Ode to ‘I’m Just Ken’
At the center of Greta Gerwig’s box office-obliterating, satirical sensation Barbie are two extravagant dance sequences. The first is a cool, contained dance scene that prioritizes old-fashioned synchronization to the tune of Dua Lipa’s “Dance the Night,” which recently hit the top ten of the Billboard Hot 100. The second is the talk of the town, the breakout hit and immediately iconic sequence known as “I’m Just Ken.”
“I’m Just Ken” arrives at one of the key inflection points in Ken’s (Ryan Gosling) arc. Both the song and the dance sequence provide a brief emotional respite for Barbie’s supporting lead. The Mark Ronson-produced song houses lyrics that mull over the film’s grounding themes: questioning one’s purpose, death, and the very concept of the self. Funnily enough, the lyrics find Ken reaching the same level of self-awareness that Barbie (Margot Robbie) spends the entire film trying to reach (and she ultimately does so). While Ken gets there a little later, his song and performance serve as a reprisal of the film’s overarching themes.
The real highlight of “I’m Just Ken” is how Gerwig stages Gosling’s in-film rendition of the song. “I’m Just Ken” is one of the more dynamic scenes in Barbie. The scene begins with Ken singing by himself about his plight. He mentions his desire to be more than just Barbie’s right-hand man and mulls over his loneliness when she is away, He then reaches the scene’s first climax as the Kens battle on the beach. Ken demands to know what the real male experience is. Packing in the drama with an impressively fluid 360° camera pan and overwhelming featuring of the other Kens, “I’m Just Ken” is an assault on the senses. Here, Gosling relies on his comedic chops to anchor his performance. It is the final section of “I’m Just Ken,” however, that truly brings the scene to its musical theatre roots.
After the Ken battle scene commences, “I’m Just Ken” morphs into a grand Singin’ in the Rain ballet fever dream complete with elaborately choreographed dance sequences. The lovingly crafted set appears to extend into eternity which heightens the dreamlike feel of the scene. The grandiosity of the number is its emotional anchor. While “I’m Just Ken” is certainly funny, the sheer craft of the scene, as well as Gosling’s extremely committed performance, helps the viewer buy into the idea of the song beyond its pastiche of ‘80s power ballads. “I’m Just Ken” is a grand declaration of accepting that you are simply yourself and no one else — and that is more than enough. Every time I watch this scene, I feel refreshed and reinvigorated. With “I’m Just Ken,” Ken achieves a more nuanced understanding of himself and his self-image outside of his relationship with Barbie — and belts out an absolute banger in the process.