‘Bird’ review: Andrea Arnold’s coming-of-age tale falls a little short

Andrea Arnold asks for everything including the kitchen sink in her latest reality show, though she can’t quantify its highs and lows. A bird follows the arrival of a poor 12-year-old boy in South East England, and his friendship with a mysterious stranger. It’s as much about the gruesome, tangible details as it is about the ethereal visions of what the lens can (and can’t) see, but this adaptability is, at once, the film’s most striking part, and its reversal.

Arnold has long used the roving lens to explore rural and urban landscapes. A birdhis first fictional film is almost ten years old, of course, although he takes too many aesthetic liberties at times. In this case, his handheld style is more chaotic than experimental. It often hides more than it reveals. However, his characters help him capture enough vulnerability to make up for this misstep.

The film doesn’t come together well, but its individual pieces can be surprising. Some even measure up to God, and serve to remind us that even little Arnold is still a cut above most people’s best.

What A bird about?

Bailey (newcomer Nykiya Adams), a 12-year-old black girl, lives with her young, white drifter father, Bug (Barry Keoghan, Saltburn), in a run-down flat in Kent, England. In fact, their town is called Gravesend, an ominous name that matches their hopes for the end, though this doesn’t stop Bug from planning a wedding he can afford. Tragically, Bailey, Bug’s girlfriend of three months and now fiancee, Kayleigh (Frankie Box), is about to move into their home with her infant daughter. The pre-teen has a blast, and tries to join the gang run by his 14-year-old brother, Hunter (Jason Buda).

Arnold often takes a slanted, blink-and-you’ll-miss-it approach to establishing some of these relationships, which often come to light through quick and vague conversation. This, in fact, is the point. It can be hard at first to tell if the heavily tattooed, super-powered Bug is Bailey’s father or his sibling, or when Bug and Hunter are related at all – they don’t share a screen – which means Bug is younger and less well-rounded. being a father, and a broken family environment.

Hunter and his tough friends try to take the law into their own hands by attacking domestic abusers and recording their attacks on social media, and while this might make for an interesting feature in its own right, it’s a passing detail in Arnold’s rough-and-tumble world – for the better. or worse. While it ultimately pays off in the plot (and at least looks thematic), it can’t help but feel like an interesting moral aspect of Bailey’s story hasn’t been explored.

After Bailey is removed from these machines for his own safety, he meets an unlikely, friendly man who goes only by the name of Bird (Franz Rogowski, Episodes). Nyoni says he came to Gravesend to look for his parents, who he was separated from when he was young. In keeping with the ongoing story of the film, this saga is also set aside as soon as it interests us, but the temporary nature of the Bird’s arrival is, in its own way, surprising.

Franz Rogowski brings a radiant warmth A bird.

Credit: Robbie Ryan / Courtesy of MUBI

From the moment he appears, Rogowski’s softness provides a striking contrast to Bailey’s rough and tumble world, building intrigue in the process. Their initial connection is built on commonalities; The bird defies the two sexes with her long skirt, as does Bailey with her short hair and boisterous attitude, and they happen to meet in the lonely open space of a lonely field, as if each is running away from something. However, Bird also represents a sense of possibility that Bailey’s environment rarely allows him to feel.

Something as simple as Bird’s quiet smile, and his seemingly friendly demeanor without ulterior motives, feels strange to Bailey, even though it might be to most people. Rogowski plays a one-eyed bird that forbids all humor, whether it’s because he’s keeping hope in his search for family or because this is a certain innate Bird quality.

Bird often walks the line between character and logic, especially when Bailey starts filming him with his phone camera, and displays his photos on his bedroom wall. Sometimes, he will stand perched on the roof of a nearby building, motionless, looking down like an angel. Her demeanor is beautiful and charming. It’s a breath of fresh air that Bailey and the film desperately need.

A bird it almost speaks for itself in terms of its graphics – but not quite.

Credit: Courtesy of MUBI

Unfortunately, Bailey’s ability to capture space is still another concept left untested, though A bird it is most powerful when it puts a toe in his vision. His photos and videos are gentle in a way that the environment is not, and the question of whether he projects this gentleness into the world or finds it in places where others don’t want it remains untouched.

Arnold is usually adept at capturing the subtle rhythms and colors of whatever scene he’s filming, but his framing here is often nauseatingly off-kilter. A bird it’s too fast and chaotic to even reflect on its images — Arnold’s own, or those he created for Bailey — which makes his character’s vision feel fleeting, even as the movie focuses more on his family.

However, the enigmatic presence of the bird, as seen briefly through Bailey’s eyes, is captivating enough, and allows Arnold to keep a distance without the movie falling apart. Along the way, as the youth drama unfolds, it is also accompanied by strange events with magical realism, due to the unusual behavior of the animals. While these may be done in a subtle way, they are done with enough evil to create an enjoyable suspense about the true nature of the film.

Whether the Bird represents or has some form of divinity is irrelevant when you consider whether Bailey can see this or capture it. However, instead of exploring its subtle cues, the film soon begins to stray into grim reality. It doesn’t seem to retain its sense of mystery for long. In the process, even his most life-affirming moments often lose their impact, although Rogowski’s life in other countries is a wonder to behold.

A bird now in the theater.

BEFORE: Nov. 8, 2024, 9:19 am EST Bird was reviewed for the first time at its NewFest in New York. This article has been republished for its original theatrical run.