Barbie: Greta Gerwig, somehow, manages to mix a savvy piece of corporate-sponsored movie-cum-advertisement (of the titular doll, obviously) with a heady consideration of what the concept of Barbie (the doll, not the movie) actually means. Almost. The need for an antagonist, and the way it unfurls and resolves, is somewhat clanky, but it likely stems from the decision by Gerwig and co-writer Noah Baumbach to forgo any subtlety. It’s a message that lots of people need to get hit in the head with, anyway, and if the film is heavy-handed, it makes up for it with its entertainment value. The cast is large, and filled with zany energy: Margot Robbie is perfectly cast as (the Stereotypical) Barbie, balancing the comedy bits with the character’s more vulnerable moments; Ryan Gosling is unhinged as Ken, in a comedic performance turned up to eleven. The real heart of the film, in any case, is America Ferrera, as the mother of an angry teenager (Ariana Greenblatt) who gets involved in the doll’s adventure in the real world. The production design, by Sarah Greenwood, and costume design, by Jacqueline Durran, are pitch-perfect, naturally overloading on pink, as it builds its version of Barbieland.