Thanks for the review, Roy. I loved Pee-Wee, both the TV show and the Big Adventure, and I can’t wait to see the Barbie movie.
As regards the media response to Barbie from conservatives, all I can say is the money flowing from rightwing billionaires to their media grifters must be astronomical. Ben Shapiro is a 40 year old grown man – calculated by the calendar if not the tape measure – and he took the time to bash, at length, a movie about a children’s doll. And for pure surreal idiocy, nothing can top him setting Barbie and Ken dolls on fire. The vast majority of middle-aged men would be absolutely mortified at the idea of doing something so ridiculous. So that rightwing coin MUST be sweeeet…
I also first encountered Pee-Wee on early Letterman episodes. Pee-Wee was simply a guest. In character, with no explanation. This was well before the movie or the TV show, so Reubens didn't promote anything. He was just Pee-Wee Herman, a force of chaos and childishness. His earlier take on the character had a little more mean streak, so he'd become briefly mad at Dave for not delighting in every single childish weirdness he produced. Pee-Wee was wonderful. Pee-Wee's Big Adventure is easily Tim Burton's best movie, and an all-time favorite of mine. I was a fan for his whole career. I miss him already.
You nailed it, remarking how on our little black and white TVs the brilliant color and depth of the set nevertheless translated... it didn't even dawn on me until right now that while I was laying prone in front of a blurry little box as the tequila wafted from my cells lo those many Saturday mornings ago, I was seeing colors when there actually were none. That is the mark of genius on the behalf of all involved who created that universe. He, and that show, had tremendous impact on me and I'm surprised how this one's hitting. Oof.
Gerwig seems to be exploring the world of little girl imagination, one icon at a time. First “Little Women,” now “Barbie.” What’ll she tackle next, “Nancy Drew” or “Our Bodies, Ourselves”?
Great review. Thanks. Perhaps it’s something like Pixar’s Cars in the way grumpy old people get upset by its superficial lack of realism, when actually it’s just a boy, or in this case a girl, playing with her toys, making up a story for them and having them act it out. Pee Wee’s Playhouse was kinda the same thing.
Of course it’s funny that rightwing jerks are butt hurt by it, angrily shaking their fists and berating Hollywood for not making all toy movies G. I. Joe movies, but it’s good you let that slide and focused more on the fun.
We were in line for the movie when all of a sudden a woman ahead of us got into a screaming fight with a guy behind us. They were really getting into it. So we found ourselves in a Barbie queue beef sandwich!
Odd factoid: My marginally younger contemporaries Paul Reubens and Roger Stone were born on the same day—27 August 1952. That it should be Pee-wee and not the odious Stone who has now fetched up on the other side of the sod strikes me as one more instance of a morally deficient cosmic justice system: as above, so below.
I shall have to see if The Playhouse is available somewhere; I very very vaguely remember seeing only one or two episodes back in the day, but I was literally doing nothing but working (overnights) and sleeping and the whole period is all a blur at best. My main memories are the soundtrack by Mark "DEVO" Mothersbaugh, the Dobbshead on the Playhouse wall, and my association of Reubens' downfall with the line from They Might Be Giants' "We Want A Rock": "Someone in this town Wants to burn the playhouse down".
Thanks for the great review. I may actually see it now. Can you imagine a Barbie movie that Shapiro would like, assuming the twerp ever likes anything?
Paul Reubens was brilliant. Pee Wee was just -one- of the characters he did in improv that happened to take off (shades of Latka Gravas) and look how he evolved it. I'm really sorry I never got see any of the others.
I’m just a little old to appreciate Peewee - I was in my 30s when he started the character. But I always appreciated Reubens as an artist. To me, he’ll always be the character I first saw him - the Hamburger! guy from Cheech and Chong’s “Nice Dreams”.
Bit late to this. Haven't seen the movie, but "Barbie" might flop in Japan. I can't read Japanese, and I'm not a journalist (grain of salt disclaimer), but from what I've been reading there are a lot of Japanese offended by the "Barbenheimer" juxtaposition (for obvious reasons)
What a great review! With a nice remembrance of PeeWee.
I think it's amazing that a smart funny Barbie movie that everyone loves and a
biography of Robert Oppenheimer are two most popular movies in the world , setting Box Office records.
That's some hopeful shit right there!
I am interested in Bertolt Brecht's Barbie.
Can't wait to hear " Ken the Knife"
Thanks for the review, Roy. I loved Pee-Wee, both the TV show and the Big Adventure, and I can’t wait to see the Barbie movie.
