Barbie, Daughter of Ruth
Tiffany Shlain reaches back to the Pleistocene era to explain assimilation in America
December 20, 2005
Tiffany Shlain’s film The Tribe asks how the daughter of Polish-Jewish immigrants, a woman named Ruth Handler, came to invent the Barbie doll in 1959. It answers this question by sifting through thousands of years of Jewish history in 15 image- and fact-filled minutes.
The film falls somewhere between avant-garde video and public service announcement, drawing on 1960s archival footage, spoken-word poetry, and dry but clever narration from actor Peter Coyote. The Tribe will be in competition next month at Sundance.
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Sara Ivry is the host of Vox Tablet, Tablet Magazine’s weekly podcast. Follow her on Twitter @saraivry.
Sara Ivry is the host of Vox Tablet, Tablet Magazine’s weekly podcast. Follow her on Twitter@saraivry.
