Emma Mackey Archives – CULTURE MIX

Review: ‘Ella McKay,’ starring Emma Mackey, Jamie Lee Curtis, Kumail Nanjiani, Ayo Edebiri, Spike Fearn, Rebecca Hall, Albert Brooks and Woody Harrelson

December 10, 2025

by Carla Hay

Emma Mackey, Jamie Lee Curtis and Albert Brooks in “Ella McKay” (Photo courtesy of 20th Century Studios)

Directed by James L. Brooks

Culture Representation: Taking place in 2008 (with flashbacks to the 1990s) in an unnamed state on the East Coast of the United States, the comedy/drama film “Ella McKay” features a predominantly white cast of characters (with a few black people, Latin people and Asians) representing the working-class, middle-class and wealthy.

Culture Clash: A politician must navigate major changes in her personal life and in her career after she suddenly becomes governor of her state, which leads to her husband becoming jealous and her estranged father coming back into her life.

Culture Audience: “Ella McKay” will appeal primarily to people who are fans of the movie’s headliners, filmmaker James L. Brooks, and comedy/drama movies where almost everything comes across as phony.

Jack Lowden and Emma Mackey in “Ella McKay” (Photo courtesy of 20th Century Studios)

Tonally off-balance and annoying, “Ella McKay” is a comedy/drama polluted with unrealistic dialogue. A talented cast can’t save this dull and witless movie about a politician whose life is negatively affected by her boorish father and selfish husband. This is the type of movie that tries too hard to be a “screwball comedy” but ends up falling flat in almost every way.

Written and directed by James L. Brooks, “Ella McKay” has a jumbled way of telling the story, and there’s a subplot in the movie that is completely unnecessary and very irritating to watch. The movie takes place in an unnamed state on the East Coast of the United States. “Ella McKay” was actually filmed in Rhode Island, and there are several Rhode Island landmarks in the movie. The story in “Ella McKay” takes place mostly in 2008, but there are a few flashbacks taking place in the 1990s.

The irksome levels of “Ella McKay” start right from the beginning of the film, which is narrated by a character named Estelle Roth (played by Julie Kavner), who has a gravelly voice that is memorable but very unpleasant to hear as narration. There might be a minority of people who love Kavner’s voice in this movie, but most people will feel like they’re hearing fingernails on a chalkboard every time Estelle pipes in with her uninteresting and distracting commentary.

Estelle is the loyal administrative assistant of 34-year-old politician Ella McKay (played by Emma Mackey), who is ambitious and intelligent but not very well-liked among her peers because they think she is somewhat standoffish and condescending to them. In the beginning of the movie, Ella is lieutenant governor of her state. She has risen to this level of power mainly because she’s been mentored by Bill Moura (played by Albert Brooks), the state’s governor. Ella has worked with Bill for almost her entire career, including when she was Bill’s chief of staff when he was mayor of an unnamed city.

Ella is also dealing with some emotional baggage stemming from her unhappy childhood, which is shown in flashback scenes that are also narrated by Estelle. These flashback scenes, which take place in the 1990s, show that when Ella was a senior in high school in 1990, her life changed because of a scandal caused by her philandering father Eddie McKay (played by Woody Harrelson), a high-ranking executive at an unnamed company. Eddie had to resign from his job because of sexual misconduct allegations against him.

Eddie leaving the company was labeled a “retirement” for public-relations reasons, but too many people know the real reason for Eddie’s abrupt exit from his job. Eddie’s wife Claire McCay (played by Rebecca Hall) is humiliated but decides to stay in the marriage. When Ella asks her why, Claire says sadly, “Because I love him.” During this turbulent time in the McKay family, Ella’s younger brother Casey McKay (played by Lincoln Whitty) is 4 years old and too young to understand what is going on.

Eddie and Claire decide to move to California to start a new life. Ella is close to finishing high school, and her parents don’t want to interrupt her education by having her start over in a new school in California. Ella is very close to Casey, and their parents don’t want the kids to be separated. So the decision is made to have Ella and Casey stay behind, with Eddie’s no-nonsense sister Helen McKay (played by Jamie Lee Curtis) becoming the guardian of the kids. Helen is furious with Eddie over how his misdeeds have ripped apart the family. Helen says she’ll never forgive Eddie.

It should be noted that although co-star Hall shares top top billing for this movie, her screen time in “Ella McKay” is less than 10 minutes. Another flashback shows that six years after Eddie and Claire moved to California, Claire died of a terminal illness. Casey (played by Kellen Raffaelo) was 10 years old, and Ella was a college student. At the funeral wake, Ella is disgusted to see one of Eddie’s obvious mistresses groping him on the rear end. None of this is spoiler information because the trailer for “Ella McKay” reveals about 70% of the movie’s plot.

In 2008, Ella is married to restaurateur Ryan Newell (played by Jack Lowden), who was her high-school sweetheart. Ryan’s family owns a chain of restaurants. His unnamed parents are still married, but they don’t have an equal partnership. Ryan’s mother (played by Becky Ann Baker) is domineering and materialistic, while his father (played by John Neisler) is very passive and sweet-natured. It’s hinted that Ryan’s father might have dementia.

Ella and Ryan are a case of “opposites attract.” Ella tends to be an uptight planner and has a “hero” complex, where she wants to be the hero in everything that she does. Ryan tends to be adventurous, spontaneous and not as concerned with wanting to “save the world.” The cause that Ella is most passionate about is pre-natal health care. She’s been trying for years to get a controversial bill passed into law that will give better access to pre-natal health care. The bill is controversial because it will be costly to taxpayers if passed into law.

Ella and Ryan, who do not have children together, seem to have a good marriage in the beginning of the movie. One of the things that they’ve been doing to keep their sexual intimacy alive is having secret dates where they have sex at an uninhabited apartment that’s government property. It’s technically illegal for Ella (an elected official) to do this because it’s “wrongful use” of government property.

Somehow, a journalist for an unnamed well-known media outlet has found out about these trysts and is threatening to report this story, which could be a big scandal for Ella. This journalist is never seen in the movie. However, Ryan tells Ella that he and the journalist have been in contact with each other. This contact will have repercussions throughout this jumbled story.

