Cinematherapy - Barbie

The Matel toy company makes the Barbie doll and all the outfits and other paraphernalia. The toy has become a cultural icon with multiple generations of girls having played with the doll since its launch into the American toy market in 1959.The Barbie doll is loved and much sought after but also the target of multiple feminist and cultural critiques.

In the movie the stereotypical Barbie is the main character who travels between the world of toyland and the human world. She goes through a crisis of identity entailing whether she wants to stay in perfect toyland or the imperfect human world.

This is not a kid’s movie. It is intended for an adult audience presenting a cultural critique in a colorful, comedic, and thoughtful way. The question of whether Matel’s Barbie toy dynasty is a force for good or evil or both is explored throughout the film in a playful way (no pun intended.)

The main point seems to be that Barbie has empowered women to be more than housewives and mothers of the 50s to independent, self assured, empowered people in a slowly atrophying patriarchal society of today.

The movie might be required in a sociology course which uses cinema to demonstrate social norms and attitudes and how they develop and evolve over time. It could be recommended to people struggling with issues of authenticity, genuineness, self worth and self esteem. Barbie was a social icon of sorts which fueled the imaginations of millions of American girls who created all kinds of stories of social and personal identity in their play. The movie is also of interest to people who care about cultural history and how its knowledge can be used for self and social understanding.

Barbie earns a 4 out of 5 on Markham’s cinematherapy scale.