Catherine Called Birdy

Enough people have gone over the plot so I won't touch on that. I did not read the book, but was excited for this movie when I saw the trailer. It's obvious from the trailer that we are not to expect a history lesson or music by Thomas Moore. The entire cast is wonderful and Bella Ramsey is a joy in this role. Do I think a young woman of that time would get away with acting the way she does, NO! Were girls forced to marry men they didn't want to, pretty much always. RELAX, It's a dreamy movie of "what if a girl could actually take control of her destiny, rather than be treated like a sheep?" Because, let's face it, women were nothing but pawns back in those days, and we haven't come a great deal farther since. Sit back and enjoy it.

I was so excited to hear that this book was being adapted into a film! And when I saw what a strong cast it had, I was even more excited.

The excitement passed about 15 minutes into the film. In it, Birdy is a far cry from the spunky young heroine from the book. She is whiny and selfish, and not much else. Bella Ramsay does a good job with a one-note character. But the script loses all the humour of the book.

An excellent supporting cast is pretty much wasted here, and I just found myself wishing it was over. The ending was preposterous and unsatisfying after suffering through almost two hours of lacklustre story.

Do yourself a favour and read the book. The characters are better, brighter and I think you'll find it an all-around a more enjoyable experience.

Very good and extremely funny and well written. The only character I did not like, was The Suitor played by Russell Brand. I think his acting skills have always been horrible. That's just in my opinion. Every time I watch a movie or show, and find out that he is in it, for me personally, it seems to take away from the story itself. This story however, was extremely well written and the characters were very thought out. The directing is excellent and the cast is very talented. Even though I did not like one of the characters I still highly recommend seeing it. I would have given it more stars, but there was a few times that the storyline lacked in my opinion not much but a little bit.

8/10 - Most films set in medieval times have a "brown" tinge to them. This film however is colourful and bright - and that's not even my favourite thing about it. I think think this is one of the best things Lena Dunham has ever done, I always liked "Girls" but was never part of the frenzy, more a casual viewer. But this film is really special, Bella Ramsey is so talented as is the whole cast. It also does the rare thing of being a young adult story that teens and tweens can watch with their parents. There's nothing in there that's really inappropriate or gratuitous. I highly recommend this film!

Needing something brainless and fluffy to watch, this fit the bill just fine. I'm not bothered by the historical inaccuracies because there are SO much, it reads intentional. The main plot device is inaccurate in itself- a noble lady would carry a dowry into marriage. If she's broke, the best she can hope for is being attractive or titled enough to find a suitor willing to have her... they wouldn't be lined up as portrayed here. I'm not a Lena Dunham fan, but I think this was entertaining and subtle (for Dunham). Although the main character was too naive to truly be a medieval young woman (the whole menstrual bit was farfetched), I understood what the messaging was intending to convey. I always use subtitles which definitely came in handy here as some dialogue was hard to catch and worth catching- for the most part the writing was snappy and humorous. Great casting all around with Dad (Scott) stealing every scene. Bella made a believable tomboy, but it was hard not to remember her as a mini GOT badass. The soundtrack paid homage to my younger years which was cool to hear, except Mazzy Star "Fade Into Me" should never be messed with- it's perfection as it is. I dig Carter Burwell so it made sense I liked the majority of what I heard. The cinematography was lush and beautiful-- a star in it's own right, so high marks there. Is any of this realistic? No. Can it still be enjoyed on a Saturday night in PJs? Yes. Just don't overthink it.