I'm obviously not the right demographic for 'Barbie', but it's hard to avoid the muddled tone & uneven delivery. A fantasy / reality parable of being female with a sprinkle of battle of the sexes. You get two likable leads, but it doesn't have any answers to the problems it's illuminating.

"Stereotypical" Barbie (Margot Robbie) lives in Barbieland filled with all the female variations released over the years. There lives also the wide variety of Ken's including "Beach" Ken (Ryan Gosling). When a mother (America Ferrera) experiences negative feelings in the real world while playing with the Barbies of her teen angst daughter it has a transitional effect on this Barbie who takes a trip to reality to sort things out. Ken comes along for the ride & learns how things for men are much different. Barely able to grasp the complexities, he takes a rudimentary form back to Barbieland causing a shift in balance. Meanwhile Mattel CEO (Will Ferrell) becomes aware and tries to correct the problem much like Barbie herself.

They acknowledge some of the criticisms thrown at the doll openly over the years - which I don't necessarily agree with - but it was a mature move. I could tell you Margot Robbie is perfectly cast and Ryan Gosling gets all the best lines too. The look of the movie - production design in Barbieland - is on point. It's a bright sphere complete with the toy accessories (houses, car, fake food). Song and dance numbers. Fish out of water scenarios played for laughs.

Where this tale falters is tying everything together & a barely hidden undercurrent. The cliche blame game. I give 'Barbie' credit for not going the contrived route of a typical romcom. However it's message & wanting to be a fun flick at the same time yields mixed results. It wants things both ways.