Bird

15

12-year-old Bailey feels trapped in her squat in North Kent where she lives with her reckless single father Bug, and gang member and older brother Hunter. Approaching puberty and seeking attention and adventure, she becomes drawn to the enigmatic Bird, a free and eccentric spirit, not entirely bound to this earth, who is searching for his own roots.

Andrea Arnold's bold and surprising film, which premiered at Cannes this year, displays a sensual connection to nature alongside telling a story of marginalised lives, which is both uncompromising and direct in its portrayal of poverty. But Arnold here adds an unexpected element of magical realism, taking the film in an altogether different, but uplifting direction.