Twelve-year-old Bailey lives in a derelict squat in North Kent with her single father Bug and her brother Hunter. She loves birds, spending all of her free time on the roof of an apartment block. Here, she gets lost in her thoughts as she looks out over the city.
Director Andrea Arnold’s latest, following social realist stories like American Honey and Fish Tank, is primarily a love letter to the imagination. The cast is great, with Barry Keoghan as Bug and Franz Rogowski as titular oddball Bird. First time actor Nykiya Adams is one to watch, portraying Bailey as a free spirit longing for the love and attention her parents can’t give her. Supported by needle drop after needle drop – including songs by Fontaines D.C. and Blur as well as Cotton Eye Joe – this moving coming-of-age fable grabs you by the throat from the start, never to let go.
