A film about winging it through life, the bracing and beautiful Bird is the fifth narrative feature from the phenomenally talented Andrea Arnold (Fish Tank, American Honey). Set in Arnold’s home county of Kent, it follows 12-year-old Bailey (newcomer Nykiya Adams) as she runs wild on and around her estate, spars with her wheeler-dealer single dad (Barry Keoghan), befriends a kind stranger (Franz Rogowski), and negotiates a daunting situation with her mum’s new bloke (James Nelson-Joyce).

With the authorities going unseen (save for the sound of a siren), vigilante justice is just how it’s done round Bailey’s way. This impoverished Gravesend community has been badly let down and developed its own set of rules. When Bailey meets Bird (Rogowski) she’s initially disconcerted, with Bird’s German accent, unconventional dress and ethereal air making him one heck of an anomaly. But his nature is reassuringly gentle, and Bailey agrees to help this mystery man reconnect with his estranged parents.

Rather like The Florida Project, Bird captures the freedom that goes hand in hand with parental neglect, alongside the permanent potential for peril. Bailey is already battle-hardened, seeing herself as protector to her three younger siblings, who live with their mum (Jasmine Jobson) in even more chaotic circumstances.

Adams delivers a striking, unaffected turn at the core, while Robbie Ryan’s restless, fluid camerawork apes Bailey’s nervous energy, as well as the instability of her situation. The soundtrack is filled with contemporary swagger (Fontaines DC, Sleaford Mods), alongside ‘dad music’ (Coldplay, The Verve, Blur), lending it heart, soul and bags of attitude. It’s kitchen-sink terrain, but Arnold has always infused her films with vitality and hope; she understands that living on the edge can be as exhilarating as it is terrifying, and there is love and a little bit of magic here too.

Bird is in cinemas from Friday 8 November.