Cushman’s novel explored what it was like to be a teenager at the time of Medieval England, which is so different from our modern sensibilities that it would be like visiting a different planet. It takes a willful misreading—or disregard—of the book’s ethos to remove the economics from it all, or to strip Birdy from the strength and fortitude she shows in finding value in her ability to save her family, and her village.
One could argue all of this would make for a dour film, yet having read the book both as a child when it was first released and more recently in order to refamiliarize myself with the material, I found it inspiring how well Cushman blends these serious matters with the same bawdy humor that makes Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales still a hoot to read nearly a thousand years on.
And it's this humor that Dunham most faithfully carries on in her adaptation, with flatulence jokes aplenty. Although, most of the film’s jokes do not align with Chaucer, but rather are rooted in wordplay that is funny for a modern audience’s ear only. However, Dunham is not Monty Python, and many of the jokes are either forced or don’t land at all. One sight gag with a pigeon arrives dead on arrival—literally.
Ramsey is indeed a find. Birdy’s spirit is like a wild, roaring brook whose nature is to keep flowing no matter what obstacles lay before her. Unfortunately, key changes from the book’s ending rob her of what should be a transformational coming-of-age. Instead of finding out the value of herself from within, she becomes a damsel to be saved by a man, her value ultimately stemming from her father’s realization of his love for her. While this makes for an emotional finale, especially for Scott, it deprives the character—and Ramsey—of a big moment of self-actualization.
Every film adaptation has to pick and choose what elements of its source material to retain and what to jettison. It’s unfortunate then that for “Catherine Called Birdy,” Dunham sticks so closely to the surface, leaving behind its strong foundation. There is surely an audience for this kind of feel-good quote-un-quote feminism. But a book of such richness, with a heroine as complex as Birdy, deserves much more than this genial Renn Faire romp.
This review was filed from the Toronto International Film Festival on September 12th. "Catherine Called Birdy" will release in theaters on September 23 and be available on Prime Video on October 7.
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