“Cult” and “forbidden”: why the first Barbie movie, made 35 years ago, remains invisible today

2 months ago today, Barbie, the first official and authorized film dedicated to the Mattel doll, was released in France. The success is undeniable worldwide (well past the billion mark at the box office) and in France, with more than 5.7 million admissions already, the second biggest success of the year in France.

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This phenomenon surrounding Barbie is an opportunity to revisit a little-known history of cinema. Because, you know, they already made a movie…with barbies! A medium-length film that is still banned today, more than 30 years later.

We had a chance to talk about it with its director, who is none other than Todd Haynes, Far From Heaven, Carol and the biopic I’m not there! While in Paris and Deauville to promote May in December, which will be released in January 2024 in France, he agreed to give us a few words about it.

Superstar: Karen Carpenter’s story has a somewhat underground aura and value.

This story takes us back to the mid-80s. Todd Haynes He was then a student, an apprentice director and directed Superstar: The Karen Carpenter Story. This student film is a biopic of singer Karen Carpenter, of the band The Carpenters, who died at the age of 32 due to anorexia. A special feature of this film: it is shot entirely with Barbie dolls. Today the film remains unseen and one of the most unknown in the filmmaker’s work.

“The reason we haven’t seen the movie is because it was banned because we didn’t have the rights to the music, the Carpenters’ songs, that are in the movie. The film cannot be released legally. But it gave Superstar: The Karen Carpenter Story a somewhat underground aura and value..”

He follows: “You had to sneak in and slide the VHS copies under the counter to see it. This contributed to the myth of superstardom. This obviously wasn’t my intention, but it helped make for a somewhat personal and private film. This gave him cult status.”

A banned yet iconic film that also has the distinction of being a film that heralds the filmmaker’s upcoming films. “It’s a film that really marks the beginning of my career, in many ways. It’s a film that covers all the topics I continue to explore today, and with this one, all in one film“, he explains.

It is a film that covers all the topics that I continue to explore to this day.

and added: “It’s about a hero, someone who suffers from a serious illness, fame and pop culture. It’s about music, success and how hard it is, especially when you’re a woman. And there’s a stylistic approach to storytelling that sets this film apart from other biopics. In a lot of ways, it combines a lot of things that I continue to do today, all in one film“.

Today, the film regularly surfaces on Youtube, bad-quality. However, as Todd Haynes himself tells us, the film was restored by the Sundance Institute and UCLA.5-6 years ago“.”I am very proud that it exists in this versionhe continues. It can only be shown under certain conditions, on a non-commercial basis and without advertising. But we still kept the film.”

After 35 years, Greta Gerwig’s Barbie version also had to be banned in certain countries, but for different reasons. Why is the movie starring Margot Robbie censored?

But what did Todd Haynes think of the 2023 version of Barbie? We asked him a question.

“It’s hard for me to talk about because I haven’t seen it. I’ve heard a lot about it recently and I’ll see. I’m a huge fan of Greta Gerwig, as an actress, as a director… so obviously I’m interested in this“, he concludes.

Greta Gerwig’s Barbie, starring Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling, is back in theaters two months after its release and could soon cross the 6 million mark.

As for Todd Haynes, his new feature film May December with Natalie Portman and Julianne Moore will be released in France on January 24, 2024. In this regard, we will publish the rest of his interview with AlloCiné.