Ella is still very close to Helen, the only family member who has consistently been in Ella’s adult life. Ella has not seen or spoken to her father Eddie for 13 years. Ella is also estranged from Casey (played by Spike Fearn), who is now a socially awkward young adult who works from home as a technology analyst. Casey cut off contact with Ella sometime after he began living on his own. The details are murky, but it’s later revealed that Casey has agoraphobia and is embarrassed about it.

Helen doesn’t really approve of Ryan and has never really liked him, ever since Helen caught teenage Ella sneaking out of the house to spend the night with Ryan. Helen also doesn’t think Ryan has integrity because she remembers an instance when adult Ryan bragged about how he was able to make an extra $300,000 in one year because he watered down the tomato sauce in his family’s restaurants.

Ella’s life goes through a big change when Bill is appointed secretary of the interior in the administration for Barack Obama who, at the time this story takes place in 2008, is the president-elect of the United States. (Bill’s new job in the Obama administration is the only indication in the movie that Ella and Bill are Democrats.) Bill resigns from his position as governor, so Ella automatically becomes governor and is expected to serve out the 14-month remainder of the governor’s term that Bill had. The scene of Ella’s inauguration as governor is one of the most cringeworthy in the movie because Bill keeps passing notes to Ella to remind her to mention him in her speech.

Ella has a friendly rapport with her driver, a state trooper named Nash (played by Kumail Nanjiani), who genuinely likes Ella. However, their conversations are stilted and sound very fake, much like a lot of other conversations in this mishandled movie. Nash’s only purpose in the movie is to show that someone other than Bill and Estelle likes spending time with Ella on the job. Ella is supposedly so unlikable, Bill tells her that their colleagues want to run the other way when she enters the room.

Around the same time that Ella becomes governor, her father Eddie comes back into her life because his current girlfriend Olympia (voiced by Tracey Ullman) insists that she will break up with Eddie unless he mends his relationship with Ella. Olympia is never seen in the movie and is only heard as a voice on the phone. Eddie asks Ella for forgiveness, but his contrition is exactly what it appears to be: forced and not his idea.

There’s a completely useless subplot about Casey pining over a woman named Susan (played by Ayo Edebiri), who was a close platonic friend until Casey deliberately cut off contact with her by changing his phone number a few years ago. Casey wanted their relationship to become romantic, but he fumbled his attempt to tell her, so he decided it would be better not to communicate with Susan again after she began dating someone else. After Ella reaches out to Casey and reconnects with him, she encourages Casey to reconnect with Susan and confess his true feelings to Susan. Just like “Ella McKay” cast member Hall, Edebiri has a role in the movie that’s really just a glorified cameo with less than 10 minutes of screen time.

After Ella becomes governor, she experiences problems in her marriage. Ryan’s manipulative mother convinces him that he’s being emasculated unless Ella gives him a cushy government job. Ryan, who is spineless and shallow, agrees because he thinks that he should have a title other than “governor’s husband” for the parking space that he has when he visits the governor’s office. None of this makes any sense because Ryan must have known at some point that ambitious Ella would eventually want to become governor. It’s not as if she suddenly switched careers to becoming a politician.

In addition, Ryan has his own busy and successful career in the restaurant industry. It’s mentioned several times in the movie that Ryan is essentially the leader of his family’s business. But somehow, he thinks Ella owes him a prestigious government position while he also wants to keep his demanding restaurateur job. Ryan’s jealousy about Ella’s career looks like a contrivance just so certain things can happen in the movie.

One of the worst things about “Ella McKay” is how it introduces supporting characters and doesn’t do much with giving viewers enough reasons to care about these characters. And there are pieces of information that are dumped in the movie with no meaningful context. For example, at one point in the movie, Casey mentions that he makes $2 million a year from his job, but it’s never explained why he lives in a small apartment that looks like it’s occupied by someone who is most definitely not a millionaire. Is this supposed to make Casey look modest and quirky?

Far from being a movie about female empowerment, “Ella McKay” repeatedly shows how the movie’s female protagonist has her entire life controlled and affected by men with a toxic patriarchal attitude. She becomes governor not by being elected on her own merits but because her egotistical governor boss resigned, and she was given the job by default. Ella’s personal misery comes mostly from her father and her husband, whose horrible actions have long-lasting consequences. Helen has a much stronger personality than Ella, but Helen is made to look like a squawking meddler. The cast members do the best that they can with the subpar material that they are given, but they are stuck in a boring and tone-deaf movie that stumbles along until its very corny end.

20th Century Pictures will release “Ella McKay” in U.S. cinemas on December 12, 2025.

Review: ‘Hot Milk’ (2025), starring Emma Mackey, Fiona Shaw, Patsy Ferran, Yann Gael, Vangelis Mourikis, Vincent Perez and Vicky Krieps

June 29, 2025

by Carla Hay

Emma Mackey and Vicky Krieps in “Hot Milk” (Photo by Nikos Nikolopoulos/Independent Film Company)

“Hot Milk” (2025)

Directed by Rebecca Lenkiewicz

Some language in Spanish with subtitles

Culture Representation: Taking place in Spain and briefly in Greece, the dramatic film “Hot Milk” (based on the novel of the same name) features a predominantly white cast of characters (with some Latin people) representing the working-class and middle-class.

Culture Clash: A British grad student has an affair with a mysterious older woman during a visit in Spain, as the student becomes increasingly resentful of being her disabled mother’s caregiver.

Culture Audience: “Hot Milk” will appeal primarily to people who are fans of the movie’s headliners and dramas about family caregivers, but the movie’s unfocused style and cliffhanger ending will be a turnoff to many viewers.

Emma Mackey and Fiona Shaw in “Hot Milk” (Photo by Nikos Nikolopoulos/Independent Film Company)

“Hot Milk” will leave viewers cold by its vague ending. This dull drama is about a pouting grad student who’s resentful of being her disabled mother’s caregiver while having an uncertain romance with a woman. The movie takes place in gorgeous locations in Europe, but the scenes wander and have as much direction as a lost tourist.

