Posted by Cuckoo; 2024; Written & Directed by Tilman Singer; Starring Hunter Schafer, Dan Stevens, Marton Csokas; Rated R; 1h43m; NEON releasing
My friends, this has been a great year for smallish-budgeted genre cinema. As of the day I’m writing this, August 5th, 2024, the cadre of Oddity, Late Night with the Devil, I Saw the TV Glow (Bob’s Review; Tony’s review with Oddity), Immaculate, In a Violent Nature (Bob, Tony), and Longlegs have all come from smaller production houses and have done well critically, if not with horror fans (rooting for you Oddity to get legs on streaming after the eensy theatrical exhibition). I want to mention The First Omen here too, although it was a studio film, it had the feel of the others. It had a 30 million dollar bankroll and made it back, so there’s that. Of course, many of these films have detractors, which is expected, but even gaining traction enough to hit the public eye is great work.
I’m glad to add Cuckoo to the list. Writer-director Tilman Singer previously made the fascinating mindfuck Luz and now returns seven years later for a much more followable but still just as fascinating wild trip of a film. It may not be as good as some of the above, it’s one hell of a disconcerting and strange journey. (For the record, as of right now I put at #10 on my 2024 list).
Seventeen-year-old Gretchen (a mesmerizing Hunter Schafer, Euphoria) is not doing well. She’s half-checked-out, angry, and keeps everyone at a distance; but she’s a very engaging protagonist thanks to Schafer’s wonderful performance. It’s a role that needs to be perfectly cast, or else the viewer is stuck following someone they actively dislike. Gretchen is a young woman you’d hate to deal with in life (even understanding where she’s coming from), but Schafer makes her fascinating to watch and root for with the ferocious performance.
Against her will, she’s moving with her estranged father (Marton Csokas, Aeon Flux), his wife Beth (Jessica Hendrick, Game of Thrones), and their daughter Alma (Mila Lieu, Dodger), to an isolated resort in the Bavarian Alps. Feeling unwanted, it’s clear her father highly favors the mute Alma, she begins to work for the resort so she has something to do until she can leave. It’s immediately clear something is wrong. A curfew of 10 o’clock, cries in the woods, strange neighbors and coworkers, women suddenly vomiting and acting odd, time fuckery, and, scariest of all, The Hooded Woman. To tell anything about HER will be giving too much away, and regular readers will know I hate to do that.
And, oh yes, let’s not forget Dan Stevens (The Guest, Godzilla x Kong, Abigail) as resort head, Herr König. Often suddenly and inexplicably appearing in a scene, Stevens brings his particular brand of chaos energy. Like just about everyone Gretchen encounters, Herr König is outwardly friendly but is barely concealing a menace; the sort where everyone knows it’s all a lie but no one wants to break the veneer of nicety; to the point it becomes darkly funny.
Like Longlegs two weeks ago, I was lucky enough to see the film exhibited on 35mm in a sold-out showing at the SIFF Egyptian. Thus, my visual and audio experience may be different from those of seeing digital prints (whether at home or on the big screen). And like Longlegs, the visual presentation harkens to the look of decades ago to great effect, although this does take place in the modern era due to a small amount of smartphone use (that could have been altered easily to remove and not affect anything. I’m a little surprised Singer didn’t. Honestly, it’s the Free Square for genre fans’ bingo card). And again akin Longlegs, this look brings an uncomfortable atmosphere to Gretchen’s ordeal in the deep, dark woods. (Both Longlegs and Cuckoo are NEON releases, no doubt they are banking on the similarities of the films inhouse. Heck were part of the featured article in this month’s Rue Morgue.)
This uncomfortable look, joined with everything happening to Gretchen just outside of her understanding, thus keeping her off-balance, come together to form an engrossing and scary film. It’s a film that is nearly impossible to predict the next moments as each gets weirder and stranger.
There’s a particular encounter with The Hooded Woman that was so effective it literally sent goosebumps down my arm. I believe you’ll know this sequence when you see it as it sent my audience into a brief hysteria (I’ll give just one word to see if we’re on the same page for those who know: shadows).
Cuckoo keeps the viewer on the edge of the seat as it barrels through the 1h43 minutes with terrifying ease. The incredible pacing never lets the audience get comfortable in the situation, continually shifting expectations and experience.
On the downside, this same speed does leave some ideas, characters, and sequences behind. As 95% of the film is from Grechen’s point of view, it makes sense for these to drop after she no longer encounters them; but as a viewer (especially as one who loves worldbuidling and lore), I was left hanging, wanting more.
This and a climax that peters out a little, it feels like there were one or two bigger moments ready to happen that don’t, keep the film from completely coalescing into something truly great.
I get it. It’s hard to find a satisfying conclusion after a great setup. Just ask Stephen King, and he’s the master of horror fiction. So these setbacks are ultimately quibbles that don’t undo the well-done horror of what came before. Cuckoo is a scary, engaging horror film about fighting as an outsider in unknowable conditions led by an amazing performance.
B+
