If you’re a girl who grew up in the 1990s and spent most of that time with your nose in a book, you are likely familiar with Karen Cushman’s novel Catherine, Called Birdy. Published in 1994 to much acclaim, including a Newbery Honor, the story is told from the perspective of a spunky teenage girl coming of age in medieval England and mixes historical details with timeless humor and angst. Even if you’ve never used a privy or practiced spinning — indeed, even if those words were unfamiliar to you before picking up Cushman’s novel — Catherine, Called Birdy is a book that anyone who’s ever experienced the agony and ecstasy of growing up a girl (myself included) can relate to.
Needless to say, Lena Dunham’s spirited new adaptation of the novel would probably have been my absolute favorite movie if it had come out when I was a teenager. Yet even watching it as an adult, Catherine, Called Birdy is still incredibly enjoyable, packed with witty dialogue and wonderful turns from everyone in the ensemble cast — especially Bella “Lyanna Mormont” Ramsey as the titular character and Andrew “Hot Priest” Scott as her dissipated but ultimately well-meaning dad.
Just a Girl
Catherine (Ramsey), called Birdy due to her raising many of those animals as pets, is a rowdy and rambunctious fourteen-year-old who would rather get splattered with mud at a cottage-raising with her friend Perkin (Michael Woolfitt) than do anything remotely related to her future as a “lady.” Her mother, Lady Aislinn (Billie Piper), is a kindhearted woman who spends most of her time pregnant with babies that don’t survive birth, while her father, Lord Rollo (Scott), wastes their fortune on impulsive purchases that suit his decadent ideas of what a lord’s lifestyle should be.
Alas, the money has now run out, and Lord Rollo seemingly only has one option in order to keep the manor running: marry off his only daughter to someone rich. Needless to say, Birdy is not very enthusiastic about the idea, especially since most of the men her father trots out for her to meet are ancient and disgusting. The only one she has eyes for is her mother’s younger brother, George (Joe Alwyn), a handsome young man who has just come home from the Crusades, and who hints that his exploits abroad were much more haunting than heroic. Unfortunately for Birdy, Uncle George is much more interested in her best friend, the lovely Lady Aelis (Isis Hainsworth), than his fawning niece — but that romance faces its own societal hurdles.
Throughout, Birdy keeps a diary at the request of her elder brother, Edward (Archie Renaux), a monk who thinks that recording her days will help his younger sister become a more mature and learned young woman. From assuming she’s dying when she gets her first period, to discovering that men will pay more for virgin wives, to being told what a virgin even is, Birdy’s experiences as a girl on the cusp of adulthood drive home how it can often feel awful be to be female, especially in a world that sees you less as your own person than an object to be bartered. Yet her delightful narration of these events ensures that even the film’s darkest moments glow with some kind of light.
Born This Way
Dunham’s script ensures that much of the humor of the novel remains intact in its translation to the screen while also adding a healthy dose of her own sharp wit to proceedings. Whatever you think about Dunham’s previous work, one thing is clear: she has always been keenly interested in the trials and tribulations of transitioning from girlhood to adulthood, and that interest shines through in every frame of Catherine, Called Birdy. It’s hard to imagine a better fit of filmmaker to material, even if this film is much tamer (as in rated PG-13) than some (all?) of her other productions.
As the titular heroine, Ramsey is dynamite, bringing all of Birdy’s boldness and brashness on the page to lovable life on the screen. How could you not root for her to escape the bonds of matrimony, especially to someone as haggard and horrible as Shaggy Beard (Paul Kaye), the one suitor she is seemingly unable to scare off through her shenanigans? And it’s hard to think of a more appealing pair of onscreen parents than Piper and Scott, who bubble with lovely chemistry that Birdy is unable to see or understand until the key moment when her father summons all of his fierce love to guide her mother through yet another traumatic birth. It’s in this scene that Birdy finally sees the positive side of marriage when one is lucky enough to be paired with the right partner — something all too rare in her world.
Scott, in particular, is wonderful here; he begins the story as an admittedly unlikable (albeit extremely funny) figure but gradually grows in the esteem of both Birdy and the audience. As the man of the household, he is naturally the target of much of Birdy’s ire. He has all of the power in their world, yet generally squanders it on stupid things, and Birdy resents him for it. She especially resents him for getting her mother dangerously pregnant over and over, and for dooming her to what she fears will be a similar fate with Shaggy Beard or another equally awful suitor. Yet by the time the film ends—and the ending, while slightly different than the one in the book, is in my view much more satisfying — both father and daughter have a much better understanding of each other. Their evolving relationship is truly the heart of the film — and let’s be real, it doesn’t hurt that Scott is a nice piece of eye candy, too.
The cast is excellent across the board: from Alwyn’s charming and complex performance as George to Sophie Okonedo’s typically brilliant turn as the wealthy widow Ethelfritha to Lesley Sharp’s warm and humorous work as Birdy’s beloved nurse, Morwenna. Even Russell Brand’s brief cameo as one of Birdy’s suitors elicits a great deal of laughter, though much of that is due to the pitch-perfect timing of Ramsey and Woolfit’s interactions with him. In short, everyone feels lively and real, with none of the stiffness and excessive propriety that one can associate with similar period pieces.
Also lively is the film’s soundtrack, which in addition to Carter Burwell’s original score features numerous covers performed by singer-songwriter Misty Miller: everything from “My Boyfriend’s Back” to “Girl on Fire” to my personal favorite, a gorgeously atmospheric version of Mazzy Star’s “Fade Into You.” Miller’s lovely, lilting renditions of these iconic songs ensure that the inclusion of such anachronistic music feels far less distracting than these kinds of needle drops often do, and far more like part of the natural landscape of the story. Indeed, much like Dunham’s writing style, this music is just an ideal fit for the overall tone and feeling of Catherine, Called Birdy.
Conclusion:
A giddy glimpse at medieval girlhood that isn’t without substantial emotional weight, Catherine, Called Birdy is a fun film that the entire family can enjoy.
What do you think? Are you familiar with the novel Catherine, Called Birdy? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
Catherine, Called Birdy was released in theaters in the U.S. on September 23, 2022 and will be available for streaming on October 7, 2022. You can find more international release dates here.
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