Written and directed by Rebecca Lenkiewicz, “Hot Milk” is based on the 2016 novel “Hot Milk” by Deborah Levy. The movie had its world premiere at the 2025 Berlin International Film Festival. “Hot Milk” takes place in Spain and briefly in Greece but was filmed in Greece.

In “Hot Milk,” Sofia (played by Emma Mackey) is a grad student whom her divorced mother Rose (played by Fiona Shaw) describes as “a perpetual student of anthropology.” Sofia and Rose live together in London, but the movie only shows Sofia and Rose together in Spain. It’s implied that Sofia has lived with Rose for Sofia’s entire life.

Rose and Sofia are visitors staying in the coastal city of Almeria, Spain, because of an experimental medical treatment for Rose, who uses a wheelchair. Dr. Gomez (played by Vincent Perez)—who is handsome, empathetic, and in his 40s—is overseeing this treatment. He is assisted by a young nurse named Julieta (played by Patsy Ferran), who is helpful and friendly.

Conversations in the movie reveal these details: Sofia’s estranged Greek father Christos (played by Vangelis Mourikis) is a shipping heir who left Rose and Sofia when Sofia was 4 years old. It was the same age that Sofia was when Rose (a native of Ireland) lost the ability to use her legs, although Rose admits that she can walk at random times that Rose says she can’t predict. No medical reason is given for why Rose has to use a wheelchair, but the movie hints that Rose’s medical condition could be psychosomatic. Dr. Gomez asks a lot of questions that sound like questions a psychiatrist would ask.

Rose mortgaged her house for the £25,000 cost to get this medical treatment from Dr. Gomez. Sofia and Rose are staying at an upscale resort area near a beach. Rose (who is a retired librarian) is prickly and is very judgmental of other people. Sofia is quiet and introverted.

How difficult is Rose? During a restaurant lunch that Rose, Sofia and Dr. Gomez have together, Rose says she wants to sit at another table away from Dr. Gomez because he’s eating fish, and Rose is allergic to fish. Dr. Gomez handles the situation like a patient parent handles a bratty child, by telling Rose that if she has an allergic reaction to him eating fish, he can take care of it for her. Rose decides to stay at the same table.

The movie opens with Sofia lounging on a beach. Expect to see more of this type of beach lounging in “Hot Milk,” because Sofia spends at least 30% of the movie hanging out at a beach. During one of these lounging periods at the beach, Sofia sees a woman riding past on a horse. Sofia and the woman look at each other in a way that indicates mutual interest and attraction, but they do not speak to each until they see each other again.

Sofia and the mystery woman (who’s about 10 to 15 years older than Sofia) eventually meet at an outdoor restaurant where they both happen to be dining at nearby tables during the day. The mystery woman’s name is Ingrid (played by Vicky Krieps), who has a German accent and a murky personal background. Sofia and Ingrid’s first conversation is utterly vapid and an example about how this “romance” has no real depth.

Ingrid asks Sofia: “Do you smoke?” Sofia says, “Yes.” Ingrid asks if Sofia has any cigarettes. Sofia again replies, “Yes.” Ingrid tells Sofia, “Let’s go.” And so, they leave the restaurant to lounge on the beach and smoke. While looking up at the sky, Ingrid says to Sofia: “Look at all this blue. It’s blue!”

Eventually, Sofia and Ingrid become lovers. “Hot Milk” tries to convince viewers that Ingrid and Sofia have a passionate relationship, just because they declare their love for each other. But what the movie shows about their relationship is tedious and often very shallow. There simply isn’t believable chemistry between Ingrid and Sofia. Ingrid seems like she’s bored and using Sofia as a plaything. Sofia seems like she’s too needy and is using Ingrid as a distraction from Sofia’s responsibility of being Rose’s caregiver.

If Ingrid has a job or a career, she doesn’t tell Sofia what it is, nor does Sofia ask. If Ingrid has ever been married or has children, Ingrid doesn’t tell Sofia, and Sofia never asks about it either. All that’s shown about Ingrid’s lifestyle in the movie is that Ingrid is a bachelorette who’s living a life of leisure in Spain. Ingrid also calls Sofia by the nickname Sophie, as if Ingrid wants to set her own rules of how to give a nickname to Sofia.

Ingrid knows that Sofia is a grad student in anthropology, but Ingrid doesn’t seem very interested in whatever interests Sofia. Ingrid also doesn’t tell Sofia what her own hopes and dreams are. The only time that Ingrid opens up emotionally to Sofia is when she tells Sofia a secret from Ingrid’s past. Ingrid begins to reveal this secret when Ingrid blurts out, “I killed somebody,” and Ingrid says it happened a long time ago.

Sofia seems in shock and doesn’t ask for details when she hears Ingrid make this statement. But later, Ingrid tells the details when Sofia asks. When these details are revealed, it shows viewers that Ingrid is prone to exaggeration/dishonesty. However, when Ingrid tells the truth about what happened in a traumatic incident from her past, it’s obvious that Ingrid feels a lot of guilt and is haunted by it. Sofia later finds out that Rose is haunted by her own secret from the past.

Sofia seems to want a monogamous/exclusive relationship with Ingrid, but Ingrid (who is the more assertive partner) never tells Sofia that that their relationship is monogamous/exclusive. In fact, Ingrid and Sofia don’t talk at all about what type of relationship they want to have with each other—another reason why the movie fails to convince that Ingrid and Sofia have a healthy and fulfilling romance. The undefined nature of their relationship is why Sofia gets angry and storms off every time Sofia sees Ingrid get affectionate with Ingrid’s male lovers who stop by to visit.

One of these male lovers is Matty (played by Yann Gael), an aspiring musician who works as a private-transportation driver. Ingrid hires Matty to temporarily give driving services to Sofia and Rose. Another of Ingrid’s lovers is Leonardo (played by Paris Thomopoulous), who works as Ingrid’s horse-riding instructor. Matty and Leonardo have fleeting moments in the movie, which only makes them catalysts to Sofia feeling possessive of Ingrid.

