Life in Plastic, it's Fantastic!
Celebrating Barbie Day, autistic obsessions and neurodivergent creativity!
Hey Barbie gals, guys and nonbinary pals!
After many months of anticipation the day has finally come, the Barbie movie goes on general release today!
Those of you who knew me as a kid may remember my all-consuming Barbie obsession, and those who know me as an adult may be surprised to learn I was a real Barbie girl. This week, Jezebel let me indulge my obsession and what the Barbie movie means to me at 38:
One summer evening when I was 6, I had a fight with my mother and decided to run away from home. I packed two fruit crates with the only thing I considered necessary for my survival: my collection of Barbies.
I made it as far as our battered Renault 5 parked in the driveway and set up camp in the back seat, surrounded by Barbies and all their accessories. After an hour or two of sulking, my mother, trying very hard not to laugh at my makeshift camp, coaxed me home with the promise of chicken nuggets and french fries. I have no idea what the fight was about, but one thing was clear: When the shit went down, it was me and my Barbies against the world…
Yay, it’s Barbie Day!
I still haven’t seen the movie yet, so I can’t comment on much. But, I have watched all the trailers and let’s just say Barbie’s question about death in the middle of her dance party feels like every time I have overshared trauma in casual social gatherings! This makes even more sense on learning that director Greta Gerwig is neurodivergent herself, having recently opened up about her adult diagnosis of ADHD (more on that and Frances Ha, Ladybird and Little Women another time)!
But lets be real, Barbie, and the 45 (!!) Mattel movies to follow, represents a PR coup for Mattel, whose sales plummeted throughout the 2010s following one scandal after another. Recruiting a respected indie director, Greta Gerwig, provides the necessary artistic credentials for the movie to be taken seriously by a grown-up, ironically self-aware, audience.
Still, I have my tickets booked for tomorrow night, my Barbie sparkle at the ready and I can’t wait to indulge my 10-year-old fantasies of living in a Barbie world!
A very important date!
I’m going to take a little pause to refocus on THE BIG, LOOMING, INESCAPABLE DREAD-FILLLED, thesis deadline but will be back in two weeks with some musings on Toy Story and whether our childhood toys really do have a life of their own!
In the meantime why not enjoy some more neurodivergent/pop-culture content from around the web:
Reframing Autism just launched a whole new podcast series with an Episode 11 featuring one of my all-time favourite outcasts, Wednesday Addams!
I loved the recent You Are Good episode on Twister with the wonderful
as guest… This is a movie I may have to cover here!- has beautiful new essay on Hilma of Klint, an artist I’d never heard of but whose work is stunning!
Another member of the late-diagnosed club,
has been writing about her recent Autism diagnosis.One of my favourite podcasts, Maintenance Phase, co-hosted by
, dropped a new episode on Tuesday all about the recent RFK Jr. controversy and the rise of the anti-vaxx (and autism conspiracy) movement!
For the writers among you:
Two of my favourite limtags, ANMLY (where I’m a fiction reader) and Queerlings, are open for submissions until the end of August - dot your eyes and cross your teas and send those pieces in!
- and have some great writing advice specifically aimed at neurodivergent writers!
Before I go, I wanted to send a warm thank you to
for including my essay on grief and the magic of animation in The Land Before Time from last week, See With Your Heart, in the weekly round-up of personal essays , one of my favourite newsletters for writerly and readerly goodness!
You've been reading AutCasts, a free bi-weeekly newsletter by writer, Aisling Walsh, exploring neurodivergence through cinema’s oddballs, misfits & rebels!
It’s been quite the week, many highs and lows, strikes and gutters! Thanks for sticking with me and for reading. Join me next time for more 90s animated nostalgia with Woody, Buzz and Mr. Potato Head in Toy Story and have a great Barbie Day!
Plastic fantastic work!!! Thank you for the mention also 💕👌🏽😎
Felt very seen reading this!