Text by Alper Kurtul
The worlds of film and fashion come together to perfection in the all-new Barbie film, brought to life by the incomparable talent of renowned costume designer Jacqueline Durran. With boundless creativity and exceptional artistic vision, Durran has brought the iconic Barbie doll to life in a way never seen before. While she simultaneously designed dazzling outfits for the movie, actually added another dimension to this fairy tale adventure.
Barbie Land is a great place to live. Everyone seems happy to live together, in a candy-pink, papier-mâché (or rather, PVC) setting. Well, everyone except Barbie, who’s in the midst of an existential crisis…
64 years after her creation, the 30cm model doll gets her first live-action adaptation, after countless animated films (there are no fewer than 40). It took 14 years of development and abandoned projects for Barbie to see the light of day in the cinema, passing through the hands of several majors, directors and performers (Amy Schumer & Anne Hathaway were approached).
In the end, Greta Gerwig (The Daughters of Dr. March – 2020), actress & director of independent films, took on this $100 million blockbuster.
Everything’s beautiful and everyone’s nice in the wonderful world of Barbie, where communitarianism and inclusivity are the norm. The result is a display of the different Barbie dolls on the market. (overweight, wheelchair-bound, black, mixed-race, trans, etc.). (Yay)
A renowned talent
Jacqueline Durran is a true fashion icon in the film industry. Her collaborations with renowned directors such as Joe Wright, Mike Leigh and Yorgos Lanthimos have won her numerous awards, including several Oscar nominations and two Oscars for “Anna Karenina” and “Little Women”. Her keen eye for detail, passion for costume design and innate talent enable her to create outfits that fit perfectly into the visual world of the film.
A world of dreams and fashion
In the new Barbie film, Jacqueline Durran was commissioned to design a range of outfits that reflect the magical, fairytale world of the famous doll. From sparkling ball gowns to daring superhero costumes and fairytale-inspired outfits, each piece is a true work of art. Durran has captured Barbie’s mischievous, glamorous spirit while adding a touch of modernity and refinement to her outfits.
A creative collaboration
The process of creating the costumes for the Barbie film was a close collaboration between Jacqueline Durran and the production team. Working closely with the director and other designers, Durran was able to bring the characters to life through their outfits. She took into account practicalities, actor movement and shooting constraints, while preserving the aesthetics and authenticity of each costume.
A heritage of style
Barbie has been a symbol of fashion and style since her creation in 1959. Thanks to the visionary work of Jacqueline Durran, the iconic doll continues to inspire fashion for current and future generations. Her unique creations in the Barbie film allow viewers to immerse themselves in a dream world where fashion is both magical and inspiring.
The new Barbie movie is much more than a cinematic adventure; it’s a true celebration of fashion and creativity. Jacqueline Durran has succeeded in capturing the iconic spirit of Barbie through dazzling outfits that transport viewers into a world of dreams and glamor. Her impeccable workmanship and passion for costume design have added an exciting new dimension to this enchanting cinematic adventure. The film Barbie and Jacqueline Durran will forever be engraved in the annals of cinematic fashion history.
In the movie, we see that all the outfits fit very well with the Barbie style we know in a modern way. This is a doll that has a close connection with fashion, she is constantly being dressed up. Durran expresses her ideas in her article for Vogue as follows: “Barbie is really is interlinked with fashion, because how you play with her is by dressing her. Clothes are her form of expression. You don’t treat Barbie like you treat a regular character because the motivation for what she’s wearing isn’t from within”. In fact, depending entirely on what she dresses for and where she dresses, she brings with her the potential to pull off any style. “The defining characteristic of what she wears is where she’s going and what she’s doing, it’s about being completely dressed for your job or task”.
Kendom
Gosling’s Ken embarks on a journey of self-discovery when his encounter with Barbie in the “real world” turns into a crash education in gender dynamics. Ken, a misfit at home, rapidly understands that males prevail outside of Barbie Land. He sighs in dismay, “Men rule the world,” he says to himself.
One of the first signs of this increased influence that Ken notices is clothing. The clothes that capture his attention are machismo-coded symbols. He ponders the sweat-stained ’80s-style sleeveless vests used in a neighboring gym as he gawks at a man striding across the street in a floor-length white fur coat, looks at a group of businessmen in boxy fitted suits, and more.
Durran also says the following about Ken’s style: “Retro sportswear is something we shop a lot for Ken. He’s a sporty guy. That’s his main characteristic. We had buyers in America who went to dealers and imported it for us because we needed it so much.” At the same time, as we see in the movie, and it’s a little sad, but it’s also true: “Nobody cares about Ken, everybody just wants to play with Barbie,” Durran says. “He fits Barbie and he changes, but he has much, much, much less choice.” So in this way, we see that Ken is just a “Barbie accessory”.