Ingrid doesn’t explain what level of commitment that she has to Matty or Leonardo, nor does Sofia ask. Sofia’s jealous reaction shows her emotional immaturity and insecurity. A mature and secure person would ask Ingrid to be honest about Ingrid’s relationship boundaries and expectations in this polyamorous situation—instead of having a tantrum and running away, which Sofia does more than once after seeing public displays of affection between Ingrid and Ingrid’s male lovers.

“Hot Milk” has a repeat loop of one of these three scenarios shown throughout the movie: (1) Sofia being annoyed by Rose; (2) Sofia and Ingrid having sexual trysts and mostly uninteresting conversations; and (3) Sofia hanging out at a beach, where she pouts, pouts some more, and does even more pouting. Sofia suddenly takes a brief trip to Greece to see her estranged father Christos, who has a much-younger wife named Alexandra (played by Korina Gougouli) and a toddler daughter named Evangeline (played by Elisavet Liosi and Sofia Papadopoulou), but that scene ultimately doesn’t have much impact in the story.

There are also indications that Sofia is mentally unraveling. For example, there’s a scene when she angrily threatens a neighbor with a knife and orders him to let his barking dog loose from the dog’s chain because Sofia can no longer handle the sound of the dog barking. The acting performances in “Hot Milk” aren’t terrible, but they’re not impressive either. What really sinks “Hot Milk” is the atrocious ending that will leave most viewers confused and feeling like they wasted their time watching a meaningless film.

Independent Film Company released “Hot Milk” in select U.S. cinemas on June 27, 2025.

Review: ‘Barbie’ (2023), starring Margot Robbie, Ryan Gosling, America Ferrera, Kate McKinnon, Issa Rae, Rhea Perlman and Will Ferrell

July 19, 2023

by Carla Hay

Emma Mackey, Simu Liu, Margot Robbie, Ryan Gosling and Kingsley Ben-Adir in “Barbie” (Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures)

“Barbie” (2023)

Directed by Greta Gerwig

Culture Representation: Taking place in Barbie Land and in “the real world” in the United States, the comedy film “Barbie” features a predominantly white cast of characters (with some African Americans, Latinos and Asians) portraying Barbie dolls and human beings.

Culture Clash: Barbie and Ken, who are two of Mattel’s most famous dolls, leave Barbie Land to venture out into the real world, and they encounter humans who have various reactions.

Culture Audience: “Barbie” will appeal primarily to people who are fans of the Barbie brand and campy comedies that have pointed observations about society and feminism.

Ana Cruz Kayne, Sharon Rooney, Alexandra Shipp, Margot Robbie, Hari Nef and Emma Mackey in “Barbie” (Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures)

Despite a few parts of the screenplay being clumsy and meandering, “Barbie” is a nearly pitch-perfect comedy in its blend of satire and social commentary. The production design, costume design and casting are impeccable. The musical numbers are a bonus. If you like pop-culture-drenched comedies that can appeal to many generations (but adults will understand most of the jokes), then “Barbie” is the type of movie for you.

Directed by Greta Gerwig (who co-wrote the “Barbie” screenplay with Noah Baumbach), “Barbie” is candy-hued madcap adventure that sometimes gets overstuffed and unfocused in what it’s trying to say. It’s an occasionally bumpy ride that’s still worth the journey, but it’s best appreciated by people who are attuned to the impact that Mattel’s Barbie dolls have had on the perception of “feminine ideals.” People’s views of the “Barbie” movie will likely be affected by their views of Barbie dolls.

Barbie dolls (and what they represent) have been loved, hated, and somewhere in between by countless numbers of people, ever since the first Barbie dolls were sold in 1959. Within the Barbie toy brand are dolls with other names, but the Barbie doll name is iconic for various reasons. Barbie having a woman’s body and an entire imaginary world built around her have become part of Barbie’s image of being a “superstar” doll.

The “Barbie” movie acknowledges this impact from its opening scene, where voiceover narrator Helen Mirren is heard saying, “Since the existence of time, there have been dolls—baby dolls.” It’s a spoof of the opening scene from the 1968 sci-fi classic “2001: A Space Odyssey.” The “Barbie” movie then shows girls playing on a beach with baby dolls until a giant Barbie (played by Margot Robbie) suddenly appears on the beach, in a one-piece, black-and-white-striped swimsuit, like a doll version of Godzilla. The girls on the beach quickly smash and abandon their baby dolls and are in awe of Barbie.

Over the years, Mattel has presented Barbie as different races, occupations and body sizes, in order to deflect criticism that Barbie is not diverse. The “Barbie” movie does the same thing too. It also pokes fun at the stereotype that the “ideal” Barbie is supposed to be thin, blonde and pretty, by naming its protagonist Stereotypical Barbie (played by Robbie, one of the producers of the movie) and having her do a lot of stereotypical things that an eternally cheerfully doll would do. Barbie lives in fantastical world called Barbie Land, where the majority of everything is in pink, and parties often feature well-choreographed song-and-dance numbers.

But then, this Barbie begins to see signs that she’s not as “perfect” as she thought she was. Barbie starts to have dark thoughts about death. Her feet—which are supposed to be in permanent “tip-toe” mode so she can easily slip into high heels—suddenly become flat fleet, much to the horror of the other Barbies in Barbie Land. The movie’s other Barbies who have prominent speaking roles are portrayed by Issa Rae (the president of Barbie Land), Hari Nef, Emma Mackey, Alexandra Shipp, Sharon Rooney, Ana Cruz Kayne, Ritu Arya, Dua Lipa and Nicola Coughlin.

In the “Barbie” movie, Stereotypical Barbie has a possible love interest named Ken (played by Ryan Gosling), just like Mattel has a Ken doll that’s supposed to be Barbie’s love interest. In the movie, there are also various Kens of different races and body sizes. The ones with prominent speaking roles are portrayed by Simu Liu, Kingsley Ben-Adir, Scott Evans, Ncuti Gatwa and John Cena. (Cena’s appearance in the movie is very brief: no more than two minutes.)

