Lady Bird
Starring: Saoirse Ronan, Laurie Metcalf, Beanie Feldstein, Timothée Chalamet, Lucas Hedges
Directed by: Greta Gerwig
Rated: R
Call her Lady Bird. It's a name given to her, by her.
Frustrated by the mundanity of her suburban Sacramento life, Christine McPherson is desperate to leave home. She longs to live in New York City among arts and culture. She just has to make it one more year at Catholic school then she's free to fly away from the nest.
Lady Bird is the directorial debut for Greta Gerwig. Gerwig is known for writing and starring in indie films Mistress America and Frances Ha. In fact, you can see shades of her previous indie films in this. With Lady Bird, Gerwig looks to bring an honest look at high school life. She really gets the early 2000s setting down from the clothes to the sets to the music. She has a real eye for detail.
Saorise Ronan is such a fantastic and underrated actress. The fact that she is the same person who played Eilis in Brooklyn is incredible. It's clear we aren't in Brooklyn anymore and Ronan plays Christine "Lady Bird" McPherson this time around. Lady Bird is a rebellious and awkward high school senior. She feels like an individual in a sea of conformity. Will she ever get out? Her only hope is college in New York, but they have to accept her. Because clearly she is more unique than those around her, right? Or maybe she just hasn't noticed those around her. As the film progresses, Lady Bird begins to realize maybe her problems aren't the center of the world. It's a subtle progression that is incredibly relatable if you've ever been a teenager.
Which leads me to, Laurie Metcalfe who plays Marion McPherson, Lady Bird's mother. Marion works tirelessly and wants to do what's best for her daughter. However, she and Lady Bird's strong personalities often clash resulting in family arguments. Metcalfe brings a real world honesty to the role. You can see her trying to reach out to her daughter, but just one passive aggressive comment sets everything back for the two. The mother-daughter relationship is one of the central themes of the film. One moment, they're bickering and the next they're bonding over a cute dress. There's a striking reality in these moments that all mother's and daughters can relate to. Hasn't this happened to all of us? However at times the two take it to a level of dysfunction that can be difficult to watch.
Lucas Hedges and Timothée Chalamet play Lady Bird's love interests. The two characters are polar opposites of each other. Hedges portrays Danny the school's theater star and Lady Bird's sweet and innocent first love. While Chalamet is Kyle, the pseudo-intellectual jerk who is, of course, in a band. Both actors bring humor, wit, and personality to secondary characters.
This was one of my most anticipated films of the year. While it is well made and likable, I left the theater feeling underwhelmed by it as a whole.
When comparing it to other coming-of-age films like Greta Gerwig's Mistress America, Saoirse Ronan's Brooklyn, or just last year's The Edge of Seventeen, it's not on the same level.
Why?
The film focuses mainly on Lady Bird's characterization throughout one year as she gets a boyfriend, applies to college, and tries to become friends with popular girls. This isn't groundbreaking. It's every coming-of-age movie cliché we've seen since the 80's. Lady Bird has been hyped up as the Holy Grail of coming-of-age movies for months now. It doesn't exactly live up to that.
One of the issues I have with the film is the lack of finality in important scenes. Several scenes opt for a quick cut or montage when explanations are necessary. Example: We find out that a priest at Lady Bird's school is dealing with a serious issue, then we never see him on screen again. Why even introduce his problem if you aren't going to deal with it further? It feels lazy.
Lady Bird is an entertaining film with impressive performances, but it doesn't live up to the overwhelming hype.
My Rating: 7/10