Greta Gerwig is the director of the comforting and relatable (at least to me) movie, Lady Bird. This movie is important for a number of reasons including the fact that it follows a female main character and focuses on the love between mothers and daughters, which, according to Gerwig, is relatively unexplored in cinema. And I would have to agree with that statement. Lady Bird also gave the lives of teenage girls a chance to be taken seriously. Finally, Greta Gerwig was only the fifth woman ever to be nominated for best director at the Oscars.
Greta Gerwig’s work certainly counts her as a paradigm shifter or at least someone trying to get the ball rolling for the representation of women in filmmaking. She has always been meticulous, hardworking, and a bit of a rule follower. The big 5 of her personality includes open to experience, conscientious, and agreeable though she seems to be more of an ambivert and is not neurotic. According to interviews, she is actually slightly self-deprecating. She is extremely intrinsically motivated and has said she will continue to make movies no matter how award shows turn out. She is also big on collaboration and being close with people on sets that she works on. Greta Gerwig is so inspiring to me because she knows the importance of women getting more involved in filmmaking.
I love this film! As someone who went to all-girls Catholic high school, it was super relatable to me. I think one of my favorite parts of the film was how developed each character was, even if they didn't get much screen time. It seems like a lot of movies that are set in high school are romanticized, either as the best place ever or the worst place ever. But this movie did a good job not doing that. It just felt real. And I absolutely love that it was written/directed by a woman. Increasing representation of women in film is super important.
ReplyDeleteLike Kali, I loved Lady Bird--it is one of my favorite films. It was refreshing to see a realistic depiction of high school, a mother-daughter relationship, and the college application process/farewell. Gerwig's Little Women was also amazing (both films made me cry). I think her open personality can be seen throughout characters in her movies (like Lady Bird and Jo March in Little Women). Both are strong and greatly independent. Perhaps they are a reflection of Greta Gerwig (either intentional or subconsciously depicted). It's awesome that she said she'll continue making films no matter how awards go. I hope she eventually gets the recognition she deserves.
ReplyDeleteEchoing the other two comments, I absolutely love Greta Gerwig's work. Little Women is one of my absolute favorite movies and it really is a cinematic masterpiece. I once saw a video of Gerwig breaking down a scene and all the creative decisions that were made to pull it together, and the way she explained her process was incredible. She talked about how each of the March sisters had a different color that they represented, and that color was always a common theme in their costumes and scenes. The detail and care she puts into every single thing she does is incredible. I am looking forward to whatever her next project is!
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed this post, just this past weekend, I got around to watching Lady Bird for the first time and absolutely loved it. So the rest of the weekend sort of turned into a Greta Gerwig's films binge session for my roommates and I. I also enjoy the way she explores the mother-daughter relationship, which is so influential on the lives of women, yet is so unexplored in films etc. It is always nice to see recognition for how hard late highschool/early college can be for young women, so I am glad that for once it was accurately depicted instead of the usual glorification movies with big parties and going to the college of your dreams with no worries about finances etc. I read up a bit on Gerwig's process and it does seem that collaboration is a big part of her creative process which is interesting to me.
ReplyDeleteI actually haven't seen Lady Bird yet! It's been on my watch list for a long time, and this post has really convinced me to just go ahead and watch it. I love that Gerwig focuses on the unexplored nature of mother-daughter relationships. She sounds like an incredible director who is really making a way for female directors of the future!
ReplyDeleteThis was such an interesting post to read. Earlier this semester, I watched Lady Bird for the first time and really enjoyed it. I thought that the exploration of the mother-daughter relationship was very interesting and refreshing to watch since, like Gerwig has said, it's not common to see them portrayed in film. I am definitely planning to watch more of her films sometime soon!
ReplyDeleteI love Greta's work as a director, and although I haven't seen much, I also enjoy her work as an actress. She starred in Frances Ha, a film centered around the life of a young woman navigating life in the city. It's interesting to me to see Gerwig assume both of these roles as a professional in cinema. As an outsider to the film world it seems to me like acting and directing necessitate very contrasting skill sets at times, Greta's ability to do both reminds me of the dichotic characteristics many creatives possess.
ReplyDeleteI absolutely love all of Greta's work. Everything she has done has been so refreshing because she is so committed to creating something that isn't commonly seen. Lady Bird is one of my favorite movies and I have seen it many times, and I truly just love everything that it is trying to show and represent, and I think that Greta does a fantastic job with it.
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