More often than not, the Barbies in Barbie Land co-exist peacefully with each other and the Kens and are in perpetual supportive “girl power” mindsets. The Kens in Barbie Land aren’t as friendly with each other, because they are often competing for the attention of the Barbies. Gosling and Liu portray the Kens who have the biggest rivalries with each other. It’s the movie’s way of saying that competitive male egos will always exist, even in so-called utopias. (After all, history has shown which gender is more likely to start wars on Earth.)

One male who’s not named Ken in Barbie Land is Allan (played by Michael Cera), who represents every sad-sack beta male who’s treated like an outcast misfit. Allan is not considered “cool” enough to be a close friend of the Kens in Barbie Land. And he’s not considered “attractive” enough to be swooned over by the Barbies in Barbie Land, although the Barbies treat Allan better than the Kens do.

The Barbies have their own outcast misfit: Weird Barbie (played by Kate McKinnon), a disheveled doll who was played with too hard by whoever used to own her. Weird Barbie is a moody, sarcastic nonconformist who prefers the real world over Barbie Land. Almost all of the Barbies in Barbie Land have no idea what the real world is about, but they have a vague concept that it’s an undesirable place.

Weird Barbie has some of the best lines in the movie. There’s a scene that has some snarky commentary about how Mattel makes all Barbie and Ken dolls with genital areas that are not explicitly detailed. Weird Barbie quips in this scene about the Ken character played by Gosling: “I’d to see what kind of nude blob he’s packing under those jeans.” There’s also a joke about discontinued Barbie dolls, including Midge (played by Emerald Fennell), who was controversial because she was pregnant.

The Ken played by Gosling is frustrated because he wants to have sleepovers at Stereotypical Barbie’s place. Stereotypical Barbie doesn’t think about sex and only wants to have female-only slumber parties, so Ken is always rejected when he asks Barbie to spend the night at her home. As Barbie tells Ken about her sleepover rules: “Every night is girls’ night.”

Stereotypical Barbie grows increasingly disturbed by signs that she’s turning into a different Barbie. In addition to having flat feet, Barbie also shows signs that she’s becoming klutsy, insecure and no longer “perfect.” Through a series of events, Stereotypical Barbie finds out from Weird Barbie that someone in the real world has been planning a Barbie with “irrepressible thoughts of death” and other non-Barbie-like characteristics that Stereotypical Barbie has been experiencing.

And so, to solve this mystery and to find the person who’s been messing with her “perfect” life, Barbie decides to go to the real world, right to the place where she was made: Mattel headquarters in the Los Angeles area. Because she’s a master traveler, she goes by land, air and sea in a quick montage. Barbie starts her journey on a road trip, and she’s surprised to find Ken has hidden in the back of her car, because he wants to go to the real world too.

The Mattel executives are an all-male team led by an unnamed CEO (played by Will Ferrell), who has more ego posturing and bluster than he has intelligence. His team consists of a bunch of “yes men,” except for a junior executive named Aaron Dinkins (played by Connor Swindells), who dares to be an independent thinker. The CEO is predictably a bumbling oaf.

Meanwhile, another Mattel employee named Gloria (played by America Ferrera) and her daughter Sasha (played Arianna Greenblatt), who’s about 12 or 13 years old, are big parts of the story. Sasha is a pouty adolescent who’s angry that her mother left her father, for reasons that aren’t fully explained in the movie. Sasha and her female friends hate Barbie dolls and aren’t afraid to say so.

“Barbie” director/co-writer Gerwig is an outspoken feminist, so it should come as no surprise that the movie has a lot of satire about misogyny, patriarchy and how people are treated or perceived a certain way because of gender and physical appearances. The female characters aren’t excused for terrible actions, since “Barbie” also lampoons “mean girls” who are bullies and snobs. “Barbie” is not a male-bashing film, but it does point out the privileges men often get just for being men. One of the funniest parts of the movie is when Ken discovers that the real world is the opposite of Barbie Land, such as men have most of the power in the real world.

“Barbie” stumbles a bit in the backstory for Gloria and Sasha. It could have been a better-developed part of the screenplay, because Gloria and Sasha just seem kind of thrown into the movie without viewers really getting much of a chance to know them before Gloria and Sasha become a big part of the story. The movie also doesn’t do enough with Barbie’s and Ken’s “real world” interactions with adults who don’t work for Mattel.

There’s a very children’s movie-type subplot about the Mattel CEO wanting to capture Barbie and Ken, in order to put both of these life-sized dolls back in their boxes. During a chase sequence through Mattel headquarters, Barbie finds refuge in a kitchen, where she meets an elderly woman named Ruth (played by Rhea Perlman), who shows up again later in a hilarious scene.

Robbie and Gosling are a very good comedic team in “Barbie,” with both playing their respective roles in an effectively funny tongue-in-cheek style. Robbie’s Barbie is naïve but resourceful and a quick learner. Gosling’s Ken proves that he’s not just a mindless “himbo” and he has very thoughtful side. McKinnon (whose Weird Barbie deadpan delivery is very amusing) is a true standout among the “Barbie” cast, but she isn’t in the movie as much as many people think she should have been.

Ferrell, who has played pompous jerks in many other comedies, doesn’t do anything new in “Barbie,” but people who like to see him in this type of role will find his performance to be what’s expected. Ferrera and Greenblatt give believable performances as a mother and a daughter working through their own issues. Ferrera’s Gloria character has had an interesting life that is only hinted at in the movie, especially when she gives a dramatic monologue at one point in the story. The rest of the “Barbie” cast members give serviceable performances.

The soundtrack music of “Barbie” has some predictable selections, including Cyndi Lauper’s “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun,” Spice Girls’ “Spice Up Your Life” and Lizzo’s “Pink.” Barbie has a personal theme song during her “real world” journey: Indigo Girls’ “Closer to Fine,” while Ken’s personal theme song after he discovers patriarchy is Matchbox Twenty’s “Push.” “Closer to Fine” and “Push” are inspired choices for the soundtrack, which includes “Barbie” co-star Lipa’s “Dance the Night,” Gosling’s “I’m Just Ken” and Billie Eilish’s “What Was I Made For?” Also on the soundtrack: Nicki Minaj and Ice Spice have a duet cover version of Aqua’s “Barbie Girl.”

