The world of the upcoming Barbie movie will be full of fantasy and color, embodying the positive energy the iconic doll has been spreading around the world for decades. Some of the inspiration behind the charm of this summer's biggest comedy was based on classic movie musicals. During a recent interview with Vogue, Margot Robbie revealed that the cast and crew of Barbie saw movies together every Sunday while preparing to film the comedy, with titles such as The Red Shoes and The Umbrellas of Cherbourgh taking the stage. The tradition was established in an effort of making sure the entire team was on the same page.
Greta Gerwig understood the importance of having a grand spectacle surrounding a character that is popular for allowing anyone to be what they want to be, and these musicals were the perfect example of how to pull it off. A major factor that made this kind of features so believable was the use of enormous stages during filming, and that's something the team behind the upcoming Warner Bros. production took into account while creating the world of Barbie. As seen in the trailers for the movie, big, colorful stages were built in sound stages for the musical numbers featured in the story.
Barbie will follow Robbie as she plays the titular character in an ideal city where most objects, outfits and vehicles are colored with a bright shade of pink. An unexpected event will lead Barbie to the human world, where she'll be forced to face a reality that is quite different from her own. Fortunately, she won't be alone for the ride, as the version of Ken played by Ryan Gosling. As her loyal partner, Ken always wants to do what's best for Barbie, even if it means following her to the dangerous world of the humans, where unknown dangers are lurking around every corner.
The Inspirations Behind Barbie
While the films mentioned by Robbie during the interview were only a few examples of the list Gerwig selected to show the team behind the film, they can illustrate how the filmmaker approached the project from the beginning. The Red Shoes is a 1948 drama about a ballerina who is forced to choose between her career and the romance brewing between her and a composer. On the other hand, The Umbrellas of Cherbourgh follows two young lovers who can't be together, despite their intense feelings for each other. It remains to be seen how the legacy of these stories manifests in the world of Barbie.
You can check out Collider's exclusive interview with Margot Robbie below: