Why The Movie Theatre In Barbie's Latest Teaser Trailer Means More Than You Think
Greta Gerwig's "Barbie," an upcoming film almost unnaturally loaded with celebrity star power, just dropped a new trailer (it also dropped a slew of incredible character posters that are worth checking out) that hammers home the story's primary conceit — In Barbieland, everyone is Barbie. Well, except for all of the people who are Ken, and the one guy who's Allan. Every frame of the trailer is so crammed with hyperspecific detail that it wouldn't be surprising to discover the entire creative team spent the last three years locked inside a made-to-scale Barbie Dreamhouse.
But there's one detail in the background that might seem out of place. Around the 30-second mark, in her classic convertible Corvette, Barbie drives by a movie theater, and out front are several movie posters depicting characters from "The Wizard of Oz." While the reference might seem wholly unrelated to "Barbie," there's a chance that it might be a less-than-subtle nod to the upcoming film's plot. "Barbie" follows Barbie (Margot Robbie) as she is transported from her familiar home in Barbieland to a brand-new world. Now, why does that sound familiar?
Different realities, same story
For those who might not remember, "The Wizard of Oz" follows Dorothy (Judy Garland) as she's transported away from her familiar farm home in Kansas to the magical land of Oz, where she befriends a kooky cast of characters and, through a series of misadventures, defeats an oppressive evil force. In the end, she returns home with a new perspective. Now swap out Dorothy's name for Barbie's, Kansas for Barbieland, and the magical land of Oz for the bland reality of our Earth. It's exactly the same movie.
The similarities keep piling up, too. Both Dorothy and Barbie bring along a friend for the ride. For Dorothy, it's her dog Toto. For Barbie, it's her boyfriend Ken (Ryan Gosling). Even the kooky cast of characters probably lines up. Dorothy runs into the Scarecrow (Roy Bolger), the Tinman (Jack Haley), and the Cowardly Lion (Bert Lahr). Conversely, Barbie meets Sasha (Ariana Greenblatt) and Gloria (America Ferrera). As far as oppressive evil forces go, Dorothy faces the Wicked Witch of the West (Margaret Hamilton) and Barbie presumably faces the CEO of Mattel (Will Ferrell).
Then, of course, there's the return home and that's where the differences will probably be felt most significantly. Dorothy is happy to go back but it's more complicated for Barbie — she was forcibly evicted from her paradise. Will she return to Barbieland? Will she find happiness in the real world? We don't have that answer yet. July 21 can't come fast enough.