Making a live-action “Barbie” movie is so much harder than it sounds. You can’t alienate the die-hard Barbie fans, but you can’t make it so sickeningly sweet that it will turn off people who have no interest in buying Barbie dolls. There’s some product placement in “Barbie,” but it isn’t aggressively obnoxious, like some product placement is in many other major studio movies. The “Barbie” movie is a lot like a Barbie doll: Some people will find it to be disposable entertainment, while others will be hooked and will become devoted fans.

Warner Bros. Pictures will release “Barbie” in U.S. cinemas on July 21, 2023.

Review: ‘Emily’ (2022), starring Emma Mackey, Fionn Whitehead, Oliver Jackson-Cohen, Alexandra Dowling, Adrian Dunbar, Amelia Gething and Gemma Jones

February 19, 2023

by Carla Hay

Emma Mackey in “Emily” (Photo courtesy of Bleecker Street)

“Emily” (2022)

Directed by Frances O’Connor

Some language in French with subtitles

Culture Representation: Taking place in England (and briefly in Belgium), from 1841 to 1848, the dramatic film “Emily” features an all-white cast of characters representing the working-class and the middle-class.

Culture Clash: Aspiring writer Emily Brontë, who is perceived as a reclusive weirdo in her community, experiences love and loss before writing her first and only novel, “Wuthering Heights.”

Culture Audience: “Emily” will appeal primarily to people who are fans of Emily Brontë, British films that take place in the 1800s, and well-acted movies that have gothic tones and themes.

Fionn Whitehead and Oliver Jackson-Cohen in “Emily” (Photo courtesy of Bleecker Street)

Gorgeously filmed like an Emily Brontë novel come to life, “Emily” overcomes its occasionally dull moments with very good acting, led by a vibrant performance from Emma Mackey. This gothic drama perfectly captures the moody and eccentric personality of its author protagonist without turning her into a parody or caricature. It’s not a completely accurate biopic in the purist sense of the word, because much of the story is about a romance that was fabricated for the movie.

“Emily” is the first feature film from writer/director Frances O’Connor (also known for being an actress), who shows talent in casting choices, visual style and character development. However, “Emily” needed some improvement in the narrative structure: Some scenes look unnecessary because they don’t really go anywhere. Better choices could also have been made in the film editing for “Emily,” because the movie’s pacing sometimes drags. These are minor flaws that shouldn’t take away from the overall enjoyment of the movie.

“Emily” had its world premiere at the 2022 Toronto International Film Festival. For the 2023 British Independent Film Awards, the movie was nominated for four prizes: Best Lead Performance (for Mackey); Best Supporting Performance (for Fionn Whitehead); the Douglas Hickox Award, a prize given to a debut director (for O’Connor); and Best Ensemble. At the 2023 British Academy Film Awards, Mackey won the Rising Star Award.

“Emily” takes place mostly in England’s Yorkshire county, from 1841 to 1848. In 1841, Emily Brontë (played by Mackey) is a 23-year-old bachelorette who is shy, eccentric and reclusive. She has a vivid imagination and often seems to live in a fantasy world, but this personality trait also caused her to have a reputation in the community for being weird and an extreme daydreamer. Emily often talks out loud to the characters that she has created in her head.

She is also a poet who has been able to get her poems published under the alias Ellis Bell. It was very common for women writers at the time to send their work to publishers by using a man’s name as an alias, because they knew this gender switch would increase their chances of getting published. Unlike many women in her age group, Emily is not preoccupied with finding a husband, especially a man who has more money than her family does.

Emily lives in a rural parsonage in Haworth, England, with her widowed father Reverend Patrick Brontë (played by Adrian Dunbar), her younger sister Anne Brontë (played by Amelia Gething), her older brother Branwell Brontë (played by Whitehead) and her aunt Elizabeth Branwell (played by Gemma Jones), who is the sister of Emily’s deceased mother Maria. Emily has an older sister named Charlotte Brontë (played by Alexandra Dowling), who doesn’t live at home for most of the movie because Charlotte is away at college and then gets a teaching position at the school after she graduates.

All four of the Brontë siblings are aspiring writers, but the movie depicts Emily as the sibling who is the most consistently prolific. When Charlotte comes home for a visit from school, Charlotte mentions to Emily that she’s been too busy to write because of all of her schoolwork. Throughout the movie, there’s an unspoken rivalry between Emily and Charlotte—not just when it comes to any of their professional aspirations but also when it comes to their love lives. As the oldest of the four siblings, overachieving Charlotte expects to be the first of her siblings to accomplish great things and to be the sibling to get married first.

The Brontë family is grieving over the death of matriarch Maria, who died of cancer in 1821, when Emily was 3 years old. Maria’s absence has left a void that the siblings don’t really like to talk about with each other. What “Emily” doesn’t mention is that in real life, the family’s two eldest siblings (Maria and Elizabeth) died in 1824 from typhoid epidemic that plagued their school. Charlotte then became the eldest living sibling, which partially explains why she acts like both a sister and a mother to her younger siblings.

Emily is close to all of her living siblings, but she has a special bond with Branwell, who is only a year older than Emily. Branwell is fun-loving, rebellious and can usually make Emily laugh when she’s feeling depressed, which is apparently quite often. Unlike Charlotte, who is often judgmental of Emily and scolds Emily for being vulgar, Branwell accepts Emily for exactly who she is. He also has great admiration for her as a writer. And so does Anne, who is the kindest and friendliest of the four siblings.

Emily frequently joins Branwell for some of his mischief making, such as when they peek though neighbors’ windows unbeknownst to the neighbors, or when they indulge in taking drugs. Emily and Branwell secretly smoke marijuana together and take liquid opium stolen from their father, who keeps am opium stash for emergency medicinal purposes. This opium taking becomes a serious addiction for one of these siblings.

