Barbie

If they had an Oscar for “Commitment to the Bit,” Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling would be shoo-ins. Carefully striking a fine-line between tribute and parody, indie “manic pixie” Greta Gerwig bedazzles the big screen and sells a bunch of toys in this explosion of pink and existential angst. The gags and musical numbers are funny and original, but the wire-framework is lifted from numerous cautionary tales throughout history invoking “number 5 is alive”: Frankenstein, Pinocchio, The Twilight Zone, Short Circuit, Chucky, Wargames, "2001", Toy Story, that Amazing Stories episode with the doll, Megan… This list goes on and on. As much as Robbie is the star, she delegates a lot of the schtick to Ryan Gosling, who “Mickey Mouse Clubs” his way to a bunch of laughs, and America Ferrara, who gets to give the big speech. Despite the well-worn premise, the script stays tight and surprising, walking that tightrope that means: you’ll either love it or hate it.