Emunah Fialkoff

Looking at others reviews, I'm surprised by the negative reviews that paint Barbie as simple feminist propaganda...which it obviously wasn't. To me, more than anything, the movie was about complexity itself -- the complexity of Barbie as a toy, the complexity of feminism, and by extension, the complexity of human life. If anything, I thought the movie did an incredible job of highlighting the COSTS of an oversimplified feminism -- one in which men become mere accessories with no identity or power. The disenfranchised Ken, who lives nowhere, and is never included, is not a desirable outcome of a feminist world. Barbie becomes queen of Barbie land not because women should rule the world, but because that's just who Barbie is as a toy. Her apology to Ken, and encouragement that that he also know himself -- seems like the movie's final say on the patriarchy/feminism tension. It doesn't take one side or another. It shows them both to have costs. In all, I loved that the movie found a way to show Mattel's perspective, while poking endless fun at all its failures. I walked away with greater sympathy and respect for the brand for allowing itself to be shown to be the complex thing that it is.

This is a pretty simplistic movie, which feels as though it was written by a person whose understanding of love is at about a 15-year-old level. The script is, at times, excruciatingly cheesy and sentimental. It's relatively entertaining, but offers no real insight into anything, imho.

This movie is visually beautiful and has a relatively novel storyline. Unfortunately, it seems to lack soul. Merida is selfish from the beginning to end, which makes her an unsatisfying protagonist. She never presents us with any deep virtue to endear her. The message is cliche and adds little insight. The movie falls flat.

While the book has been fairly well adapted to the shortened time frame of this movie, I'm afraid the Keira Knightley is incapable of capturing the wit, charm, and rectitude that make Elizabeth a lovable character. Without her character in place, the entire romance feels improbable. Why does Darcy love her if we as audience members do not?