Whatever social life that Emily has is usually because of her more outgoing siblings. They sometimes frolic together in the nearby fields like giddy children. Things are much more serious at the church where their father is the chief clergyman.

However, the arrival of a curate named William Weightman (played by Oliver Jackson-Cohen), bachelor in his 30s, indicates that this church is about to undergo a transformation. William’s first sermon isn’t a typical stuffy lecture but is instead a personal tale with a rain theme. He talks about much he enjoys walking in the rain, and how rain is similar to a spiritual cleansing.

After the sermon, sisters Charlotte, Emily and Anne are gathered in the kitchen, where they are helping prepare meals for the visiting congregation. Charlotte and Anne are immensely charmed by handsome newcomer William, while Emily is not as impressed. And it’s at that moment that you know what Emily is going to fall in love with William.

Anne gushes, “He speaks with such poetry.” Emily replies, “Any man can speak, but what can he actually do?” Emily then says sarcastically, “I do wonder though: How does God squeeze Himself into all that rain. Does he get wet?”

At that moment, William walks in the kitchen to formally introduce himself. He knows that the sisters were talking about him, and there’s some awkwardness that he quickly diffuses with self-deprecating charisma. Emily doesn’t say much to William in this conversation, but her staring eyes show that she’s intrigued by him but doesn’t want to admit it to anyone just yet.

Over time, Charlotte and Anne openly express that they have a crush on William, as they giggle in his presence and seem awed by everything he says and does. For Valentine’s Day, William gives all three sisters friendly Valentine’s Day notes, but Emily is the only one of the sisters who reacts with seeming indifference. However, through a series of circumstances, (including William becoming Emily’s French tutor), Emily and William get to know each other better. And an attraction grows between them.

Up until this point, Branwell is the man who is closest to Emily. Branwell is aware of a growing attraction between Emily and William. Branwell seems jealous or threatened that another person could mean more to Emily than Branwell. And so, Branwell tells Emily that he doesn’t think William is the right person for her. William is cautious about having a love affair with Emily because it’s ethically questionable and because he doesn’t want to lose the trust of Emily’s father, who is William’s mentor.

Like any compelling gothic movie that mixes horror and romance, “Emily” has a few scenes that are literally haunting. One evening, the Brontë family is hosting a dinner, with William and a family friend in her 20s named Ellen Nussey (played by Sacha Parkinson) as the guests. Patrick brings out a white theater mask that he says was a wedding gift to him and Maria, but this gift was not accompanied by a card, so they never found out who gave them this mask. Patrick explains that his children would play with the mask when they were growing up, by someone putting on the mask and playing a character, while other people would have to guess the identity of the character.

After dinner, Emily, Charlotte, Anne, Branwell, William and Ellen gather in a room to play this game from the Brontë siblings’ childhood. At first, the game is lighthearted. But then, Emily puts on the mask and starts talking. To her siblings’ horror, they figure out that Emily is impersonating their dead mother. Suddenly, strong wind gusts whip through the room, as if an unseen ghostly spirit has appeared. People in the room have various reactions, but it unnerves most of the people who witnessed this spectacle.

“Emily” doesn’t turn into a ghost story, but the mask is a symbol for how much of the past the siblings want to hold on to, when it comes to their childhoods and how the death of their mother has affected them. At one point, one of the siblings buries the mask in the backyard, as if the mask also represents painful memories. The mask is later dug up and retrieved, as if to reclaim those memories to being positive and something that shouldn’t be feared.

The romance between Emily and William plays out exactly like it usually does in movies like “Emily,” with Mackey and Jackson-Cohen showing the typical combination of repressed lust and unleashed passion, depending on the scene. Mackey does a lot of terrific acting with her expressive eyes, so that observant viewers can deduce what Emily is thinking, even when Emily isn’t saying a word. The movie shows that, far from being bashful about expressing love, Emily is the one who initiates many of the overtures in this romance.

Whitehead also stands out in his role of complicated Branwell, who seems to be carefree on the outside, but Branwell is actually deeply insecure and troubled about himself and his place in the family. Whereas Emily has Charlotte as Emily’s biggest critic, Branwell has his father Patrick has Branwell’s biggest critic. Branwell can’t seem to change Patrick’s perception that Branwell is a “disappointment” to the family.

Because very little is known about the real Emily Brontë’s love life, the romance in the movie was created to spice up the story. Although the character of William is a composite of real people, according to the production notes for “Emily,” there is no evidence that Emily fell in love with someone who worked for her father. However, the movie correctly depicts that Emily briefly gave up writing when she decided to become a teacher.

The sibling rivalry between Emily and Charlotte is much more plausible. In real life, Charlotte Brontë also became a famous author because of her novel “Jane Eyre,” which was published in 1847, the same year that Emily Brontë’s “Wuthering Heights” was published. Both novels are centered on romance, but each book has a very different tone. “Wuthering Heights” has a darker tone that was considered more risqué at the time.

Because “Emily” is told from Emily’s perspective, very little is shown about Charlotte’s writing process. “Emily” speculates what could have motivated Emily to write her greatest and best-known work (“Wuthering Heights”) in her short life. The movie is both a fitting tribute and an imaginative portait of an enigmatic author whose work has stood the test of time.

Bleecker Street released “Emily” in select U.S. cinemas on February 17, 2023, with an expansion to more U.S. cinemas on February 24, 2023. The movie was released in the United Kindgom on October 14, 2022.

Review: ‘Eiffel,’ starring Romain Duris and Emma Mackey

June 9, 2022

by Carla Hay

“Eiffel”

Directed by Martin Bourboulon

French with subtitles

Culture Representation: Taking place in Paris, from 1887 to 1889 (with some flashbacks to the 1860s), the dramatic film “Eiffel” features an all-white cast of characters representing the working-class, middle-class and wealthy.

Culture Clash: Architech/engineer Gustave Eiffel encounters conflicts in his personal and professional lives when he masterminds the construction of the Eiffel Tower.

