No, it’s not a biopic of Lady Bird Johnson! Far from it. It’s a coming of age movie in the league of “Easy A”and “Juno”.
Starring Saoirse Ronan of “Brooklyn”and “Hanna” fame, it follows Christine “Lady Bird” McPherson during her senior year at a Catholic school in Sacramento, California. Ronan is marvelous throughout dealing with all of the usual emotions and frustrations of late teenage life. She desperately wants to break away from life in Northern California and attend college at a liberal arts school somewhere in the Northeast, preferably New York. Her dream seems unlikely given her grades and her financial situation.
The supporting cast is solid with Tracy Letts as the quiet and comforting out of work Dad, and Laurie Metcalf delivering a superb performance as the nattering, negative, unsupportive Mom. Joining them is Lucas Hedges seen recently in “Manchester by the Sea”, as Lady Bird’s first love interest and dramatic arts buddy.
Ronan breezes through the film in grand fashion delivering crisp, funny lines and portraying the anguish of her young life trying to fit in somewhere.
Special mention of actress Greta Gerwig who wrote and directed this gem. She scores big in her directorial debut. I particularly love her depiction of the Catholic priests and nuns at the school. Lois Smith who plays Sister Sarah Joan is wonderful, as is Stephen Henderson as Father Leviatch, the drama coach. He was brilliant opposite Denzel Washington in “Fences”.
While I found the ending a bit unsatisfying, the movie is solid and worth the time just to watch Saoirse Ronan. She is clearly an A lister and we will be seeing much more of her in the years to come.
