Barbie and Ken are having the time of their lives in the colorful and seemingly perfect world of Barbie Land. However, when they get a chance to go to the real world, they soon discover the joys and perils of living among humans, forcing Barbie to question her own reality and purpose.
Information |
|
|---|---|
Language |
English |
Country |
United States |
Premiere date |
July 21, 2023 |
Running time |
114 minutes |
Genre |
Adventure Comedy Fantasy |
Budget |
$145,000,000 |
Box Office |
$1,445,638,421 |
Crew |
|
Directed by |
Greta Gerwig |
Produced by |
Margot Robbie |
Written by |
Greta Gerwig |
Music by |
Mark Ronson |
Cinematography |
Rodrigo Prieto |
Edited by |
Nick Houy |
Production Co. |
Heyday Films |
Distributed by |
Warner Bros. Pictures |
Official Trailer
The Plot
The Dawn of Girlhood
The story begins with a grand, cinematic homage to "2001: A Space Odyssey." A narrator explains that since the beginning of time, little girls have only ever had baby dolls to play with, resigning them to the sole role of mothers. This changes abruptly with the arrival of a monolith-like giant: the original Barbie. Mesmerized by this new figure of independent womanhood, the little girls violently smash their porcelain baby dolls into pieces. This revolution ushers in a new era in "Barbie Land," a bright, pink, matriarchal utopia where women hold every prestigious position imaginable. From President Barbie and Supreme Court Justice Barbie to Physicist Barbie and Doctor Barbie, the dolls run the world with effortless perfection.
Life in Plastic
In this idyllic society, the Barbies live in their Dreamhouses, while the Kens exists solely as their counterparts. The Kens have no jobs, no homes of their own, and their entire existence is predicated on being acknowledged by a Barbie. "Beach Ken" spends his days trying to impress Stereotypical Barbie, often competing with a rival Ken. Tensions rise on the beach when Ken, desperate for attention, tries to assert dominance, leading to a threat to "beach off" one another. Despite the friction, the atmosphere remains joyous. The world is populated by various iterations of the dolls, including the pregnant and discontinued doll Midge, and Allan, a unique doll who does not fit in with the horde of Kens.
Irrepressible Thoughts of Death
The day concludes with a spectacular, choreographed dance party at Barbie’s Dreamhouse. The Barbies and Kens celebrate their perfect existence until Stereotypical Barbie suddenly halts the music by loudly asking, "Do you guys ever think about dying?" The record scratches, and the party falls into a stunned silence. Barbie quickly laughs it off to restore the vibe, but the damage is done. The following morning, Barbie wakes up to a series of horrifying malfunctions: her breath smells bad, her shower water is cold, her waffle burns, and, most catastrophically, her permanently arched feet go flat, and she discovers cellulite on her thigh.
The Oracle of Weird Barbie
Panic-stricken, the other Barbies advise her to seek out "Weird Barbie," a doll who lives in seclusion on a hill, having been played with too roughly in the real world, resulting in chopped hair, magic marker makeup, and a permanent mostly-split stance. Weird Barbie diagnoses the problem: the child playing with Barbie in the Real World is sad, and their emotions are bleeding into Barbie Land. To cure her afflictions and return to perfection, Barbie must travel to the Real World and find the child. Barbie reluctantly trades her high heels for Birkenstocks and sets off in her pink convertible. However, she is surprised to find that Ken has stowed away in the back seat, insisting on joining her. Together, they cross the boundaries between worlds.
Venice Beach and the Patriarchy
The duo arrives in Venice Beach, California, instantly drawing attention with their neon rollerblading outfits. Barbie is immediately uncomfortable, feeling the aggressive male gaze and an undercurrent of hostility she has never experienced. When a man sexually assaults her by slapping her buttocks, she instinctively punches him in the face. This leads to Barbie and Ken being arrested, though they are quickly released. While Barbie feels vulnerable, Ken feels empowered; he observes that in the Real World, men are respected and hold power solely for being men. He becomes fascinated by the concept of the patriarchy, mistaking it for a system based on horses and masculinity.
Visions and Rejection
Barbie sits on a bench to collect herself and experiences visions of a girl growing up, feeling the complexity of human emotion. She notices an elderly woman sitting next to her and tells her, "You're beautiful." The woman smiles and replies, "I know." Guided by her psychic connection, Barbie tracks down her owner at a local high school. She identifies a teenager named Sasha and attempts to bond with her, but Sasha is hostile. Sasha and her friends criticize Barbie for perpetuating unrealistic beauty standards and consumerism, calling her a "fascist" and telling her that nobody plays with her anymore. Heartbroken, Barbie flees.
