Barbie: Russian fans ‘losing their minds’ to see bootleg film versions | World News
Russian film fans are flocking to see bootleg versions of the Barbie film – defying official warnings that the Hollywood blockbuster is ‘not in line’ with President Vladimir Putin’s goals for ‘preserving and strengthening Russian values’.
Cinemagoers are proving their pink credentials by going to unofficial screenings of the movie, which is hitting the big screen despite Western sanctions after invasion of Ukraine.
Pirate versions of the Greta Gerwig film inspired by the iconic Mattel doll, starring Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling, are slipping under the radar and being dubbed into Russian.
To avoid licencing issues, some cinemas have been selling tickets to Russian-made shorts – showing Barbie as a ‘free preview’, according to reports.
The BBC revealed how, at one Moscow shopping centre where the film is being shown nearby, fans were left tickled pink by a giant fuchsia-coloured house, complete with matching furniture, popcorn and life-size cardboard cutouts of Barbie and just Ken.
One fan said: ‘People should have the right to choose what they watch.
‘I think it’s good that Russian cinemas are able to show these films for us.’
Film critic Anton Dolin, the former editor of Iskusstvo Kino, one of Russia’s oldest and most popular film magazines, told the Guardian that the demand for unofficial screenings reflects the attitude of Russians who are against the war.
Hollywood’s boycott of Russia is an example of the privileges they once enjoyed but are now deprived of, explained Dolin, who fled the country after being targeted by pro-war ultranationalists and now lives in Latvia.
‘They see watching Hollywood movies as a right,’ he told the newspaper.
But Russian MP, Maria Butina, is not a fan of the film or the doll that inspired it.
She told the BBC: ‘I have issues with Barbie as a female form.
‘Some girls – especially in their teens – try to be like a Barbie girl, and they exhaust their bodies.’
The film has not been licenced to be shown in Russia, she said, warning: ‘Do not break the law.’
‘I filed several requests to cinemas asking on what basis they are showing the film,’ she added.
As a result, the Barbie screenings are extremely secretive compared to Western standards, with no marketing or advertising.
The only way to find out where the films is being shown is via social media or word of mouth.
One teenager, 17, risked the wrath of the Russian government by bringing Barbie to the big screen in the city of Perm.
In an interview with the Financial Times, he said he spent more than $3,000 (almost £2,500) getting his hands on a pirate copy, hiring a Russian dubbing company and putting together a marketing campaign.
He also sourced a designer to build the life-size Barbie box that has now become synonymous with cinema screenings.
He and a friend rented out a screen at a cinema and showed a bootleg copy of Barbie to a 50-strong audience as a test run.
‘The demand was unbelievable,’ he told the FT.
‘People were losing their mind buying tickets.
‘A huge amount of people want to see Barbie.’
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