July 26, 2023
FILM: THE BEANIE BUBBLE
DIRECTED BY: KRISTIN GORE, DAMIAN KULASH
STARRING: ZACH GALIFIANAKIS, SARAH SNOOK, ELIZABETH BANKS
RATING: 3 stars out of 4
By Dan Pal
The Beanie Bubble arrives in theaters and on AppleTV+ just after the big “Barbenheimer” weekend. I don’t think that’s a coincidence. The three films have a lot in common. The Beanie Bubble is about a toy that developed into a major international phenomenon like the Barbie doll. While Barbie the movie depicts its toy character as an eventual enlightened feminist, The Beanie Bubble highlights the women who were instrumentally involved in the success of those 90s era Beanie Babies. Males are the primary characters though who appear at the center of explosions in The Beanie Bubble and Oppenheimer. Ty Warner oversees the rise and fall of the Beanie explosion while Oppenheimer created his own explosion of atomic proportions. Women are strong if pushed to the side in Oppenheimer which one could argue is also what happens to the women in The Beanie Bubble. Structurally, the men in both films are given a bit of a biographical portrait using a somewhat confusing nonlinear narrative.
While Zack Galifianakis stars as Ty Warner the film really is more about those women in his life who contributed to his multimillion-dollar success. We’re first introduced to Warner in 1983 when he meets Robbie, played by Elizabeth Banks. The two have a friendship that is mostly based on their mutual interest in starting a business. They develop that company to create and sell stuffed animals and later Beanies. Eventually he meets Sheila, played by Succession’s Sarah Snook, who is a single-mother of two young girls. They’re fascinated by Warner’s work and one of the girls, Ava, even comes up with an idea Warner uses for a “ghost” Beanie Baby. Then there is Maya, played by Geraldine Viswanathan, who initially works for Warner for minimum wage but quickly becomes his indispensable assistant. All of these women impact the Beanie Bubble in a host of significant ways. They are the most interesting characters in the film.
Ty Warner comes across as a self-absorbed, vain, diva who never gives the women their due. He flaunts his millions while having several face lifts to maintain a youthful appearance. He’s a bit like Dabney Coleman’s dominant but flawed character in 9 to 5 without the sexual harassment tendencies that character bestows on Dolly Parton. As such, we never really get to know what makes Warner tick. What are his motivations? Yes, we learn he had a rough childhood but the script doesn’t go into much depth about how this shaped his needs and way of being in the world. Yet, his characterization suggests that in the decade and a half after 9 to 5, men were still running big businesses and forsaking the powerful women around them (this also relates to plot points and themes found in Barbie.)
As a film, while The Beanie Bubble is based on a true story, it does feature one too many clichés such as the slow-motion walk, a cutesy dance number, Indian parents who want their daughter to become a doctor, and a montage set to upbeat music relating to the progression of events in the story. We’ve seen these elements many times before and they feel tired here even if they might be reflective of a style of filmmaking from the 1980s and 90s.
The film does make various other references to its time period, in particular, the excitement of Bill Clinton winning the Presidential election followed by the disillusionment surrounding his impeachment. Generally, I think the film is addressing this sense that heroes and leaders are far from flawless and that women need to stand up and be given more credit for what they contribute to our culture. Ultimately, men in all three films are a bit self-serving and naïve as to how they affect women and society as a whole. That said, even though all three films have their flaws they can be appealing to those of us who have lived through the last few decades and recognize the significance of these various “explosive” creations.
The Beanie Bubble premieres this week on AppleTV+ and is playing in select theaters.
FILM: THE BEANIE BUBBLE
DIRECTED BY: KRISTIN GORE, DAMIAN KULASH
STARRING: ZACH GALIFIANAKIS, SARAH SNOOK, ELIZABETH BANKS
RATING: 3 stars out of 4
By Dan Pal
The Beanie Bubble arrives in theaters and on AppleTV+ just after the big “Barbenheimer” weekend. I don’t think that’s a coincidence. The three films have a lot in common. The Beanie Bubble is about a toy that developed into a major international phenomenon like the Barbie doll. While Barbie the movie depicts its toy character as an eventual enlightened feminist, The Beanie Bubble highlights the women who were instrumentally involved in the success of those 90s era Beanie Babies. Males are the primary characters though who appear at the center of explosions in The Beanie Bubble and Oppenheimer. Ty Warner oversees the rise and fall of the Beanie explosion while Oppenheimer created his own explosion of atomic proportions. Women are strong if pushed to the side in Oppenheimer which one could argue is also what happens to the women in The Beanie Bubble. Structurally, the men in both films are given a bit of a biographical portrait using a somewhat confusing nonlinear narrative.
While Zack Galifianakis stars as Ty Warner the film really is more about those women in his life who contributed to his multimillion-dollar success. We’re first introduced to Warner in 1983 when he meets Robbie, played by Elizabeth Banks. The two have a friendship that is mostly based on their mutual interest in starting a business. They develop that company to create and sell stuffed animals and later Beanies. Eventually he meets Sheila, played by Succession’s Sarah Snook, who is a single-mother of two young girls. They’re fascinated by Warner’s work and one of the girls, Ava, even comes up with an idea Warner uses for a “ghost” Beanie Baby. Then there is Maya, played by Geraldine Viswanathan, who initially works for Warner for minimum wage but quickly becomes his indispensable assistant. All of these women impact the Beanie Bubble in a host of significant ways. They are the most interesting characters in the film.
Ty Warner comes across as a self-absorbed, vain, diva who never gives the women their due. He flaunts his millions while having several face lifts to maintain a youthful appearance. He’s a bit like Dabney Coleman’s dominant but flawed character in 9 to 5 without the sexual harassment tendencies that character bestows on Dolly Parton. As such, we never really get to know what makes Warner tick. What are his motivations? Yes, we learn he had a rough childhood but the script doesn’t go into much depth about how this shaped his needs and way of being in the world. Yet, his characterization suggests that in the decade and a half after 9 to 5, men were still running big businesses and forsaking the powerful women around them (this also relates to plot points and themes found in Barbie.)
As a film, while The Beanie Bubble is based on a true story, it does feature one too many clichés such as the slow-motion walk, a cutesy dance number, Indian parents who want their daughter to become a doctor, and a montage set to upbeat music relating to the progression of events in the story. We’ve seen these elements many times before and they feel tired here even if they might be reflective of a style of filmmaking from the 1980s and 90s.
The film does make various other references to its time period, in particular, the excitement of Bill Clinton winning the Presidential election followed by the disillusionment surrounding his impeachment. Generally, I think the film is addressing this sense that heroes and leaders are far from flawless and that women need to stand up and be given more credit for what they contribute to our culture. Ultimately, men in all three films are a bit self-serving and naïve as to how they affect women and society as a whole. That said, even though all three films have their flaws they can be appealing to those of us who have lived through the last few decades and recognize the significance of these various “explosive” creations.
The Beanie Bubble premieres this week on AppleTV+ and is playing in select theaters.