It's very difficult to keep the line between the past and the present.

Do you believe that someone out of the past can enter and take possession of a living being?

We may be through with the past, but the past is not through with us.

Welcome back to the next picture show, a movie of the week podcast devoted to a classic film on the way it's shaped our thoughts on a recent release. I'm Tasha Robinson, here again with Genevieve Kosky. And Scott Tobias. Our co-host Keith Phipp seems to have wandered out of the real world. The last time we saw him, he was headed off into the sunset on Dayglow Roller Blades.

But we once again have New York Magazine and Vulture TV critic Jen Cheney with us to fill in.

Welcome back, Jen. I am so happy to be here. All I want to do is talk about Barbie.

Actually, all I want to talk about is Keith on Rollerblades, but we'll move forward.

One of you, I promise that one of the two of you will get your opportunity very shortly here.

The other one, not so much.

So last week we talked to Disney's Enchanted and how it takes a supposedly satirical,

but actually pretty loving look at the Disney musical tradition,

and especially the legacy of Disney princess characters with their perky I Want songs, their tendency to get into trouble, and their

bland and handsome princes who don't seem to have much of a life outside of galloping around

on horses and having very shiny teeth. This week, we're right back to girls with beautiful

hair and boys who love horses, but in a different context. This time,

it's Greta Gerwig's already a mega hit Barbie, a send-up of the fashion doll that, much like

Enchanted, is both an examination of the tropes she embodies and a loving tribute to Barbie and the kids

who love her. But Barbie commits to a lot more introspection, dissection, and analysis than

Enchanted allows for, even though it's

also a warm satire that clearly isn't taking Barbie too fully to task. Margot Robbie stars as Barbie,

one of the many Barbies who live perfect lives in the world of Barbie land. The implication is that

they're all imagination-fueled avatars of dolls that exist in the real world, which becomes a

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