Barbie Nation: An Unauthorized Tour

S&M Barbie and Ken? Don't remember those models, you say? Well, collectors do the darndest things and in Susan Stern's "unauthorized tour" of all things Barbie, posing the beloved children's dolls in compromising positions wearing non-Mattel leather and sporting non-Mattel nipple rings is just one of them. Created half a century ago by Ruth Handler (who would later leave Mattel in an accounting controversy and become a leader in the breast prosthesis market), Barbie dolls continue to be one of the most popular toys around, with two dolls sold every second. Here, viewers will see interviews with originator Ruth Handler, a handful of Barbie collectors, and artists who use Barbie as a medium (such as homeless Barbie, hooker Barbie, and crucified Barbie). The program also includes a healthy sampling of tickle-your-memory Barbie commercial clips from the past and a scene from the notorious MTV music video of Soundgarden's "Black Hole Sun", featuring a Barbie on the barbie, so to speak, slowly roasting. Believe it or not, this is not the first big documentary devoted solely to Barbie (see also I, Doll in VL-3/97). Larger collections will surely want to consider this offbeat look at the world's first popular doll with breasts modeled on a German doll for adults. Recommended. Aud: C, P. (R. Pitman)