Bird

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Bird

R

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1h 59m

Drama

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Popcornmeter

85%

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119 Reviews

70%

Popcornmeter

50+ Ratings

The long-awaited return to fiction filmmaking from Academy Award-winner Andrea Arnold (American Honey, Fish Tank), BIRD is a tender, striking and extraordinarily surprising coming-of-age fable about marginalized life in the fringes of contemporary society. 12-year-old Bailey (astounding newcomer Nykiya Adams) lives with her devoted but chaotic single dad Bug (Barry Keoghan, Saltburn) and wayward brother Hunter in a squat in Gravesend, north Kent. Approaching puberty and seeking attention and adventure, Bailey's fractured home life is transformed when she encounters Bird (Franz Rogowski, Passages), a mysterious stranger on a journey of his own. A wondrous portrait of the transition from childhood to adolescence that remains grounded in her typically empathetic social realism, Arnold's latest strides to the wildly poetic rhythm of her own drum.

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Critics Consensus

Director Andrea Arnold strikes a coming-of-age chord through Nykiya Adams' moving performance, marrying fantasy and reality to the dizzying end.

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Kimberley Jones

Austin Chronicle

What struck me more was the film’s interpretation of Bailey’s coming of age not as something to be mourned or that comes on too soon. Instead, it’s an activation.

Rated: 4/5

Dec 4, 2024

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Mark Kermode

Kermode and Mayo's Take (YouTube)

I think the leap of faith doesn't entirely work but I kind of went with it, not least because it felt like a positive move.

Nov 23, 2024

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Thelma Adams

AARP Movies for Grownups

In this ecstatic coming-of-age drama set among the squatting classes in Northern Kent, England, Newcomer Nykiya Adams, in a refreshingly natural performance that carries the movie, plays Bailey.

Rated: 5/5

Nov 15, 2024

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Diane Carson

KDHX (St. Louis)

[Andrea Arnold] leavens the struggles of twelve-year-old Bailey with a welcome infusion of fanciful, magical realism in the figure of title character Bird.

Dec 24, 2024

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Maria Lattila

Film Stories

Even if Arnold’s new approach doesn’t always come together, it gives Bird an exciting edge. It feels like we’re watching something unexpected and unique.

Rated: 3/5

Dec 19, 2024

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Frank J. Avella

The Contending

The film is meant to be a poetic, socially aware, magical realism look at teen angst and imagination. More often than not, though, it breeds bewilderment.

Rated: B-

Dec 19, 2024

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Elsie M

Another great Andrea Arnold film. This definitely needs time to process after watching it.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

11/19/24

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James

This is a remarkable movie. It ranges from a level of realism that will make you a little uncomfortable to outright magic, and the acting is uniformly superb. No summary could do it justice, just see it.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

11/18/24

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Edith

Very boring. I walked out of the theater

Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars

11/17/24

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Shannon P

Gritty view of life, with some fantasy as well. Interesting film good job by actors

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

11/15/24

Full Review

Joyce H

All the performances were Grade A. Keoghan & Rogowski at their best.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

11/08/24

Full Review

Silke B

Bird is a many-layered story. For those who can only follow literal translation the film will prove a tedious waste of time. That said, for viewers of an intellectual bent, discriminating between innuendo, metaphor, symbolism & fact, the movie is spellbinding from beginning to end. Bailey IS the murderous bird- her brief encounter with the vagabond allows her to make the jump and embrace her strength. Bailey is the bird. Bailey kills the predatory boyfriend when she knows she must to protect her siblings from ravishment

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

12/28/24

Full Review

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Andrea Arnold

Director

Barry Keoghan

Bug

Franz Rogowski

Bird

Nykiya Adams

Bailey

James Nelson-Joyce

Skate

Jasmine Jobson

Peyton

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Bird: Trailer 1

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Synopsis

The long-awaited return to fiction filmmaking from Academy Award-winner Andrea Arnold (American Honey, Fish Tank), BIRD is a tender, striking and extraordinarily surprising coming-of-age fable about marginalized life in the fringes of contemporary society. 12-year-old Bailey (astounding newcomer Nykiya Adams) lives with her devoted but chaotic single dad Bug (Barry Keoghan, Saltburn) and wayward brother Hunter in a squat in Gravesend, north Kent. Approaching puberty and seeking attention and adventure, Bailey's fractured home life is transformed when she encounters Bird (Franz Rogowski, Passages), a mysterious stranger on a journey of his own. A wondrous portrait of the transition from childhood to adolescence that remains grounded in her typically empathetic social realism, Arnold's latest strides to the wildly poetic rhythm of her own drum.

Director: Andrea Arnold
Producer: Lee Groombridge, Juliette Howell, Tessa Ross
Screenwriter: Andrea Arnold
Distributor: MUBI
Production Co: arte France Cinéma, Access Entertainment, FirstGen Content, British Film Institute, Pinky Promise, BBC Films, House Productions, Ad Vitam
Rating: R (Drug Material|Some Violent Content|Language Throughout)
Genre: Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Nov 8, 2024, Limited
Runtime: 1h 59m
Sound Mix: Dolby Digital

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