The Bird Game is a dark fairy tale in which a talking, bloodthirsty crow lures six children into a secluded mansion and entangles them in a series of disturbing games. The film’s themes range from the insidious impact of new digital technologies to the enduring power of fantasy and mythology, and focus on the hypnotic, addictive and increasingly sleepless hyperactivity of contemporary life. The troubling link between caging and caring is teased out through Crow’s terrifying grip on her child-prey, and her shifting role between abuser and abused. The Bird Game was commissioned to mark the 150th anniversary of the Evelina Children’s Hospital for Sick Children, named after the wife of Ferdinand de Rothschild who also created Waddesdon Manor where the film was shot, at a time when the mental health of the young has become a matter of growing attention and concern.
