The ‘Barbie’ movie broke the internet over the weekend—because it’s THAT good

Hi! Did you attend a screening of the Barbie movie this weekend, thinking you were in for a lighthearted, fun and nostalgic two hours? Of course you did! And the movie was certainly all of those things. But it also probably rendered you completely speechless because of the deep sentimentality and existential themes. And that, dear readers, was something many of us were probably not expecting.

But it felt so good to watch. For so many reasons. And a lot of those reasons were a universal experience for women and mothers everywhere, which is why the internet practically exploded this weekend—because of our Big Feelings.

The pink explosion of the movie coupled with some very, very funny lines delivered by extremely talented actors make the Barbie movie an extremely fun time. But along with being extremely meta, the movie also really makes the audience contemplate the meaning of life.

Without getting spoiler-y, the main premise of the movie is that Barbie suddenly finds her perfect world in Barbieland becoming less perfect by the minute. She begins to wonder about death, her feet become flat, her shower turns cold, she develops cellulite, she falls from the roof of her dream house instead of floating like usual, etc. In order to “set things right” in Barbieland once more, Barbie has to learn “the truth about the universe” by visiting the real world.

The problem with this is that in the real world, people age, bodies change, and life has a finite ending for everyone. While all of this is, certainly, terrifying for Barbie to experience—is it really all bad? Is life really better if it’s perfect? (Margot Robbie’s performance is truly breathtaking. Watching Barbie meet her first old person is the most pivotal scene in the movie for so many reasons.)

Basically, the movie is the perfect blend of sentimentality and silliness. It’ll have you laughing out loud one minute and sobbing over your own girlhood and female identity the next. America Ferrera delivers a Meryl Streep-worthy monologue that garnered audible whoops from every woman in the theater I was sitting in, and by the end of the movie all you could hear were the collective sniffles of a thoroughly moved audience.

Bottom line: this movie has already given women and girls SO MUCH. Having such a collective, meaningful experience with every other woman who saw it is so profound, full stop. And Billie Eilish’s “What Was I Made For?” song will shatter your heart.

And despite the consternation of shallow critics, this movie is absolutely not “anti-men.” It shows how the patriarchy damages women and men, how toxic masculinity impacts everyone, and how men can and should redefine themselves outside of patriarchy instead of being imprisoned by it. It’s a brilliant commentary on society that empowers all genders.

Arguably, the most impactful theme of ‘Barbie’ is the swan song of girlhood. Instead of just making us all wish we were young again, the movie goes so much deeper than that.

Young girls are “funny and brash and confident, and then they just—stop,” Gerwig told Vogue in May. “How is this journey the same thing that a teenage girl feels? All of a sudden, she thinks, Oh, I’m not good enough.”

While it’s normal (if sad) to move on from playing with Barbie dolls as girls become young women, it shouldn’t be normal to abandon all the positive beliefs and confidence we subscribe to as kids just because we get older. This movie reminds us of that.

Major shout-out to Rhea Pearlman’s character as Ruth Handler, the creator of Barbie. She helps Barbie realize her purpose and choose her own ending in the most poignant way.

Basically, this movie is incredibly well done, surprising in the BEST ways, hilarious, and provides a superb emotional release we all (probably) desperately need. In the words of Ryan Gosling’s Ken, we all learn that in the end, we are all “Ken-ough.”