Barbie: The Princess & the Popstar (2012)

When the gracious young Princess, Tori, trades places with her favourite singer, Keira, the girls will have to work together to save the realm of Meribella. Will the Princess and the Pop Star learn to appreciate the power of uniqueness?

Director:

Ezekiel Norton (as Zeke Norton)

Writers:

Steve Granat, Cydne Clark

Stars:

Kelly Sheridan, Jennifer Waris, Ashleigh Ball

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Kelly Sheridan	...	Princess Tori (voice)
Jennifer Waris	...	Singing Princess Tori (singing voice)
Ashleigh Ball	...	Popstar Keira (voice)
Tiffany Kathryn	...	Singing Popstar Keira (singing voice) (as Tiffany Giardina)
Ellie King	...	Duchess Amelia (voice)
Peter Kelamis	...	Seymour Crider (voice)
Jonathan Holmes	...	Rupert / Palace Guard #1 (voice)
Allison Warnyca	...	Nora (voice)
Christopher Gaze	...	King Frederic / Page (voice)
Lauren Lavoie	...	Meredith (voice)
Ashlyn Drummond	...	Trevi (voice)
Adrian Petriw	...	Prince Liam / Riff (voice)
Leala Selina	...	Vanessa (voice)
Michael Dobson	...	Limburger / Palace Guard #2 (voice)
Ezekiel Norton	...	Daniel (voice) (as Zeke Norton)

Storyline

In this sparkling musical adventure, Barbie(TM) stars as Tory(TM), the kind-hearted princess of Meribella who would rather sing and dance than perform her royal duties. When her favorite pop star Keira(TM) visits the Kingdom, the girls discover they have much in common, including a magical secret that lets them look like one another. At first, swapping places seems like a great idea, until each girl realizes that the other's life isn't as easy as it seems! But Meribella also has a magical secret, and when it's stolen, the whole kingdom is put in danger. Will true friendship save the day? Filled with fantastic songs, fabulous fashions, and fun new friends, it's an exciting musical celebration that shows the best thing you can be is yourself.

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Plot Keywords:

diamond | castle | switched identities | concert | royalty | 

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Taglines:

True friends rock in perfect harmony!

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Genres:

Animation | Family | Musical

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Certificate:

TV-Y

Did You Know?

Trivia

When Princess Tori (who at the time is Kiera in disguise) comes down the royal staircase, the instrumental music playing is "To Be A Princess" from Mattel's "Barbie in the Princess and the Pauper"

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Connections

Referenced in Barbie: The Pearl Princess (2014)

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Soundtracks

Here I Am
(Tori Version)
Written by Amy Powers, Gabriel Mann and Rob Hudnut
Published by Mattel Rhapsody (ASCAP)
Performed by Jennifer Waris
Produced by Gabriel Mann

User Reviews

Not the worst Barbie movie, but a long way from the best

I can definitely see why people- especially pre-schoolers, the main target audience- will like The Princess and the Popstar. What I'm saying here though is that it didn't work for me. And I personally like most of the Barbie movies(my top favourites being Nutcracker and Diamond Castle), none of them are among the best movies ever made but due to stereotyping mainly they do get a bad rep. The Princess and the Popstar is at least better than Fashion Fairytale and Fairy Secret, but for me it is one of the weaker ones of the franchise. I thought the backgrounds and colours were beautiful, the songs were catchy and Kelly Sheridan is back as Barbie and does a great job. However, while I liked the colours and backgrounds I wasn't crazy about the character movements which had a tendency to become awkward. This is the same with the dancing as well, some of it was cool but at other times it got repetitive from an animation and moves perspective. The dialogue is stilted this time around, and in regard to the characters Barbie is too spoilt and pampered and the villain is obnoxious. I'm not sure whether I'd go as far to say that the story is a direct rip-off of Barbie in Princess and the Pauper, but it is derivative of it. It is also incredibly predictable with nothing new or fresh and the magical items idea isn't explained and is not interwoven into the story anywhere near as successfully as Barbie as Rapunzel. The message is a good one and means well, the problem is that I've seen and heard it done so many times and much better. Apart from Sheridan, the voice actors don't make much of a distinction. Overall, when it comes to Barbie it is not the worst or the best but it was very disappointing all the same. 3/10 Bethany Cox

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

11 September 2012 (USA)

Also Known As:

Barbie: De prinses en de popster

Company Credits

Production Co:

Mattel Entertainment, Mattel Inc., Rainmaker Entertainment

Technical Specs

Runtime:

86 min

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1