A woman struggling after the death of her father turns to a pet hawk for companionship in "H is for Hawk," an emotionally raw story about grieving and learning to move on that refuses to tidy itself up like so many stories told in a similar vein.

Claire Foy plays Helen, who spirals emotionally after the death of her photographer father, Alisdair (Brendan Gleeson). Lost, Helen adopts a goshawk and throws herself into the world of big bird ownership, gloves and all.

Given the choice of two similar hawks, one more well-behaved than the other, she chooses the one who requires more work. She's up for the challenge and has plenty of time to devote to her new friend.

The learning curve is steep. But Helen is willing and able, almost to a fault: she begins shutting herself off from others and losing herself in the process, as her hawk, Mable, becomes her identity. (Foy is tremendous opposite the bird, and there's no faking their interactions.)

There's a version of this story that is easy and uplifting, where the hawk symbolizes freedom and saves Helen's life and everyone lives happily ever after. This is not that story. Co-writer and director Philippa Lowthorpe, who worked with Foy on "The Crown," doesn't sand down the edges of the story, where Helen lets her appearance and her living space go, and walks around with blood caking her forehead from incidents with Mable. Friends question her sanity and stability, and Helen loses herself further inside her mounting grief.

But that emotional honesty is what makes "H is for Hawk" — which is based on a 2014 memoir by Helen Macdonald — land with truth and conviction. It approaches its subject with respect and doesn't pretend to offer easy answers for complicated matters. Grief is difficult, as is hawk training, and Lowthorpe's film treats both with proper reverence.

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'H IS FOR HAWK'

Grade: B

MPA rating: PG-13 (for some strong language, and smoking)

Running time: 1:55

How to watch: Now in theaters

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