What’s plastered in pink, overwhelmed with optimism and painted with a commentary on patriarchal oppression? One word: Barbie.

On Friday, July 21 Greta Gerwig’s highly anticipated “Barbie” hit the big screens. The movie has been in the spotlight ever since it was first announced, and I’m here to tell you why.

The movie begins with the stereotypically blonde and bubbly Barbie, played by Margot Robbie, living her dream life in Barbie Land, a magical place where all the Barbie and Ken dolls live happily together and every day is perfect. The tale takes a treacherous turn as Barbie’s feet flatten and she begins contemplating her existence. This existential crisis leads her to explore the human world, and Ken, played by Ryan Gosling, follows her there like an eager puppy.

Their journey to Los Angeles is sprinkled with quick snipes at toxic masculinity and filled to the brim with clever writing. Gerwig makes their trip all-over-the-map hilarious with extensive all-male board meetings, Ken’s discovery of the patriarchy and horses, and Barbie’s encounter with mean tween girls. Though the film is mostly a humorous satire, there is an undercurrent of hopelessness for the way society treats women that is found beneath layers of pink polyester.

Robbie plays a masterful Barbie in her almost-eerily-constant smiley state. She does an impeccable job playing a doll who is slowly losing her sense of self, one bad hair day at a time. However, the actor I was most impressed by was Gosling.

Ken’s identity crisis concerning his inferior position in the Barbie Land matriarchy provided endless humor throughout the film. Gosling perfected the thoughtless, Barbie-obsessed, sometimes depressed, well-dressed Ken. A magnificent scene was when all of the Ken’s got into a competitive fight over their manliness that resulted in a dance routine about friendship. Despite being clingy, annoying and downright dumb, he could not have been a more entertaining character.

This movie managed to keep me laughing while still maintaining the theme about the paradox of ideal womanhood. Gerwig effectively toed the line between criticizing the idea of Barbie for her lip gloss smile and also invoking empathy for a doll and her struggle to exist in a world that expects perfection.

My one criticism of the movie is that the themes Gerwig explores are potentially reinventing the wheel. I feel like she is using the Barbie doll as a vehicle to express her disappointment in our sexist society. Her critique is not revolutionary, but it does get the job done and makes the point prettier with pink plastic.

The theme I found the strongest was in Barbie’s literal and figurative voyage to find her purpose. Gerwig introduced ideas about the concept of “being created” in contrast to wanting “to create.” As Barbie searches for her purpose, she invites the viewer to contemplate the ability to have autonomy over one’s life.

One of my favorite aspects of this film was the soundtrack. The array of songs perfectly encapsulated every scene. Billie Elishe’s soft, solemn “What Was I Made For?” provided Barbie with almost a soliloquy throughout the movie by creating a backdrop for her inner emotions. On the other end of the spectrum, Gosling’s hilarious “I’m Just Ken” was a perfect musical representation of his unrequited devotion to Barbie and his dreams of being more than just a beach bro.

I also have to commend the attention to detail in this movie. There were nods to so many historical Barbie facts: discontinued pregnant Barbie and references to various limited edition clothing items. My personal favorite easter egg was Ken’s buddy Allan, played by Michael Cera, who is the only non-Barbie or Ken doll in the whole Barbie universe. Gerwig also didn’t miss out on opportunities to bite back at the many failed attempts Mattel has made at making Barbies more inclusive.

I would describe this movie as everything you could have asked for combined with nothing you would have expected. Gerwig had no creative limitations: she incorporated sporadic Barbie commercial breaks, a director’s note and so many sparkles. This film is truly like no other.

As someone who owned a Barbie Dream House in 2012, I loved this movie. But even if you passionately hate these dolls and everything they stand for, I guarantee you will still love this movie.