On the plus side, this was an ambitious, dazzling film with what I felt was an original concept. It explored the world of gender stereotyping and male-female relationships, using the world of Barbie and Ken as its base point. There was a strong feminist theme running through it, but I did not find this overwhelming. Whilst the male figures were often portrayed as stupid and one-dimensional, this was done with some wit and indeed affection.

The action migrated between the real world and the mythical world of Barbie, and so perhaps it was no surprise that the plot tended to meander and remained unconvincing. The energy of the film was sustained by the comedy and the zaniness of the characters.

I differ from some critics in that I thought the best performance came from Margot Robbie as Barbie. Her character bounced between parody and realism but she managed the demands well. I thought that the much acclaimed Ryan Gosling tended to over-act and his character became annoying.

This may be down to my age and my Englishness, but I was unable to make out the detail of the many snappy one-liners that were delivered. The young and the American will probably not have this trouble.

Though likeable and even moving in places, altogether this film felt like less than the sum of its parts. Its attempts at juggling comedy and serious themes, fantasy and reality, were not ultimately successful and it became incoherent and lacking in some kind of unity.

Ultimately, for me, the acid test of a film is the issue of whether or when I start wanting it to end. I made it to about two-thirds of the way through.