Black Barbie — Greta Gerwig and Margot Robbie have accomplished the unimaginable by bringing the world’s most popular doll, Barbie, to life in the film. A long-awaited film, the teasers and trailers released in the lead-up left little opportunity for conjecture about the general narrative until a few months before its release. When the picture was released in theaters, fans were unprepared for Barbie’s breakneck voyage.
Although the film seamlessly interwoven a beautiful production on top of a noteworthy social commentary, Barbie also emphasized Mattel’s massively diverse inventory by introducing Black Barbies in several key positions of authority, reminding old and new fans that they could be whatever they wanted.
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The diversity of Barbie
As Barbie reigns supreme in the theater alongside Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer, the appeal of all things pink has grown. The movie has also sparked renewed interest in the doll collection. Issa Rae and Alexandra Shipp have drawn attention to black Barbie dolls in particular.
It’s worth noting that Black Barbie dolls would not exist today if Louvenia “Kitty” Black Perkins had not worked as Mattel’s brand chief designer in the 1980s. Her development of Black Barbie would pave the way for future generations, giving brown girls throughout the world representation.
Mattel has since developed Barbie dolls to honor important persons from many fields, including director Ava DuVernay and Olympic gold winner Gabby Douglas. When the doll had an ethnical hairdo to resemble DuVernay’s locks, it signified a watershed moment.
Here are several Black Barbie dolls worth getting for your children, relatives, or friends’ children.
The Black Barbie President
As President Barbie, actress Issa Rae brought one of the most significant dolls to life on the big screen. The doll has an uncanny likeness to the actress. Rae’s appearance in the film matches the toy’s original style, as she wears a pink satiny gown with gold elements.
Both the actress and the doll donned the presidential sash and gold necklace, bringing President Barbie to life on the big screen and lending Rae a royal air.
Doctor Barbie
Barbie has always demonstrated that anybody can be anything, but a Black Barbie doll dressed as a doctor might be one of the line’s most influential dolls.
The doll comes with a stethoscope and a classic doctor’s lab coat, while Black Barbie wears a watercolor dress with pink shoes.
Barbie Fashionistas Doll #194
Toys are a big deal for kids because they generate lasting memories that they can look back on. Representation enhances the experience by reflecting on the real world and making people feel visible.
Barbie Fashionistas Doll #194 isn’t just another Black Barbie doll; it’s an inclusive doll that features someone with impairments, giving youngsters in wheelchairs, particularly Black girls, a sense of inclusion.
The one-of-a-kind Black Barbie sits on the signature pink wheelchair that matches its rainbow-heart romper. A pair of groovy hoop earrings and pink shoes complete the look.
Prima ballerina Barbie
Little girls are likely to have developed an interest in the performing arts, namely ballet, during their youth.
With its purple tutu and ballerina slippers finished off with a tiara, the Barbie Dreamtopia Doll is every little girl’s dream come true. The doll’s suppleness enables a real ballet experience, but its ability to light up with the stroke of a button adds even more glitter.
Beach-ready
Barbie dolls are often associated with gowns and beachwear. Barbie Loves the Ocean doll is dressed in a multi-colored flower sundress with a ruffled hemline.
To meet the beach, this Black Barbie doll wears her hair in a high bun with white sunglasses.
My First Barbie
Every girl recalls their first Barbie doll. Mattel has created a ‘My First Barbie’ range to ensure that their first doll is remembered.
With its young-looking doll and accessories that encompass everything girls enjoy, the Preschool “Brooklyn” Doll, in particular, provides girls a representation in the Barbie range.
- A party dress
- A bow headband
- Necklace
- Gift
- Sparkly heels
- Pink nightgown
Barbie 2023 review
Barbie is arguably one of the most fun pictures to reach theaters in recent years for average audiences. The production design is stunning, especially considering how much effort was spent into making Barbieland appear like something out of a children’s playroom.
Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling’s performances elicited both laughter and tears, and their presence further enhances the rest of the group. Gloria, starring America Ferrera, may strike a chord with many viewers, particularly moms. Meanwhile, Ariana Greenblatt nails it as a sarcastic pessimistic adolescent. Helen Mirren could not have done a greater job as the film’s narrator.
For some, the premise may easily be dismissed as a feminist-driven fiction aimed at undermining men. In a few cases, such as when Barbie and Ken enter in the real world or when the Mattel board wanted to keep Barbie in a box, the argument can be a bit too obvious.
The film’s introduction of patriarchy through Ken’s naive eyes may appear to have flipped the switch on the positions of the Barbies and Kens (and Allan and Midge) in Barbieland, but the whole idea (or rather, how this writer sees it) is that it illustrates how men fear feminism becoming more accepted in this patriarchal, male-led world. Men are frequently in command, while women are meant to rely on them to determine their identities. Barbie satirizes this age-old notion in a lighthearted and fashionable way.
However, peeling back the layers reveals a plot that exaggerates the existential crises that both men and women face at some point in their lives. Finally, both Ken and Barbie must discover their identities, as must we.
