The Little Birds

Though the plotting is problematic and at times as lost as the kids, there are bursts of brilliance and moments of aching vulnerability in "Little Birds" that make you wonder what the filmmaker might do next.

The dreamy shots of a poisoned sea in "Little Birds" show an imagination sorely missing from its drab plot and characters.

Despair may be an emotion of emptiness, of the absence of hope, but that doesn't mean a movie about someone spiraling down into that emotion has to feel so empty as well.

A Sundance Lab creation, Elgin James' debut, Little Birds is a strong first effort, one borne primarily from an interesting mutation of the professed director's own life experiences.