Film Review: Lady Bird (2018)

Rating: 9.5/10

Genre: Comedy/Coming of Age

Similar Titles: The Edge of Seventeen, The Perks of Being a Wallflower, The Breakfast Club

By Leanne Harragan

During her final year of high school, feisty teen Christine 'Lady Bird' has a tricky relationship with her mother who in the end she must admit she has more in common with than she thought. All the while dealing with turning 18 and dealing with all that life throws her way.

Another film this year that I was incredibly excited for. Greta Gerwig's first solo directorial debut is a low-budget coming of age story that has taken on a life of it's own and has even pulled in a few nominations. This is another film that I adored. The cast, the shots, the story and one that really caught my eye, the set design. It has a lot going for it.  

As I mentioned that it caught my eye I'm going to start with the set design; I can't express enough how much I loved the decor in Lady Bird's room, every inch of her wall was covered in pictures, posters, doodles and random magazine cutouts. I loved how classically 'teen' it felt, knowing that my own room a few years ago could have been the inspiration for this set! 

I honestly feel that without the casting of Saoirse Ronan this film would not have worked. She is so charming and her performance doesn't falter throughout the film. Even with Lady Bird's faults, Ronan makes the character incredibly likeable and she definitely brings a certain charm to the character. Her Oscar nomination for best actress is well deserved for this performance. I also really loved Beanie Feldstein playing Lady Bird's best friend and their friendship that had it's ups and days along the way really felt real and relatable which is often a rare find on the big screen. 

Like most coming-of-age stories it focuses on a year in school, normally like this film their senior year. Watching this senior year, despite it's expected parts where your main character makes the choice to ditch a friend in favour of someone else, or gets upset over a broken heart, all while have silly fights with parents/family and searching for a college or university.  It works because again it's relatable, everyone at some point or another has done one or more of the things that main character Ladybird has done. 

While the relationship between Lady Bird and her mother Marion (portrayed by Laurie Metcalf) is one of the main problems of the film, the development between the two is satisfying to watch and the end (without giving too much away) despite the lack of a big ending, was moving and a little emotional, a great note to end. 

Gay Scale: Without giving it away, I'd like to mention the short scene where the character breaks down crying worrying about having to come out to their family and begging for the secret to be kept. While it was a short scene, I couldn't help but feel that it was relevant for showing the difficulties that some face when having to come out to their families and friends. 

Rating: 8.5/10

By Rebecca Mannick

Okay, so I'll firstly admit that I was slightly hungover when I went to see 'Lady Bird' which definitely hindered my judgement, as I feel like I would have enjoyed it more if I didn't have a banging headache due to the night before's antics. This is a first for me and I do not want to go to a movie hungover again, even the Odeon Lux seats at Swiss Cottage didn't cure me of my sinful behaviour. I will start by praising Saoirse Ronan's performance. She embodied the role of Lady Bird and without her excellent adaption this film would not be half as good as it was.  

The overall feel and style of the movie was so carefully created. Every shot was well thought through and beautiful. The colour grading was time relevant, which I'm such a fan of. One of Greta Gerwig's focus' with Lady Bird was to show off Sacramento. The city she actually grew up in and now Lady Bird too. Gerwig was able to show Sacramento in such a positive light which I really enjoyed. You can tell that it is a special place for her, but it also goes hand in hand with being the perfect place for Christine 'Lady Bird' to grow as a young adult. 

I feel like Lady Bird is so popular and well loved as a coming-of-age picture because of it is so relatable. There are so many elements in Lady Bird's life and things that happen I would be surprised if not one part that happens would have happened to you. From the tricky relationship with her mother, family financial struggles, first sexual encounter, an identity crisis and everything in between its a journey of a teen trying to find her purpose and place in the world. 

It is charming and funny, just an all round good watch. I could honestly watch Lady Bird's whole life pan out and it would be entertaining. I could dive further into the nitty gritty bits but I actually would love to see this movie again as I feel like I did miss quite a lot. But as I said at the beginning Saoirse Ronan take a bow what a stunning performance which has taken her to the forefront of Hollywood. I doubt she will be out of work after how special was Lady Bird.