that was both gargantuanly fun and so proudly feminist that it felt like the cinematic culmination of Gloria Steinem’s philosophy on feminism preaching equality of both genders. It is one of 2023’s defining films, and it is now yours to own on DVD, Blu-Ray and 4K.

Margot Robbie plays stereotypical Barbie. In her own words, she’s the barbie you think of when you’re told to think of a Barbie. She lives in Barbieland, an idyllic world defined by matriarchy – women, represented by various different Barbies, hold all positions of power and live in the closest thing to utopia. But when stereotypical Barbie starts to experience things considered paranormal in Barbieland – namely flat feet and irrepressible thoughts of death. To fix herself, she goes to the real world to find her original owner, accompanied by Ken (Ryan Gosling), who pines longingly for Barbie. It is through her journey to the real world that Barbie comes to find herself.

The Blu-Ray disc contains your expected features with the film itself, scene selection, audio for differing languages, and subtitles that are also in different languages. Like with any standard form of physical media, these give you options of exploring the film through specific scenes or subtitles to become more immersed in the audiovisual translation of the script. Included within the special features are six featurettes that provide deeper insights into the top notch craftsmanship that went into the creation of this visually euphoric explosion of colour.

Amongst the featurettes are insightful looks into the production design, especially in regards to the crucial and sometimes overlooked departments of costume and makeup. These include a featurette called Becoming Barbie, which takes a deep dive into the various wigs that were used to recreate the iconic platinum blonde look of Barbie’s hair, which in turn reveals the subtle transformations that the characters undergo as their experiences in the real world translate into their growth in of aesthetic as well as character arcs. Other featurettes include detailed looks into how Barbieland came to be, through the combination of the art and props departments, as well as the smaller details captured through make-up and costuming, the latter of which was led by Jacqueline Durran, who won an Oscar for her previous Gerwig collaboration, the masterpiece that is Little Women.

For those who want that deeper dive into how the film was created, the Blu-Ray certainly provides. It will scratch the itch of any buyer intrigued by how media is brought to life through the combination of a dozen and more different departments all striving to achieve one goal. In one of the featurettes, Gerwig wisely observes that much of the direction occurs before shooting even begins, and her jovial love of craft couldn’t be any more pronounced in the craftsmanship’s callbacks to the Barbie brand’s industry, the immaculate layers of different pinks and the influences that feel as unique as the film itself. Such influences include 50s musical films like Singin’ in the Rain, silent films without the sophistication of today’s technology, creating a feeling that Gerwig describes as “authentically artificial” and even Hitchcock’s Psycho, which inspired elements of the house that Weird Barbie (Kate McKinnon) occupies. This is a film that loves both Barbie and the fact that it’s a film.

If there’s anything the Blu-Ray is lacking, it’s an audio commentary that goes a bit deeper into the themes of the story. Perhaps this is a feature included in the 4K disc, but what makes Barbie such a special film is not just how incredible it looks – and looks incredible – but how deep its heart is. The featurettes make reference to the rich history of the brand and how that has affected women both positively and negatively throughout history. Perhaps that is enough, and the featurettes are certainly a lot of fun, but it would have been interesting to have a full length commentary that allowed Gerwig and others to further discuss influences, ideas and what messages they were trying to convey and how they went about executing them.

Regardless though, it’s still your way of owning one of the year’s best films for yourself. If your sole reason for purchase is to have a means of rewatching the film as often as you like then that is reason enough. The film not only comes packing the enormous entertainment value of its comedy, direction, and performances, of which Robbie delights and Gosling steals the show, but its themes are as rich as its craftsmanship is detailed. Many have called Barbie a gender studies 101 class, and while that description is not inaccurate it perhaps simplifies it a little. It’s a smart and empathetic look into the ways that society – dominated by patriarchy – compartmentalises people into being things they aren’t, and thus stripping them of what makes them individuals. America Ferrera’s immaculately emotional monologue captures the effects of this on women so astutely, yet the film is remarkably kind towards men as well, portraying them perhaps as a little ignorant but still victims of the same oppressive ideology that shapes patriarchy. It still baffles the mind that some people label the film “anti-male” because it objectively isn’t. Sure, the tagline “he’s just Ken” is a funny jape but it is also a powerful encapsulation that being just Ken, and thus just yourself, is enough. Frankly, more films should be as emotionally aware as this one.

Barbie didn’t become the year’s highest grossing film by accident, and the sales of its physical media will hopefully have just as fruitful a life. The film is as aesthetically beautiful as it is massively fun. If this Blu-Ray, through its featurettes, conveys just one thing it’s how delightful of an experience everyone involved in the film had, from the cast to the art department to the costuming and makeup crews to the producers overseeing it. That delight translates to every byte on screen, both in the cinema and on your television set.