[Quick Summary: Barbie leaves Barbie Land to find out why she is starting to feel real feelings, and finds out things are not as perfect as she thought.]
THE FILM: I saw the film first, and liked act 1, but not 2 and 3. I got confused, and I'm afraid, slightly bored. Was it the script's fault?
THE SCRIPT: The script surprised me. It is clearer than the film, well-written, inventive, and reads at a zippy, carefree pace (even acts 2 and 3).
So if the script is pretty much the same as the film, why do I think the film does not quite deliver the promise of the script? What got lost in the execution?
I don't know exactly, but here are my two cents:
1) PATRIARCHY DOESN'T LEND ITSELF TO SNAPPY REPARTEE. I admire the writers' ambitions to tackle a BIG topic which read well on the page.
However, the arguments require time and explanation...which bogs down the speed that satire needs for laughs.* As a result, the film was more telling than showing.
2) TOO EARNEST? Satire also requires a good dose of ridicule. In Acts 2 and 3, I found the tone...too earnest? Trying to make a point? I wish there were more irony.
I do think this script is worth reading, especially for Act 1's breezy, ridiculous fun.
I particularly like the first description of Barbie Land (below), which captures the mindset of how little girls play with Barbies, with exuberance and female-centric:
EXT. BARBIE LAND. DAY
Barbie Margot waves happily, sometimes with both hands, to other Barbies as her car silently drives itself through a bustling town. It's like Richard Scarry's Busy Town for Barbie. It's a wonder of color and shape. The houses are all see-through, like the toys, it's a Noah's Ark of doll-tastic magic.
It's also completely run by women. They hold every kind of job. Barbie Margot waves to a Barbie mail carrier, and an all Barbie construction crew. There is the occasional Ken, but mostly it's Barbie.
Barbie Margot drives past the Barbie White House which is, of course, pink.
WHAT I'VE LEARNED: I was most moved when this script captured the fun, weird spirit of a child playing with Barbies. The movement of the characters even feel like play.
Barbie (2023)
by Greta Gerwig & Noah Baumbach
*Margot Robbie recounts (here) that Gerwig wanted her actors to speak at a certain pace and referenced His Girl Friday, one of my all time favorite screwball comedies.
One of the things that I love about His Girl Friday is that it seemed to speed up as it went along. It also had a small cast, and a personal, simpler story.
I don't know if speeding up would even be possible with Barbie. Barbie had a much bigger cast, and tackled a larger societal problem. The pace would inevitably slow down with that many moving parts.
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