Barbie: Star Light Adventure (2016)
On November 28, 2023 by CrescentBarbie: Star Light Adventure takes a step out of the regular Barbie formula, bringing the audience to the distant future rather than the bygone past. It’s a new direction to take, but it was the right one. This movie is incredible, and it really makes me wish we had gotten it sooner.
Story
Star Light Adventure opens on Barbie, a girl living on a planet’s nature reserve. Her peaceful routine is soon interrupted by a summons to the most important planet in the galaxy, Opa-Irri, at the king’s request. He is on a journey to save the light of the dying stars, and he needs Barbie’s help to do it. After arriving, Barbie joins the mission’s team and travels to the center of the universe to save the world’s starlight.
I adore the story of Star Light Adventure. It feels perfect in its scope and wonder and fits well in the grand world it establishes. The story will leave you with a smile on your face well after it ends because of its inclination toward inspiration. The coming of age story is lovely to see, and everything that happens feels intentional. It all comes together to form a beautiful ending that leaves you desperate to rewind the movie to the beginning for a rewatch.
The only problem here is one small bit of information. King Constantine is obviously a king, and Leo is introduced as a prince… But they’re from different planets. I wish this was pointed out clearer since as it stands, it leaves behind a bit of confusion as to their connection. They’re not related, but the story is vague about it for a while, so it would be easy to make the mistake and assume otherwise.
That aside, the story of Star Light Adventure is a lot of fun and will leave audiences captivated from beginning to end.
Story: 9.5/10
Characters
The cast of Star Light Adventure is a lot of fun. Barbie is a spirited and bright protagonist, and her endless optimism is a joy to see. Her flaws feel appropriate and evocative for her situation, and I love seeing her grow around them. Barbie is trying her best, and even though she makes a few mistakes, her goodwill overcomes all hardship in the end. Being kind is the best thing she could have done, and she proves it.
The other characters in the mission team are great too. Sal-Lee is a perfect foil for Barbie, and they work off one another well. Their arc together works expertly to show how unrelenting Barbie’s kindness is, and Sal-Lee learns to open up to others in turn. Sheena and Careena’s twin gimmick was lots of fun, and while I could see others find it stale by the movie’s end, I personally did not. I was enjoying them too much to think so. Leo is the only weak link here. I got a bit irritated by his constant discussions of food, but he was enjoyable when he wasn’t talking about that.
I found Constantine to be refreshing as an antagonist. For once, there isn’t an explicit villain here. Instead, Constantine is an antagonist and an obstacle, but by the end, he comes around and learns to be a better person. His growth works perfectly with Barbie’s development, and despite their initial opposition, they come to understand each other. I appreciate the change in routine in a lot.
Star Light Adventure has a very strong cast with only one real weak link, but even so, he’s a good character at the end of the day. Everything here is just great.
Characters: 9/10
World Building
The world building of Star Light Adventure is incredible. From the very beginning, the world is immersive and sucks you right in. The world building doesn’t feel condescending to explain itself to the audience either. Everything reveals itself naturally, and you can pick up on a lot of it just by being perceptive with what is happening on the screen. I don’t think I can sing its praises enough. This might just be one of the best worlds Barbie has ever created, and it needs to be appreciated for all it’s worth.
The only real drawback here is in the naming scheme. Some characters have galactic sounding names while others do not, and it can be a tad distracting. Names like Sal-Lee and Leo existing in the same room feels… Wrong. The greatest offender here is Barbie. I wish they had given her a name other than Barbie. It feels like she should be named something else. They should have given her a name after a star or just outright named her Starlight. Barbie just doesn’t work as a name here.
My nitpicking about names aside, I love the world of Star Light Adventure. It lends itself perfectly to audience understanding and feels expansive and exciting in a way few others do. I adore it.
World Building: 9.5/10
Themes
Star Light Adventure takes its post-credits theme from the same pool as Spy Squad. In other words, it’s once again, “this is our story, what’s yours?” It feels a bit more fitting here though, perhaps because of how inspiring and uplifting the story is in comparison to Spy Squad. It’s still not a great moral, but it fits better here than it did before. If I had to give it a new theme, I would say that it’s to follow your heart no matter what. That message fits like a glove, but I need to dock it points for not being the actual theme. It’s better than the alternative of Spy Squad.
Themes: 5/10
Production
First off, Star Light Adventure looks amazing. It’s clear this is where much of the animation budget went for the 2016 Barbie movies, and it paid off immensely. The movie is beautiful, and there wasn’t a single moment I thought the animation was slacking. This really helps the world to pop out and shine, especially with the incredible environment design of the movie. Visually, it’s simply stunning.
The voice acting is once again great. I don’t have any notes here; it’s just great. As we move into the modern era, more modern voice acting giants begin to appear, and I have no complaints. Erika Lindbeck and Robbie Daymond sound great as Barbie and Leo. Every other performance is incredible too.
The music of Star Light Adventure is also amazing. For the first time in a while, the tracks with lyrics feel impactful and meaningful. They really accentuate the moments when they appear. The only complaint I have is that the singing voices don’t exactly match the speaking voices sometimes. If that’s the price of good music, then I’m happy to pay it, but I wish the voices matched up better.
That small complaint aside, the production of Star Light Adventure is incredible. The environmental design in particular deserves all the praise in the world.
Production: 9.5/10
Overall
Barbie: Star Light Adventure is a breath of fresh air I didn’t know I needed until I watched it. I adore this movie, and I implore every person reading this to watch it too. Blast off to the stars, everyone. You’ll love it when you get there.
Overall: 8.5/10
Silly Superlative: Barbie movie with the most talking in unison
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