Barbie as Rapunzel

Did You Know?

• The film makes use of Antonín Dvořák's Symphony No. 9, "From The New World".
• The original song "Constant as the Stars Above" was written by Rob Hudnut and Arnie Roth and performed by Jessica Brown.

Plot

Barbie tells a story to her little sister Kelly, who is insecure about her painting. Rapunzel, a young princess with floor-length hair, serves the wicked witch Gothel, who claims Rapunzel was abandoned as a baby. Gothel resents Rapunzel's painting hobby and keeps her isolated behind a magic wall. Rapunzel's only friends are Penelope, a young dragon, and Hobie, an anxious rabbit.

One day, Rapunzel and her friends open a secret tunnel, where she finds a silver hairbrush engraved with a message from her parents. She follows the tunnel beyond the wall and meets Prince Stefan while saving Princess Katrina from a hole. Gothel's ferret Otto sees Rapunzel and reports to Gothel, who destroys Rapunzel's art and transforms her room into a high tower. The hairbrush magically becomes a paintbrush, which Rapunzel uses to paint a portal to the kingdom.

She meets Stefan again, and they search for the paintbrush's origin. Stefan gives her an invitation to a masquerade ball. Otto discovers her again, and Gothel cuts off Rapunzel's hair, destroys the portal, and shatters the paintbrush. Gothel puts a spell on the tower and chains Hugo, Penelope's father.

Production

Barbie as Rapunzel, the second film from Mainframe Entertainment for Mattel, took nine months to produce. Its 15 human characters were animated with Softimage V.3.9 and Maya, their performances captured via motion-capture over 16 days using Motion Analysis, EVA, and Kaydara Filmbox. Cailin Stadnyk provided Barbie's movements. A CGI horse used motion-capture data bought from Locomotion Studios, while other animals were keyframe-animated. Rapunzel's paintings are real works by Amanda Dunbar, digitally inserted into the film.

Release

The DVD and VHS were released on October 1, 2002. DVD bonus features include the documentary "The Artist in Me", profiling Amanda Dunbar, and interactive features "Dress-Up Rapunzel" and "Rapunzel's Art Gallery". Overseas distribution was handled by Entertainment Rights, who acquired rights in March 2002, and Universal Pictures Visual Programming, who acquired worldwide video rights in May 2002. Right Entertainment handled video distribution in the United Kingdom and Ireland.

Reception

Barbie as Rapunzel and associated merchandise sales grossed US$200 million in 2002. Eileen Clarke of Entertainment Weekly gave the film a "B−". Lynne Heffley of the Los Angeles Times praised the artwork and characters. Grant McIntyre of The Globe and Mail called the film "a delight".

Scott Hettrick of the South Florida Sun Sentinel found the animation more sophisticated than Barbie in the Nutcracker, with more vibrant colors and characters. A Parenting reviewer called it "a truly charming update". Chris J. Parker of the Los Angeles Daily News praised the message and Barbie as a positive role model, noting the soundtrack performed by the London Symphony Orchestra. K. Lee Benson of The Video Librarian called it "A contemporary twist on a classic fairytale".

Rob Lowing of The Sun-Herald rated it 3 out of 5 stars. Tracy Moore of Common Sense Media advised parents to offer a counter to traditional fairy tale narrative but appreciated the focus on Rapunzel's good nature and message about believing in yourself.