Review of Lady Bird (2017) by Mesayla W — 21 Feb 2018

Film and Fluff: A Review of Lady Bird.

I'll have to begin this review with a trigger warning, because unlike many others, I did not like Lady Bird.

If I haven't lost you yet, I'd like to say that I wanted very badly to like this film. It consists of everything that makes a film amazing: a character-driven story, troubled family dynamics, a complex cast, and relatable drama. Where could it possibly go wrong? In addition to all of that, my family and even other teachers of mine had praised it, and naturally, all of their talk about their love of the movie piqued my interest. Unfortunately, after having seen it a second time, I couldn't find much to appreciate about it. I personally found Lady Bird to be a sedate, dry, boring, and clumsily-written piece--one that was likely created to appeal to an audience of teenagers just like the titular character. With that said, I'd like to discuss where I believe Lady Bird succeeds and fails.

Christine "Lady Bird" McPherson is at a critical point in her life. Like everyone her age, the time for her to choose colleges and begin a new life is on the horizon. She is unable to attend the schools she desires, however, because her parents struggle financially. Christine also has a troubled relationship with her mother, only adding to the problems she experiences at home. The film follows this young woman's journey of self-discovery, maturation, and personal growth, as we navigate the highlights of this brief phase in her life.

As I mentioned earlier, the story of Lady Bird is actually one of the movie's saving graces. But in my opinion, Lady Bird is comprised of more flaws than strengths. The most crippling of all these is our heroine, Christine. A supercilious, self-obsessed, inconsiderate, troublesome, and entitled character of sorts, she is easily the absolute worst I've seen in years. She ruins her film for more reasons than just her personality--as an unlikeable lead, I found myself hoping she'd suffer throughout the movie. Even as she was ripping open her acceptance letters in anticipation, I was longing for her to be rejected by every school she applied to. In almost every scene, Christine can be seen saying or doing something selfish--she's such a petty girl in fact, that there's time devoted to her nagging her mother about not cooking her eggs properly! Thinking behind this, I'm sure the director wanted to illustrate how much Christine had grown by the end, but considering how quickly and clumsily the story moves, I don't think these scenes were necessary. All of these character flaws would not be so detrimental if she would've reflected upon the advice and feelings of her family--some of the few people in her life who express concern for her--more often, but she never does. Again, in almost every scene she plays a critical role in, she's doing something that feeds her mischievous desires. Her extensive list of crimes include applying to expensive colleges behind her mother's back, dating a boy without her parents' knowledge, pranking a nun, getting blackout drunk, fooling around with people who ultimately take advantage of her, and--the absolute worst of all--eating holy bread. My goodness, how I wanted Christine to suffer. (If you haven't noticed, I've also been refusing to address her by her equally insufferable, pretentious, ridiculous nickname for all of this review.) Other characters in Lady Bird are not as awfully written as Christine, but everyone except her parents are generally unlikable. This also works to the film's detriment when you, as an audience member, should be wanting Christine to have good company in her life.

Another huge flaw of Lady Bird involves Christine's severe lack of fluid and natural character development. (Or maybe it's just the editing and pacing.) That is to say, she becomes a much more humble person by the end of her story, but the film seems to be so hastily cobbled together, rushing from one plot point to the next, that I found her growth inorganic and oddly abrupt. While there's nothing wrong with the major story elements in Lady Bird, viewers aren't given enough time in any scene to see how one event in her life would compel her to become a better person. There are many moments in Christine's life that could've served as a catalyst for change (e.g., finding out her boyfriend is gay, being betrayed by other boys, having drunken nights out) early in the film, but everything I mentioned only comes into play about halfway into the movie. And whenever these moments do appear, they appear to be "interrupted" by a scene that restricts opportunities for the emotions of the previous scene to be felt, and this results in a much less immersive experience. In fact, it doesn't seem as if Christine has the time she needs to process everything she feels after something significant happens in her life. Even the ending appears to be so sudden that even the most forgiving of viewers would want to see more build-up toward Christine's moment of change. Ideally, viewers should be able to have a reasonable amount of time to share in the emotions of the characters, and that just isn't possible if you're only given about a moment for that to happen before cutting to something that feels unrelated. As good as Saoirse Ronan's performance is, it isn't strong enough to support the idea that Christine has undergone major personal growth. It really is a shame that this film feels as rushed as it does; everything within the story could've made for a moving experience, had every subplot been given the time to develop.

The environment and tone of Lady Bird give the film a very sedate feel. I understand that this is supposed to be a relatable picture that has an equally normal setting, but Lady Bird feels abnormally boring, and this perception can be attributed to the fact that nothing about the movie's environment stands out. As a native of Sacramento, I've seen just about everything shown in the film, but that isn't the problem. Something about how everything was shot just seems very... lazy. In my opinion, even if it was purposeful, the lack of creative imagery, stellar editing, and memorable scenery makes this film very forgettable. Lady Bird is already a movie with a very simple plot and character cast, and if nothing about the appearance/setting of it is memorable, then frankly, the film as a whole can suffer as a result. I certainly felt that way after watching the movie.

