There is something oddly comforting about the British seaside. For many it is pure nostalgia, a place suspended in an unknown time period, detached from the topsy-turvy nature of modern life. For others, it simply is and always will be their home. It can be ever-so-slightly surreal at times, a feeling director Andrea Arnold seeks to grasp in Bird, her first feature film since 2016's American Honey. Our eyes are those of Bailey (Nykiya Adams), a 12-year-old on the edge of society, caught between a chaotic family and her own creeping adolescence. Upon befriending Bird (Franz Rogowski), a wandering stranger looking for his past near the beaches of North Kent, Bailey sets out in search of her own identity.

While identity is the driving theme of Bailey's story, Bird ultimately falls short in that department. Like American Honey, Arnold leads us down a compelling path to an underwhelming destination. The journey flickers with promise, but is split between the grounded reality of Bailey's home life and the off-kilter, borderline magical experience she shares with the enigmatic Bird. The two paths are lightly intriguing individually, with flashes of depth in Arnold's script as Bailey's world contracts. When the threads finally intersect, the payoff is surface level at best and doesn't linger for long, leaving Bailey's arc feeling a little flat.

This is in spite of newcomer Adams, who carries her scenes with raw dynamism and has real chemistry with Rogowski, who does what he can with Bird, a character as curious as he is sometimes baffling. Barry Keoghan is now fully confirmed as a welcome presence who elevates almost any project and he is clearly having a wonderful time here as Bailey's off-the-wall dad. He is there as background noise rather than the lead billing he'll no doubt receive to promote the film, but as usual he is thoroughly entertaining.

Where Bird really excels is its atmosphere and technical prowess. Arnold has a knack for getting the most out of everyday locations and Bird is no exception. North Kent is rustic and unexpectedly stunning at times, tinged with effective surrealism from the eye of Arnold's cinematographer and long-time collaborator Robbie Ryan, fresh off his Academy Award nomination for Yorgos Lanthimos' Poor Things. While Arnold's subtle blending of reality and the surreal doesn't quite come off for the story and characters of Bird, it certainly does for its look and feel.

Charming if unremarkable, Bird has the occasional rung of poignant emotion and quick wit on a ladder that isn't quite worth the climb, but at least has some nice views on the way up.

Bird is currently at VIFF 2024 and will play at LFF 2024 on October 19-20. It will be released in UK cinemas on November 8