Ladybird Was So Good! (Review)

When the screening for Ladybird came up, I knew absolutely nothing about it or it’s director Greta Gerwig. Minutes into the film I was captivated by the film, characters, plot, and when it ended I had to sit for a moment and take it all in. This was a fucking dope film. Let’s jump into why this film was so so good!

Plot

Ladybird is a film that takes place in Sacremento California in 2002. Ladybird is a highschooler who knows what she wants: to leave the west coast in hopes of attending school in the east coast. She is smart, cunning, and tenacious in her goals and refuses to be anything but the best.  this can be difficult when life takes hold of the reins and gives her a family struggling to pay the bills, a rocky relationship with her mother, and average grades.

The story is so simple and realistic that it comes so easy to relate to. Both her victories and failures speak volumes to the viewer as we have all experienced something similar to her situation.

Characters

Every single character in Ladybird is flawed in their own fantastic way. Ladybird, played by Saoirse Ronan is headstrong, abrasive, rash, and yet some how incredibly charming. Her mother played by Laurie Metcalf is her primary antagonist who is caring, wants the best for her daughter and treats every other character with immense kindness and respect but she is always passive aggressive with Ladybird until they turn into screaming matches. The father played by Tracy Letts is loving and supportive but an enabler and so on.

But it is these flaws that make them shine. They have such vibrant personalities that I found myself yearning for various interactions between characters. When it happened, I was rewarded with entertaining scenes that played out pretty much as I saw them in my head. In the course of the film these characters meant so much to me. I know it’ll be the same with others as well!

 

Scene

The cinematography for Ladybird was great as well as they focused on the dull aspects of the catholic school, just how cramped their home was, and the simplicity of being young and living in your parent’s house. Every scene was personal and felt realistic as though you could walk into the scene and relate to everything. There was mess, things weren’t in perfect order, hair was out of place, and so much more.

You can tell they took great care into making the entire film feel intimate.

Overall

I absolutely loved Ladybird for so many reasons. There were so many times where I felt my sides splitting from laughter to almost crying. They had me hook, line, and sinker the entire film as they will you if you enjoy down to earth dramas! I highly recommend this film to movie lovers!