Culture Audience: “Eiffel” will appeal primarily to people interested in watching movies about the making of the Eiffel Tower, but the bland “Eiffel” fails to make an impact as a historical drama.

Emma Mackey and Romain Duris in “Eiffel” (Photo courtesy of Blue Fox Entertainment)

“Eiffel” tries to weave together dramatic conflicts that Eiffel Tower creator Gustave Eiffel had in his work and in his love life, but the results are clumsy, dull and superficial. This movie is just a back-and-forth slog that alternates between showing the construction of the Eiffel Tower and showing archiect/engineer Eiffel pining over an on-again/off-again lover who’s a heartbreaker. The cast members give adequate performances, but they are hemmed in by a movie that makes all of the characters as stereotypes instead of people with fully formed personalities.

Directed by Martin Bourboulon and written by Caroline Bongrand, “Eiffel” takes place primarily in Paris during 1887 and 1889 (the years the Eiffel Tower was under construction), although there are several flashbacks to the 1860s. The movie opens with title character Gustave Eiffel (played by Romain Duris) as a widower in his 50s and the father of five children. Inexplicably, the movie only gives adequate screen time to only one of his children: eldest child Claire Eiffel (played by Armande Boulanger), who is in her mid-20s when this story takes place. The rest of Gustave’s children are seen briefly, early in the movie, and are then never seen again.

In real life, Claire was a secretary and close advisor to Gustave, who relied on her for several matters pertaining to his career. But you wouldn’t know it from watching this movie. The only conversations that Claire has with Gustave are about their respective love lives. Near the beginning of the film, Claire announces that she’s engaged to a man named Adolphe Salles (played by Andranic Manet), and she asks Gustave for his blessing, which he gives. Later in the movie, Gustave confides in Claire that he has met a special someone whom he wants Claire to meet.

That “special someone” is Adrienne Bourgès (played by Emma Mackey), a socialite who is married to a mild-mannered journalist named Antoine de Restac (played by Pierre Deladonchamps), who loves and respects Adrienne. Adrienne and Antoine have no children together. The problem is that Adrienne is really in love with Gustave. Antoine has no idea that Adrienne has a past with Gustave.

As the movie shows in flashbacks, Adrienne and Gustave were lovers in the 1860s. They even talked about getting married. However, their love affair was interrupted because Adrienne was abruptly sent away by her wealthy parents (played by Bruno Raffaelli and Sophie Fougère), who disapproved of her marrying Gustave. Her parents thought Gustave’s lower social class made him “not good enough” to marry Adrienne. Adrienne’s father told Gustave that it was Adrienne’s choice to move away and end the romance without saying goodbye to Gustave.

There was another reason why Adrienne moved away (it’s the most obvious reason possible), but no one told Gustave at the time. A heartbroken Gustave moved on with his life, married a woman named Marguerite, and started a family with her. Gustave’s deceased wife Marguerite (who died in 1877, at the age of 30) is barely mentioned in this movie, which is another reason why “Eiffel” fails to have much depth. The movie never really addresses who’s taking care of Gustave’s underage kids (presumably it’s a nanny) who live in his household, because he is never seen spending any quality time with them or even talking about them at length.

By the time Gustave sees Adrienne again about 20 years after their breakup, he’s become a successful and world-renowned architect. His structures include the Statue of Liberty, which was unveiled in 1886, and became an instant world-famous landmark. And now, France wants Gustave to build an extraordinary masterpiece for France.

Gustave’s idea for this masterpiece is to build a 300-meter tower made of metal. He has a clear, uncompromising vision for what he wants, which later leads to conflicts with some of the government officials who have other suggestions on how to build the tower. Before the tower is built, Gustave insists that this tower should not be something that can only be enjoyed and accessed by elite members of society: “Everyone must be able to see it. No class divisions.”

In between Gustave’s battles over getting financing for the Eiffel Tower, overseeing the tower’s construction, and getting some unflattering media coverage for the costs involved, he goes to many parties attended by upper-class citizens of Paris. It’s at one of these soirees that he sees Adrienne for the first time in about 20 years. When they have some alone time together, she tries to hold his hand, but he pulls away. He also won’t look her directly in her eyes. Gustave tells Adrienne curtly: “I hoped I’d never see you again.”

However, it’s easy to predict that Gustave and Adrienne will see each other again. At an outdoor party, Gustave and Adrienne end up in a group playing musical chairs. During this game, Gustave and Adrienne get flirty with each other. It’s obvious to Gustave and Adrienne that they still have romantic feelings for each other.

And it isn’t long before Gustave and Adrienne resume their affair, but this time in a very secretive way. The movie spends a lot of time showing Gustave being emotionally tortured because he wants to go public with Adrienne, but his reputation is at risk if he becomes known as a homewrecker. Gustave is also friendly with Adrienne’s husband Antoine, who is an influential member of society.

Because “Eiffel” essentially erases Gustave’s family life, it makes him look like all he cared about during 1887 and 1889 were his romance with Adrienne and the construction of the Eiffel Tower. It’s a very over-simplified way of telling his story that ultimately does not do justice to the real Gustave Eiffel and his family. And after a while, Adrienne’s ambivalence about the love triangle gets very tiresome.

One of the things that “Eiffel” handles badly is the aging process for Adrienne. Even though she has scenes that take place over the course of 20 years, she doesn’t look like she’s aged at all. It’s as if the filmmakers didn’t want the lead actress in the movie to have gray hair and wrinkles. Meanwhile, there is considerable effort to make Gustave look like he’s aged over the years. “Eiffel” is also a very “male gaze” movie, because in the sex scenes with Adrienne and Gustave, she’s is the only one to have any nudity.

“Eiffel” is not a completely terrible film. The movie (whose cinematography is very gauzy) does have some very good production design and costume design. It’s a watchable movie but it’s also forgettable. The ending of “Eiffel” is as hokey as it can be and not very believable. It’s why “Eiffel” looks like a very watered-down and hollow version of this period of Gustave Eiffel’s fascinating life.

Blue Fox Entertainment released “Eiffel” in select U.S. cinemas on June 3, 2022. The movie was released in France and other countries in 2021.