A 12-year-old girl’s fractured Kent home life is transformed when she encounters a mysterious stranger seeking out his own family in Andrea Arnold’s striking tale.
Young Bailey (newcomer Nykiya Adams) feels caged in her Gravesend squat. Reckless, wannabe drug dealer dad Bug (Barry Keoghan – Saltburn, The Banshees of Inisherin) plans to marry his new girlfriend. Meanwhile, across town, Bailey’s near-feral younger siblings are menaced by her mum’s new and violent lover. Small wonder she’s intrigued by the enigmatic Bird (Franz Rogowski – A Hidden Life, Disco Boy, Passages), a flighty free spirit searching for his own roots.
Oscar winning British writer-director Andrea Arnold (Fish Tank, American Honey) once again displays her wondrous ability to infuse coming-of-age stories focused on marginalised lives with uncompromising grit and a sensual connection to nature. The pulsating soundtrack and lived-in performances (newcomer Adams is a standout) are perhaps expected from an Arnold film. But Bird also sees her pushing in new directions, incorporating not just social, but magic realism – an unexpectedly transformative addition that helps her wild, shapeshifting film soar.
