The Thing with Feathers | Full Movie | Movies Anywhere

As a film about grief it’s a cringey mix of elevated horror movie clichés and the kind of calculated heart-tugging you might find in a John Lewis Christmas ad.

Porter’s verbal somersaults and Walsh’s theatricality have given way to a literalism that renders what was powerful on the page and, from the critical reaction, the boards faintly ridiculous.

Cumberbatch is a great actor, but "The Thing With Feathers" is such a generic, self-owning examination of grief and despair that all his theatrics are not enough to help this film take flight.

The Thing with Feathers is a tricky feature. It finds its strength at its moments of chaotic wild imagination, and loses its footing during the quieter, more realistic parts.

The film’s ambition in merging genres doesn’t always work, and certain sequences feel more conceptually clever than emotionally resonant. No matter what, you have to admire the audacity.