Andrea Arnold introduces magical realism to her work

Almost twenty years into her filmmaking profession, Andrea Arnold has established her distinctive voice and standpoint. Her newest, Hen, now making its North American debut on the Telluride Movie Pageant after a run at Cannes, isn’t any exception.

Her topic, as ordinary, is a disaffected working-class youth beset by the circumstances of her neighborhood and the questionable selections of her dad and mom. Right here, it is Bailey (Nykiya Adams), a 12-year-old lady who should reckon with the prospect of her dad’s newly introduced marriage ceremony.

However Hen is admittedly two completely different movies: One a home drama chronicling the woes of life within the British working class, be it avenue gangs, teenage being pregnant, drug dealing, or home violence; the opposite is a fantastical story of Bailey’s encounter with a mysterious stranger who calls himself Hen (Franz Rogowski), and who could have some avian traits himself.

The storylines do intersect, they usually’re woven collectively by Robbie Ryan’s cinematography. He masterfully captures the stark and surprising great thing about deserted flats, overgrown fields, and a dirty seashore. Appreciation for the pure world is a theme all through, and it is handled with poetic fervor, whether or not or not it’s Bailey’s marveling at a butterfly, her filming of a wild horse, or her connection to Hen and his wilder soul.

However it all feels a bit overwrought, telling a well-known story of an remoted younger girl discovering her resilience within the face of overwhelming, if additionally stereotypical, obstacles. Adams is Arnold’s discovery, and she or he brings a tightly leashed rage and feral vulnerability to her work. However Adams does not really explode till the third act, usually leaving Bailey a determine of detachment in her personal story.

The movie’s magical realism is its extra intriguing and unique side, with its open query of whether or not Hen exists and the way a lot of what we see of him is actual or in Bailey’s creativeness. Rogowski expertly embodies the ornithological features of Hen, making him all gangly angles with a preternatural stillness. He lends Hen an oddness underscored by a heat that feeds Bailey’s connection and sense of safety in his firm.

However the movie’s true standout, as appears to be the case in any efficiency he tackles, is Barry Keoghan (simply watch for the winking swipe at Saltburn). Like his character, Bug, Keoghan endured an unstable childhood, shedding his mom at age 12 and spending almost seven years in foster care. Thus, he brings a lived-in volatility to Bug, who’s each striving to be a great father and consumed along with his personal romances {and professional} pursuits.

Solely Keoghan may promote the absurdity of trying to coax a toad to “slime,” hoping to promote and revenue off its psychedelic venom (this can be a actual factor, however Keoghan elevates it to some extent of elegant audacity). His propensity for enjoying off-kilter characters is right for moments the place he is singing to his toad or scootering about with out a shirt displaying off his tattoos (he wears a shirt for about one scene within the movie). However he additionally lends Bug an surprising heat, as he tries to supply some measure of paternal steerage to his kids regardless of being completely ill-equipped.

Need extra film information? Join Leisure Weekly‘s free e-newsletter to get the most recent trailers, movie star interviews, movie critiques, and extra.

Nonetheless, Keoghan’s brilliance cannot save the movie from its weaker features. Although Hen solely runs one minute shy of two hours, it feels for much longer, because it attracts out its contemplative moments. These days, it is a widespread criticism that films are too lengthy, however it’s a far greater downside when a movie has a median operating size and feels interminable.

Just like the butterflies and pockets of pure magnificence that Bailey is drawn to, there are glimmers of potential in Hen. However it by no means absolutely manages to take flight, leaving its provocative conclusion extra jarring and complicated than revelatory. Grade: C+