Now that I've addressed my main issues with Lady Bird, I'd like to review everything I appreciated about it. The story is one of those things. Although Lady Bird's plot has been written countless times, I find it interesting that there are not one, but four major conflicts within this film: 1) Christine's struggle to find herself; 2) her need to become a mature young woman; 3) her desire to attend college away from home; and 4) her need to rebuild her turbulent relationship with her mother. Individually, these story threads are compelling, and it's impressive that all of them are woven into one narrative without anything becoming too confusing. With the exception of the fourth conflict, every significant element of the plot is given enough screen time, development and focus. Most of the film centers around Christine finding ways to attend her dream college, and admittedly, it's not the most engaging element of the story. What is a bit more interesting, however, is everything that Christine must navigate in order to become a better person, and a more caring daughter. Every wrong decision, every boy, every argument, and every negative influence brings her closer to realizing just how much her life has to reverse itself. I don't know if I've ever seen that in a film. More often than not, a main character's growth, even in an emotionally/character driven story, is motivated by all of the good deeds that they perform. I think that it's especially refreshing that, even though Christine is a horrible main character, that her arcs are propelled by her mistakes. It's an original--and smarter--angle to approach this plot from, and it's very welcome when reflecting on coming-of-age stories that are rife with cliches. (Although, Lady Bird is rife with cliches, as well).

None of the characters in Lady Bird are as complex as Christine, nor are they given as much focus, but it's also refreshing to see a cast without a perfect member. Everyone in this film is at least a little flawed. Christine's family is full of people who are either inattentive, self-serving, or detached, and her closest friends are certainly an entitled bunch. Her parents are especially passive, and do very little to redirect their daughter so that she may do the right thing. Of course, none of these flaws make them inherently good characters, but plenty of films with coming-of-age plots feature people who are well-meaning, thoughtful, and caring. This film, I would argue, has very few, or none. (Christine's mother could very well be considered an exception, however). Nevertheless, I suppose it's... interesting... in some respect... to showcase a set of imperfect people in a film about overcoming imperfection, and in some ways, that may even help to strengthen the message and intent of the film.

Lady Bird is one of few films to include commentary, albeit very little, about troubled relationships between mothers and daughters. As another critic highlighted during his review of another movie, people seem to assume that many, if not all, daughters have peaceful relationships with their mothers. This is certainly not the case, and there is time dedicated to exploring this idea. As an immature seventeen-year-old, Christine finds much of what her mother says to be discouraging and upsetting. But her mother, being the doting figure that she is, understands that her daughter must understand her own limits, as well as the struggles of her family, to ensure her safety. Because of their conflicting opinions, the two are at constant odds with each other, quarreling in every scene they share. This conflict reaches its peak after Christine does something especially selfish, and subsides, of course, by the end of the film. Even if their time together is brief, the tension that their interactions provide is gripping and even humorous. To see a film feature the strained relationship between a mother and daughter is meritable, but had there been more focus on this element of Lady Bird, it likely would've been much stronger.

The final moments of the film are unquestionably some of the most powerful in the picture. After a disastrous night, Christine finds herself in a hospital, next to a child who is much more meek and sickly. Upon seeing this boy, she begins to silently reflect on how terribly she had behaved in the last year of her life. As she continued her self-reflection, she finally began to consider her parents, and the amount of support they had given her throughout her life, eventually reading the letters they had both sent her and reaching out to her family. These last ten or so minutes of the film are a perfect example of what makes the medium of film incredible: there need be no dialogue. Silence and subtle expression are all that is required to convey the emotions involved in scenes that are as touching and pivotal as this, and Christine's pivotal moment is no exception. Every look of pain, grief, and longing you see in her face is so saddening that it's easy to feel as if you're a person trapped by the guilt and remiss that plagues her mind, even if only for a moment. And as she walks out of church and reaches for her cell phone, you as a viewer are filled with the relief that Christine is at finally deciding to reconnect with her family. In my opinion, the subtlety and emotionality of scenes such as this are able to redeem the more painful components of Lady Bird, and it's wonderful to see that they are well-executed in such an important part of the story.

I understand that, as a person who disliked Lady Bird, that I am likely giving you a horribly inaccurate idea of what you'll feel about the film. I can almost promise that you'll find much more to appreciate and enjoy in this film than I--as well as very few others--did. But as someone who now thinks more critically about characters and their development in films, the technicals of filmmaking, and story, I found this picture to be much more infuriating than enriching. While the story and characters in some form can allow for a new experience, I don't believe that they have as much to offer as everyone seems to claim. Perhaps you may think differently, and as an artistic piece, Lady Bird does have a fair amount of merit. Character-driven stories propelled by a lead's flaws, or even the conflict surrounding their lives, are enough to create a thought-provoking experience for many viewers. I may not have enjoyed Lady Bird, but I do believe that there's at least enough to recommend for those that enjoy the commentary that films like Lady Bird one provide.