The Mattel Chase
Simultaneously, the CEO of Mattel learns that two dolls have breached the Real World. He orders their capture to prevent a catastrophe. Barbie arrives at Mattel headquarters, hoping to find answers, while Ken wanders off to Century City to learn more about the patriarchy. Barbie is escorted to the boardroom, where the CEO tries to persuade her to get into a giant, life-sized toy box to be "remanufactured." Realizing this is a trap, Barbie escapes, leading the executives on a chase through the office building. She is rescued by Gloria, a receptionist at Mattel who happens to be Sasha’s mother. It is revealed that Gloria is the one whose existential crisis and drawings of "Dark Barbie" caused Barbie’s malfunction, not Sasha.
Welcome to the Kendom
Barbie, Gloria, and Sasha return to Barbie Land to fix things, but they find the world transformed. Ken, having returned first, has implemented the patriarchy. Barbie Land is now "Kendom." The Dreamhouses have been turned into "Mojo Dojo Casa Houses," stocked with mini-fridges and horse imagery. The Barbies have been brainwashed into submissive roles, serving the Kens beers and acting as maids or foot-rubbers. Ken, wearing a mink coat and headband, rejects Barbie, telling her he finally feels valuable. He intends to rewrite the constitution to enshrine male superiority permanently.
Depression and the Resistance
Devastated and feeling she has no purpose, Barbie falls into a deep depression, lying face-down on the ground. A commercial for "Depressed Barbie" plays in the background, featuring a doll who wears sweatpants and scrolls through her phone for hours. Gloria and Sasha, disappointed, attempt to drive back to the Real World. However, they are intercepted by Allan, who is desperate to escape the toxic masculinity of the Kens. They encounter a group of Kens building a wall to seal off the Kendom. Allan single-handedly fights off the construction workers. Witnessing the chaos, Sasha convinces her mother that they cannot leave Barbie behind.
The De-programming
They return to Weird Barbie’s house, where Barbie is despondent. Gloria gives an impassioned, monologue about the contradictory and impossible standards women are forced to navigate in the Real World—how they must be thin but not too thin, bossy but not mean, and mothers who don't talk about their kids too much. The speech resonates deeply, snapping Barbie out of her trance. It also de-programs the other Barbies present. Realizing that the brainwashed Barbies can be saved by hearing this truth, the group devises a plan. They distract the Kens by playing on their egos and feigning helplessness, then separate them from the brainwashed Barbies to de-program them one by one.
I'm Just Ken
To stop the constitutional vote, the Barbies manipulate the Kens into turning on each other. By flirting with rival Kens, they incite a massive jealousy-fueled civil war. The Kens engage in a battle on the beach, armed with tennis rackets and plungers, which evolves into a surreal dream-ballet sequence. Ken belts out a power ballad, "I'm Just Ken," lamenting his blond fragility and lack of identity outside of Barbie. While the Kens are distracted by their dance-off, the Barbies sneak into the government building and vote to restore the matriarchal constitution.
Resolution and Purpose
The Kens realize they have lost. Barbie finds Ken sobbing; he admits that the patriarchy wasn't as fun as he thought once he realized it wasn't really about horses, and that he only wanted power because he felt invisible without her. Barbie apologizes for taking him for granted but insists that he must find his own identity, separate from "Barbie and Ken." The Mattel executives arrive, ready to box Barbie up, but the Barbies and Kens—now agreeing to a more inclusive society where Kens have some minor representation—stand their ground.
The Creator's Blessing
The spirit of Ruth Handler, the creator of Barbie, appears. She takes Barbie aside to a white void. Ruth explains that Barbie has no set ending and that her legacy has outgrown her origins. She shows Barbie a montage of women of all ages, mothers and daughters, laughing, crying, and living distinct, messy human lives. Barbie, moved to tears, realizes she no longer wants to be the idea of a woman, but rather the woman who does the imagining. Despite Ruth's warning that being human means experiencing pain and mortality, Barbie chooses to leave her plastic life behind.
Barbara Handler
The film concludes in the Real World. A car pulls up to an office building. Gloria, her husband, and Sasha offer encouraging words to the passenger. Barbie, now wearing a simple blazer and Birkenstocks, steps out of the car. She walks to the front desk and proudly announces, "I'm here to see my gynecologist," embracing her new life as a human woman named Barbara Handler.
Top Cast
- Margot Robbie as Barbie
- Ryan Gosling as Ken
- America Ferrera as Gloria
- Ariana Greenblatt as Sasha
- Kate McKinnon as Weird Barbie
- Issa Rae as President Barbie
- Simu Liu as Ken
- Will Ferrell as Mattel CEO
- Michael Cera as Allan
- Helen Mirren as Narrator
