Adriana and I had the pleasure of attending the Austin Film Festival this year! We were joined by some friends for a few days of movies, panels, hot weather, and good times.
We’re going to kick off our coverage of the Austin Film Festival with Bird, another film distributed by Mubi that we got the chance to review ahead of its release. If you missed our review of My First Film, the last Mubi film we reviewed, be sure to check it out!
If you read that review, you know I’m a big fan of Mubi and their focus on quality cinema that feels so different from mainstream offerings. Bird definitely fits into that category, too, with some unique visuals and some narrative swings that really stood out to me.
The film stars Nykiya Adams as Bailey and Barry Keoghan as their father, Bug. Together, they live on the top floor of a very downtrodden apartment building with Hunter (Jason Buda), Bug’s son and Bailey’s brother. Franz Rogowski also stars as the titular Bird.
Does Bird soar with heartfelt emotion, or does it struggle to get off the ground?
My Thoughts
Overall, Bird has a lot of merits and manages to weave together a heart wrenching story with its complicated characters.
Growing up is hard for everyone, but it can be even harder for some than for others. These are people facing many hardships, some circumstantial, others perhaps self-imposed, but you can’t help but feel for the characters and what their daily struggle is like.
What stuck out to me most was that the movie makes a point of ensuring the characters are complex enough to avoid lazy clichés. Characters make choices that you don’t like and say and do things you wouldn’t, but I never found myself lacking empathy for anyone (aside from one particular minor character).
Barry Keoghan is unsurprisingly a standout here, with his portrayal of Bug as someone who constantly seems happy in spite of his situation. Aside from a few brief moments, Bug is consistently shown to be happier than his kids. He also is definitely unaware of what daily life for his kids is like, but it’s still apparent that he cares and is there for them when they really need him to be.
Of course, we also have to talk about Bailey and Bird. This pairing really drives the story forward and both of them are fantastic characters that you can’t help but love. I won’t go into too much detail about them so as to not spoil things, but these two find each other when they need each other most. It’s through their collective experience that they both find some clarity and perhaps a bit more peace in their lives. I specifically want to mention how incredible Nykiya Adams is as Bailey. This is one hell of a way to make your feature film debut and I would expect a lot of good things ahead for Adams!
Also, I want to talk about the visual style of this movie, because I absolutely loved it. There were some really great shots, including ones that used a projection on a wall, that I was absolutely transfixed by. Given the generic visual style of so much of the “content” released these days (and I use the word, “content,” very intentionally in this case), when you get to see a movie with some visual style, you’re reminded just how important it is to elevate a movie.
Finally, a quick note on the score and soundtrack because they were both very solid. From “Yellow” by Coldplay to “Cotten Eyed Joe” by Rednex, they use some solid songs to awesome effect and the ambient score sets the tone and gives this a vibe that I really dug.
The only thing that I struggled with were some elements towards the end that sort of shook me out of the movie a bit. These choices don’t derail the movie for me, though, and there are still some incredibly strong moments that really landed for me.
Verdict
I definitely liked this movie! Especially as we reach the end, there were a few different emotional beats that really hit me. This movie deals with some serious subject matter but does so with care and empathy and ultimately delivers a solid coming of age movie that takes enough risks to feel different from all the rest.
Bird is currently out in theatres and will be availible to stream on Mubi soon!
Adriana Wiszniewska