Review of Lady Bird (2017) by Asher K — 10 Apr 2018

O Greta Gerwig's directorial debut draws heavily from her own upbringing as a teen in post-9/11 America. Like Lady Bird, Gerwig grew up in Sacramento as the daughter of a nurse, and attended an all-girls Catholic High School while dreaming of escaping California to attend college on the east coast.

Her familiarity with the characters comes through in a film that, unlike its title character, feels completely at home in its own skin. The atmosphere and relationships of the movie feels lived-in, especially in the core antagonistic relationship between Lady Bird (brilliantly portrayed by Saoirse Ronan sans her natural, adorable Irish accent) and her mother, which when at its worst still keeps an undercurrent of the love and bond the two share.

I was so drawn in by the ongoing journeys of the characters that I was initially jarred by the abrupt conclusion, but on reflection, the movie ends, true to life, with growth and epiphanies but also with rifts to resolve and goals to chase.