Review: Lady Bird

"I think the learning part of high school is over," says the titular character of Greta Gerwig's semi-autobiographical directorial debut, Lady Bird. Yet as she's about to find out, the learning part of life has only just begun in this resonant coming-of-age drama.

Lady Bird (Saoirse Ronan) is the preferred moniker for one Christine McPherson, a 17-year-old high school senior who thinks nothing of throwing herself out of a moving car just to end one of the many arguments she has with her mother Marion (Laurie Metcalf). Like most teenagers, Lady Bird is keen on asserting her independence and distancing herself from the life she knows. She wants to go to an East Coast college though Marion, mindful of the pricey college tuition, would rather she attend a local school instead. Her father Larry (Tracy Letts) is a bit more open-minded, though he understands his wife's concerns about money especially since he's unemployed.

When not clashing with her mother or having snarky exchanges with her adopted brother Miguel (Jordan Rodrigues) and his deadpan girlfriend Shelly (Marielle Scott), Lady Bird is hanging out with her best friend Julie (the wonderful Beanie Feldstein). The two join their school's theatre program, where she meets Danny (Lucas Hedges), a good-hearted sort with whom she begins her first relationship. Also in the mix are Kyle (Timothée Chalamet), a moody musician who hand-rolls his own cigarettes and reads Howard Zinn's A People's History of the United States, and Jenna (Odeya Rush), a popular girl that Lady Bird befriends at the cost of her friendship with Julie.

Lady Bird crackles with endless reserves of warmth and affection without sacrificing authenticity. The film is replete with moments that speak to both young people, who recognise themselves in the angst-ridden Lady Bird, and adults who can both cringe and appreciate the follies of youth now that they've survived it. Gerwig perfectly captures the highs, lows, and inherent awkwardness of teenage romance and sexuality, but the main focus is the push-and-pull relationship between Lady Bird and her mother. The rapport between them feels real - these two can go from enemies to allies within the span of seconds without missing a beat, as demonstrated during the scene where their latest argument is halted by both of them alighting on the perfect prom dress. Marion is a multi-dimensional character, not nagging for the sake of it but because she has very valid concerns that stem not only from her present circumstances but from past ones as well. There's a startling scene when Lady Bird comes home late, elated from a date, and Marion insists that she put away the clothes in her room. It may seem a ridiculous request, but Marion states her case for why she prods her daughter the way she does and then punctuates the scene by offhandedly mentioning that her own mother was an abusive alcoholic.

Metcalf is sensational, making the most of this showcase of a role, always revealing that beneath Marion's hard facade is a woman who simply wants the best for her child. Ronan has had no shortage of good roles since her Academy Award-nominated role in Atonement when she was a mere thirteen years of age, but Lady Bird and her work in it feels a turning point, in much the same way that Rebel Without a Cause and A Place in the Sun were for Natalie Wood and Elizabeth Taylor, respectively. Much like Lady Bird, who is shedding the girl she is for the woman she will be, Ronan firmly proves that she has come into her own and that she is even more of a force to be reckoned with.

Lady Bird

Directed by: Greta Gerwig

Written by: Greta Gerwig

Starring: Saoirse Ronan, Laurie Metcalf, Tracy Letts, Lucas Hedges, Timothée Chalamet, Beanie Feldstein, Stephen McKinley Henderson, Lois Smith