Greta Gerwig reveals the key Barbie scene she refused to cut despite studio pressure
Greta Gerwig has revealed the scene in Barbie that she refused to cut. The Academy Award-nominated director said that it was suggested she remove a scene where Barbie meets an elderly woman on a bench and tells her she’s beautiful. “I love that scene so much,” Gerwig told Rolling Stone. “And the older woman on the bench is the costume designer Ann Roth. She’s a legend. It’s a cul-de-sac of a moment, in a way - it doesn’t lead anywhere. "And in early cuts, looking at the movie, it was suggested, ‘Well, you could cut it. And actually, the story would move on just the same.’ And I said, ‘If I cut the scene, I don’t know what this movie is about.'” Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter In another interview, Gerwig called the scene a "transaction of grace" and said it is vital to understand how the living doll perceives the human world. “The idea of a loving God who’s a mother, a grandmother - who looks at you and says, ‘Honey, you’re doing ok’ - is something I feel like I need and I wanted to give to other people,” Gerwig told The New York Times. “If I cut that scene, I don’t know why I’m making this movie,” the director added. “If I don’t have that scene, I don’t know what it is or what I’ve done.” Gerwig's critically lauded and box-office-smashing movie was released worldwide last Friday with seemingly everyone heading out to see the Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling starring comedy about the iconic toy. Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.
2023-07-24 16:20
Hollywood is at a crossroads, says Jamie Lee Curtis
Movie star Jamie Lee Curtis has voiced her support for the ongoing strike action.
2023-07-23 15:29
Turkey Recasts ‘Top Gun’ to Give Its TV Soft Power a Harder Edge
Long willing to do battle across the Middle East, Turkey now also wants to win hearts and minds
2023-07-23 11:29
What's the Kennection? #72
All five answers to the questions below have something in common. Can you figure it out?
2023-07-23 06:17
Tour de France Cycling Boom Helps French Family Firm Make Half a Billion Euros
Groupe Amaury, the closely held family business that owns the Tour de France, saw revenue jump by nearly
2023-07-21 19:58
Channel Seven commentator criticized for 'motherhood' comment about Australia star Katrina Gorry during Women's World Cup match
A commentator for Australian network Channel Seven has been criticized for a comment he made about Matildas star Katrina Gorry during the team's 1-0 win over the Republic of Ireland in the Women's World Cup on Thursday.
2023-07-21 19:50
The 32 films you should watch before seeing Barbie according to Greta Gerwig
After weeks of high-budget lurid pink publicity, it’s easy to forget that Barbie director Greta Gerwig is the indie writer and producer behind Frances Ha, Little Women and Lady Bird. Now, Gerwig has revealed the films that inspired the candy coloured sensation. One of the most prominent influences is The Wizard of Oz, the 1939 Judy Garland classic which a US Library of Congress exhibition described as “America's greatest and best-loved home-grown fairytale”. Gerwig said during her interview with Letterboxd it is an “extraordinary, beloved” movie. “It does something which I wanted to emulate which is these incredible sound stages and these painted skies, and this sense of authentically artificial, which I think is very beautiful and emotional. Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter “In our movie we have the pink brick road instead of the yellow brick road … and we executed it like they would have done in the 30s and 40s.” However, another important influence is a less obvious one: The Umbrellas of Cherbourg, a 1964 musical romantic drama film written and directed by French movie icon Jacques Demy. Greta Gerwig’s Official Barbie Watchlist www.youtube.com The film centres around two young lovers in the French city of Cherbourg, separated by war. It is entirely sung-through, similar to a musical or an opera. Gerwig said she “loved the use of colour” in the film. “The surrealness of the colour was a big part of it”, she added, saying that Barbie’s use of “five different shades of pink or red in one shot and not have it overwhelm anything” was influenced by the film. Other films on the list of influences include Saturday Night Fever, The Truman Show and The Godfather (yep, you read that right). Of Saturday Night Fever, she said: “I always had a sense of wanting this to be a movie with an amazing soundtrack. “Saturday Night Fever obviously has this incredible soundtrack by The Bee Gees. I had watched a documentary about them and was so touched by The Bee Gees and Barbie seemed so disco to me. Actually in her heart. Because Barbie and disco are a little bit dorky, in the best way. “It had that quality and Saturday Night Fever was a kind of movie that was driven by music but was not a musical.” The whole list is as follows: The Wizard of Oz The Umbrellas of Cherbourg Saturday Night Fever The Bee Gees: How Can You Mend a Broken Heart The Godfather Grease 2001: A Space Odyssey The Truman Show The Young Girls of Rochefort Oklahoma! Model Shop An American in Paris Singin' in the Rain The Red Shoes A Matter of Life and Death All That Jazz Heaven Can Wait Women on the Verge of a Nervous BreakDown His Girl Friday The Philadelphia Story Gold Diggers of 1935 Twentieth Century The Ladies Man Rear Window And the Ship Sails On Wings of Desire The Earrings of Madame de… Close Encounters of the Third Kind Modern Times Pee-wee’s Big Adventure Mon Oncle PlayTime Splash Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.
2023-07-21 19:17
Zayn Malik releases first new song in two years
Former One Direction star Zayn Malik is making a return to the charts by releasing his first new song in two years
2023-07-21 15:19
Keanu Reeves' band Dogstar announce first album for 23 years and drop new song
Keanu Reeves' grunge band Dogstar have announced a tour and their first album 23 years, 'Somewhere Between the Power Lines and Palm Trees', and released their new single.
2023-07-20 15:25
Cast of iCarly belt out theme song while on actors' strike picket line
The cast of iCarly have been spotted on the SAG-AFTRA picket line amid ongoing actors' strikes, and even treated fans to a sing-along of the show's iconic theme tune. Jaidyn Triplett could be seen filming herself singing 'Leave It All To Me', while the likes of Miranda Cosgrove, Jerry Trainor and Nathan Kress dance behind her. They held up placards in support of the strike, which has seen over 15,000 actors walk out of jobs, demanding better conditions. Sign up to our new free Indy100 weekly newsletter
2023-07-19 23:17
Taylor Swift fans erupt into song to stay entertained after plane from concert gets delayed
A Taylor Swift fan has recorded the moment her flight burst into song when it was delayed on the way back from the artist's concert in Colorado. Hannah Hazlett was one of those heading back to Salt Lake City, when those around her fired up into a rendition of 'Love Story' during the tarmac delay, as fellow fans waved their arms, and filmed on their phones. Crew members even got into the spirit of things, and played the song over the plane's intercom system so everyone could join in. Sign up to our new free Indy100 weekly newsletter
2023-07-19 22:00
Margot Robbie reveals what her favourite Barbenheimer meme is
Margot Robbie has finally revealed what her favourite Barbenheimer meme is, ahead of the release of Barbie and Oppenheimer on the same day (21 July). The rivalry between the two films has descended the internet into chaos, but Robbie appears to be loving the competition. "I love the ones where it's like the cast of Goodfellas being like 'tickets to Barbie please'", she says in an interview with the BBC. However, Ryan Gosling doesn't appear to be as across the phenomenon, chiming in: "What's a meme?" Sign up to our new free Indy100 weekly newsletter
2023-07-19 18:24