MOVIE REVIEW: CUCKOO

 

Seventeen-year-old Gretchen reluctantly leaves America to live with her father at a resort in the German Alps. Plagued by strange noises and bloody visions, she soon discovers a shocking secret that concerns her own family.

Director: Tilman Singer

Cast: Hunter Schafer, Jan Bluthardt, Marton Csokas, Jessica Henwick, Dan Stevens

Release Date: August 9, 2024

Genre: Horror, Mystery, Thriller

Rated R for violence, bloody images, language and brief teen drug use.

Runtime: 1h 43m

Review:

Tilman Singer's Cuckoo is unabashedly bonkers, almost to a nonsensical degree, but strong turns from Hunter Schafer and Dan Stevens keeps the crazy train on track for large stretches of time.  Writer/Director Tilman Singer has an ability to craft a series of unsettling and disorientating sequences something he does with impressive aplomb throughout.  There's also a darkly, wry sense of humor at play throughout the film's narrative which keeps the whole thing from getting overly oppressively overbearing.  There's a tangible sense that Singer is having a good time twisting the screws on the audience even as the story details continue to make less and less sense.  It’s a fun, intriguing approach which might ultimately prove to be a frustrating experience since the story leaves a boatload of unanswered questions by the time the film ends.  Thankfully, the film is blessed with two strong turns from Hunter Schafer and Dan Stevens who do their best to carry the film over its narrative shortcomings.  Schafer is perfectly suited to play the disaffected teen who immediately senses something is off about the whole situation.  It’s a role that mostly asks her to react to the increasingly dangerous predicament especially as she's beaten and bloodied as the film goes on. There are a few moments, particularly in the final act, that give Schafer an opportunity to give the character more emotional depth and a sense of the underlying trauma that she's been carrying.  Dan Stevens continues his recent string of strong character work with his sly turn as the mysterious doctor running the establishment.  It’s the kind of role that fits his talents perfectly as he gives his character a mischievous charm that's engaging but unnerving at the same time.  Schafer and Stevens are equally entertaining onscreen even after the story runs off the rails.   It only exemplifies the fact that Cuckoo could have been something truly special had it spent more time on a more coherent story with stronger internal logic to deliver a more satisfying experience overall.

B-