As regards the media response to Barbie from conservatives, all I can say is the money flowing from rightwing billionaires to their media grifters must be astronomical. Ben Shapiro is a 40 year old grown man – calculated by the calendar if not the tape measure – and he took the time to bash, at length, a movie about a children’s doll. And for pure surreal idiocy, nothing can top him setting Barbie and Ken dolls on fire. The vast majority of middle-aged men would be absolutely mortified at the idea of doing something so ridiculous. So that rightwing coin MUST be sweeeet…
I also first encountered Pee-Wee on early Letterman episodes. Pee-Wee was simply a guest. In character, with no explanation. This was well before the movie or the TV show, so Reubens didn't promote anything. He was just Pee-Wee Herman, a force of chaos and childishness. His earlier take on the character had a little more mean streak, so he'd become briefly mad at Dave for not delighting in every single childish weirdness he produced. Pee-Wee was wonderful. Pee-Wee's Big Adventure is easily Tim Burton's best movie, and an all-time favorite of mine. I was a fan for his whole career. I miss him already.
Haven't seen Barbie yet, but I intend to.
Spot on! The Barbie movie is *fun*. As the Cat in the Hat says,
"It's fun to have fun
but you have to know how."
And Gerwig knows how.
Mister, we could use a man like Pee Wee Herman again!
Pee-Wee was something special. That it came out of the Groundlings is, like, a mark of quality.
As for Playhouse, in every respect, it was mind blowing or, as they say these days, subversive -- more so having come after the movies.
Then again, the avant garde and progressive art wasn't yet dead in the 80s...
Gonna be a loonnng time before we see Pee-Wee's like again.
You nailed it, remarking how on our little black and white TVs the brilliant color and depth of the set nevertheless translated... it didn't even dawn on me until right now that while I was laying prone in front of a blurry little box as the tequila wafted from my cells lo those many Saturday mornings ago, I was seeing colors when there actually were none. That is the mark of genius on the behalf of all involved who created that universe. He, and that show, had tremendous impact on me and I'm surprised how this one's hitting. Oof.
Gerwig seems to be exploring the world of little girl imagination, one icon at a time. First “Little Women,” now “Barbie.” What’ll she tackle next, “Nancy Drew” or “Our Bodies, Ourselves”?
Great review. Thanks. Perhaps it’s something like Pixar’s Cars in the way grumpy old people get upset by its superficial lack of realism, when actually it’s just a boy, or in this case a girl, playing with her toys, making up a story for them and having them act it out. Pee Wee’s Playhouse was kinda the same thing.
Of course it’s funny that rightwing jerks are butt hurt by it, angrily shaking their fists and berating Hollywood for not making all toy movies G. I. Joe movies, but it’s good you let that slide and focused more on the fun.
We were in line for the movie when all of a sudden a woman ahead of us got into a screaming fight with a guy behind us. They were really getting into it. So we found ourselves in a Barbie queue beef sandwich!
Sorry.
<PeeWee voice> I'm not sorry!!!
Odd factoid: My marginally younger contemporaries Paul Reubens and Roger Stone were born on the same day—27 August 1952. That it should be Pee-wee and not the odious Stone who has now fetched up on the other side of the sod strikes me as one more instance of a morally deficient cosmic justice system: as above, so below.
I shall have to see if The Playhouse is available somewhere; I very very vaguely remember seeing only one or two episodes back in the day, but I was literally doing nothing but working (overnights) and sleeping and the whole period is all a blur at best. My main memories are the soundtrack by Mark "DEVO" Mothersbaugh, the Dobbshead on the Playhouse wall, and my association of Reubens' downfall with the line from They Might Be Giants' "We Want A Rock": "Someone in this town Wants to burn the playhouse down".
Thanks for the great review. I may actually see it now. Can you imagine a Barbie movie that Shapiro would like, assuming the twerp ever likes anything?
Paul Reubens was brilliant. Pee Wee was just -one- of the characters he did in improv that happened to take off (shades of Latka Gravas) and look how he evolved it. I'm really sorry I never got see any of the others.
I’m just a little old to appreciate Peewee - I was in my 30s when he started the character. But I always appreciated Reubens as an artist. To me, he’ll always be the character I first saw him - the Hamburger! guy from Cheech and Chong’s “Nice Dreams”.
https://youtu.be/Ff-DqTerrnw
BTW, I have a few Barbie Photos, though I can't find the best one for some reason. Something to do with being chronically disorganized, perhaps. Anyhoo, it's just a picture of someone else's art. Don't blame me. https://www.instagram.com/p/CvdtlQnsNK4/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
Bit late to this. Haven't seen the movie, but "Barbie" might flop in Japan. I can't read Japanese, and I'm not a journalist (grain of salt disclaimer), but from what I've been reading there are a lot of Japanese offended by the "Barbenheimer" juxtaposition (for obvious reasons)