New Release! Lady Bird (2017)

Yes, the title character attends Catholic
school, but the religious aspects are merely
background to the more human tale.

Director: Greta Gerwig

An excellent, if somewhat overhyped, movie telling of an aimlessly rebellious high school senior and her rocky relationship with her mother.

Lady Bird is the adopted nickname of Christine McPherson (Saoirse Ronan), a young woman living through her senior year in high school in Sacramento, California, in 2002. Though fairly smart in her way, she has a rebellious streak common to most teenagers. This leads her into and through familiar trials of the age, including the poor decisions and overdramatization of relatively minor occurrences. It also regularly puts her at odds with her mother, Marion (Laurie Metcalf). Marion does love her daughter, though it is often buried under passive aggressive (sometimes outright aggressive) jabs at her daughters lack of greater ambitions beyond wanting to leave Sacramento. The story follows Lady Bird all the way through her senior year and the immediate months after, including the ups and down which, though relatively minor in the grand scheme, can seem to mean everything in the world to a seventeen-year-old.

This is a really solid movie, and could be seen as shorter, female-focused counterpart to Richard Linklater's award-winning Boyhood. However, instead of covering seminal moments along a 12-year span of a young person' life, Lady Bird keeps things tighter and hence more intimate. Virtually everything in the film feels highly authentic, probably since it is heavily autobiographical for writer/director Greta Gerwig. The shared moments of joy and anger between Lady Bird, her friends, perceived enemies, and family (categories which often overlap) should seem very familiar to many viewers. Many of the scenes capture the humor and gravity of key moments at that period of one's life, and nearly every moment enlightens us as to the characters' traits.

The acting is outstanding, with established talents like Saoirse Ronana following up her award-winning 2015 performance in Brooklyn with another great turn as the angsty title character. It probably helps that, at only age 23, Ronan is not terribly far removed from her own teenage years, and her ability to channel that attitude enhances her turn as Lady Bird. The other primary character, her mother, is equally brilliant, thanks to theater veteran Laurie Metcalf (best known as Rosanne's sister Jackie on Rosanne). The dynamic between the two is at the core of this movie, and it plays out exceptionally well. It also bears mentioning that every supporting actor hits their roles perfectly, with only one very minor role feeling a bit oversold.

Lady Bird and Danny, her boyfriend for a time. Danny's
rather conservative, well-to-do family highlights certain
feelings of inferiority that Lady Bird struggles with.

I appreciate that the movie doesn't try to present us with a neat, pat resolution to the character issues that we see in the still-growing Lady Bird. As it should be, she is a young person still fumbling through that awkward transition between adolescence and adulthood, and the fits an starts that accompany that transition do not smooth out in a mere year. The film depicts that with mastery, and it is to be lauded for it.

All of this said, and as strong a film as Lady Bird is, I must state that I did not feel that it lived up to the massive amount of hype that it received from the collective of critics. On Rotten Tomatoes aggregate site, the movie garnered 220/221 "positive reviews," and an average rating of 8.8/10. That latter number is stunning, as it places it above or among the greatest films ever. While the movie is very good, and one that I would recommend nearly everyone see, I would never suggest that it is one of the best movies I've ever seen in my life. I simply offer this as a caveat, in case you expect some sort of life-changing work of mind-blowing artistry. Don't. It's a very well-done film made by artists who knew exactly how to tell the relatively simple, subtle story before them. 

Before I Die #514: Say Anything... (1989)

This film is the 514th of the 1,149 "Films to See Before You Die" list that I'm working my way through.

Director: Cameron Crowe

I know that I probably was supposed to have my credentials as an "80s kid" revoked for this, but I had actually never seen this movie. Chalk it up to being more interested in Arnold Schwarzenegger movies at the time. Say Anything... was one of a few of those staple, "coming of age" movies that so defined U.S. pop film culture at that time and that I flat-out didn't see. I didn't see The Breakfast Club until well into the 90s, and I have still never seen Pretty In Pink (probably never will). Really, though, these movies are rather dated to me, and they smack of what some social commentators and comedians have referred to as "white people problems." As an adult, how much can I really care about some well-to-do suburban kid whining about not getting the attention of their dream girl or guy? Not much, actually.

I don't mean to completely hate on the genre. John Hughes was a funny guy, no doubt, and the dialogue actually helps most of his and "brat pack" copycat films hold up over time. But the cliches become more painful to see with every passing year, so I never really go out of my way to watch them these days.

While I can't say much for Ione Skye's character or
performance, John Cusack certainly brought the effortless
charm, quirkiness, and vulnerability needed to make
Lloyd one of the most well-rounded of the archetypal
80s "coming of age" protagonists. 

All that being said, Say Anything... was a nice little surprise. No, I probably wouldn't watch it again any time soon, but I enjoyed how it avoided so many of the cliches that the Hughes movies from previous years had created. While teen love is still at the heart of the film, the characters are not the typical set. John Cusack does an excellent job playing the enthusiastic, quirky, and charmingly confident Lloyd Dobler. It's a character that threatens to be a cliche of the genre, but somehow avoids it by being well-rounded. He's definitely the high point, character-wise.

The story itself is also a relatively novel take on the familiar theme of the charismatic, semi-odd fellow who sets his sights on his "It Girl." In Say Anything..., though, his "It Girl" is not the drop-dead gorgeous, overdeveloped prom queen, but rather the quiet, overachieving valedictorian, Diane Court. The path of their relationship feels genuine, organic, and special. When you add in the complications of Diane's father, who suggests but never becomes the overbearing, nay-saying, protective father, then the tale becomes even more unique.

I can't say that I loved every character. Actually, Ione Skye as Diane Court didn't do much for me. I find something bordering on flighty about her performance. And flighty is a quality that some find charming, but I find mildly annoying. In similar fashion, I found Lloyd's gal pal Corey (Lili Taylor) a nuisance. She was clearly meant to be a comedic parody of an emotional musician, but I found her mostly an irritant.

So Cameron Crowe put together a solid film that, in retrospect, bridged the gap between the teen movies of the 80s and 90s. It's not hard to see why so many of my fellow Generation X-ers still have an affinity for it. Take it from a guy who wasn't terribly enthusiastic about watching it - it's worth seeing if you haven't.

635 more films to see "before I die."