Catherine Called Birdy

Bella Ramsey as Catherine Called Birdy

Lena Dunham's Catherine Called Birdy is an enjoyable medieval lark. Adapted by Dunham from a highly praised YA novel by Karen Cushman, the film tells of a late 13th century English lass who is being bartered as a bride by her impoverished father. Birdy has just reached womanhood at fourteen and is not keen on being wed to a suitor just yet. She shows her pluck by proving her unsuitability to an array of hapless prospective bridegrooms. Just when it looks like she will be wed to the worst of the lot, her father comes through in the end.

Dunham never condescends to her material, even when it is predictable and sophomoric. This is a film aimed at the teen in all of us, much like such period films as Ella Enchanted and A Knight's Tale; albeit with more jokes about menstruation and flatulence. Like those films, Catherine Called Birdy reflects modern sensibilities despite its medieval guise. Rock classics fill the soundtrack (along with Carter Burwell's spritely score) and the set design resembles a Renaissance Faire rather than medieval reality. Dunham celebrates girl power and satirizes the patriarchy, yet always maintains a convivial, audience pleasing tone. 

She is greatly helped by a talented cast who all seem to be in on the joke: including Andrew Scott, Billie Piper, Leslie Sharp, Joe Alwyn, Paul Kaye and Isis Hainsworth. Bella Ramsey as Birdy fully embodies the rambunctious tomboy. The film is far from serious fare, but Dunham treats its themes seriously and regards her heroine with fond respect. Currently streaming on Amazon Prime.