There is a world where all of Little Wing's ideas make thematic sense, as a story about a young woman reeling from the difficulty of her home life. But as it is now, the film just isn't tightly woven enough, with various characters and subplots making little effect on the whole and major conflicts barely leaving consequences for the characters to deal with afterwards. It's definitely unique; you aren't likely to find many movies about pigeon racing anywhere. But even then, Little Wing doesn't allow us to get an insider look into pigeon racing as a sport, nor how this underground network is even supposed to operate. Without a strong enough setting to support this story, it becomes much harder to suspend one's disbelief and enjoy the strange things it shows us.

Even with a weak script and direction that's frequently too self-serious for its own good, the lead actors of Little Wing still give this project their all. Young Brooklynn Prince (best known for her breakout role in Sean Baker's The Florida Project) proves herself totally capable of staring down her grown-up scene partners with ease, while Brian Cox (who also serves as an executive producer) easily finds three dimensions to a character that could've just been curmudgeonly. A star of Cox's caliber could have just phoned in this performance but there's sincerity that comes through here even in his angrier moments.