Catherine Called Birdy

Catherine Called Birdy

A teenage girl in Medieval England navigates life and tries to avoid the arranged marriages her father maps out for her.

  • Released: 2022-09-23
  • Runtime: 108 minutes
  • Genre: Adventure, Comedy
  • Stars: Bella Ramsey, Billie Piper, Andrew Scott, Lesley Sharp, Joe Alwyn, Sophie Okonedo, Paul Kaye, Dean-Charles Chapman, Isis Hainsworth, Archie Renaux, Michael Woolfitt, David Bradley, Mimi Ndiweni, Ralph Ineson, Rita Bernard-Shaw, Jake Middleton Cooke, Adam Aziz, Saskia Chana, Jamie Demetriou, Akemnji Ndifornyen, Russell Brand, Christophe Tek, Angus Wright, Jacob Avery, Douggie McMeekin, Lawrence Hodgson-Mullings, Bola Latunji, Jessica Ellis, Jordan Adene, Tyler Howitt, Jeffery Kissoon, Moya Brady, Ramesh Nair, Antony Bunsee, Tim Bevan, Colin Murtagh, Volenté Lloyd, Trevor Jones, Chris Ecob
  • Director: Lena Dunham
 Comments
  • leahcubed - 21 June 2023
    So forcibly woke it ruined what could have been an interesting story
    Seriously I should have known. The premise sounded super interesting and that part of it was. But it was so absolutely woke. It is supposed to be set in feudal England but is filled with black Aristocrats. There were black aristocrats in other parts of the world just not in England during that time frame (there was like one documented). If you took this to represent that timeframe you would think there were a lot of black aristocrats in England. They colonized Africa and did not treat the African people nice. So it just glosses right over all that in the guise of diversity. I do not like when they rewrite and misrepresent history. You should not get your history lessons from fiction but the reality is a body of what people think they know comes from watching historical portrayals. There were good things and bad things in the past and we should know about all of it. So there was that. Then there was one character who expressed interest in the same sex and they acted as if that was just an every day thing. As if no one had a single problem with it then. Since gay people were persecuted for a long time not only is that inaccurate it is unfair. It is like hiding abuse. The premise was she did not want to have an arranged marriage so that made sense but they completely twisted that to their new non ending. You know the one. No happily ever after. I have been happily married for 34 years. I know a lot of people my age that are either happily married or happily re-married. Having that special person to love is not a bad thing I wish they would quit portraying ending up alone as a happy ending. If you like being alone then great but pretending like that is the preferred state is not accurate. We are social creatures. I enjoyed the premise and her antics but the woke in your face ruined it. My daughter read and loved the book she said none of these persistent elements were part of the book and the ending was even different.
  • twelve-house-books - 6 March 2023
    What Other Hole!
    This film is just delightful from beginning to end. Essentially, a young medieval teenage girl is deemed ready for marriage by her parents, but she is in no way ready to grow up that much just yet. So she confides in her nanny, and learns some surprising and even horrifying facts about life, love, and monthly cycles. Bella Ramsey, who plays Birdy, steals the show with her innocent questions, her mischievous antics, and her overall playfulness and exuberance. She refuses to leave her childhood behind, no matter how happy--or even prosperous--it would make her parents who are failing financially and need their daughter as a trump card to keep their heads--and castle and grounds--above water. Don't miss this one!