Intensity 🩸🩸🩸out of 🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸
Directed by Tilman Singer
Cuckoo is a wildly imaginative and original slice of mad science horror. It doesn’t always feel coherent, but it constantly entertains with roaring action and fascinating characters. This is a showcase for rising star Hunter Schafer, who commands attention as the lead protagonist, Gretchen.
First, it must be understood that Cuckoo is quite a bit to digest. A LOT is going on in this story, and sometimes, the audience is asked to just roll with it. Those who allow the story to flow will be rewarded with a uniquely entertaining film. The film is part coming-of-age and part crazy lab science experiment. It also carries an undercurrent of sly humor just below the surface.
This film debuted at SXSW, and The Scariest Things just caught it at The Overlook Film Festival, where it was the opening headlining feature. This is German director Tilman Singer’s second horror feature, following his debut Luz, which was featured heavily in the horror film festival circuit in 2018. Singer brought in a terrific troupe of actors to populate this gonzo tale:
The Cast:
- Hunter Schafer plays Gretchen, an 18-year-old who tragically lost her mother and is now traveling with his father and his wife and daughter to a new home in Bavaria.
- Marton Csokas plays Luis, Gretchen’s father.
- Jessica Henwick plays Beth, Marton’s wife and Gretchen’s stepmother.
- Dan Stevens plays Mr. König, Marton and Beth’s charismatic benefactor.
- Mila Lieu plays Alma, Gretchen’s mute stepsister, who has captured Mr. König’s attention.
- Jan Bluthardt plays Henry, a curious detective.
- Astrid Bergès-Frisbey plays Ed, a young woman who intrigues Gretchen as a freedom conduit.
- Kalin Morrow plays the mysterious hooded woman who pursues Gretchen.
- Proschot Madani plays Dr. Bonomo, a research scientist working at a Laboratory nearby
A Short Synopsis
Trying to describe Cuckoo will be a bit of a challenge. Some spoilers ahead, so you have been forewarned!
Luis and his family have traveled to the Bavarian Alps to a new resort home, where he and Beth are to help design an addition to the lodge for Mr. König. In tow are Luis and Beth’s good natured deaf daughter Alma, and his surly teenage American daughter from a previous wife, Gretchen. Mr. König takes a keen interest in both daughters, though Gretchen was an unexpected guest. Gretchen immediately feels out of place, but jumps at a chance to take a bell desk job offer from Mr. König.
Strange events then unfold. At the bell desk, women are violently vomiting in the lobby for unexplained reasons. When Gretchen rehearses on her bass guitar, Alma arrives secretively by Gretchen to listen. Gretchen finally notices her, causing Alma to unleash a wave of sonic discharges, triggering a series of time loops that ends up sending both girls to the hospital.
Making matters worse, nobody can explain what happens, though one of her mysterious neighbors Dr. Bonomo has begun running tests on Alma to find out. Dr. Bonomo and Mr. König seem alarmingly aware of the situation. When Gretchen leaves the resort lodge late one night on her bicycle, a monstrous hooded woman chases her down, and unleashes the sonic wave assault like Alma did, using a banshee wail.
Detective Henry arrives, and enlists Gretchen’s help. He explains that some mad experiments being run on women that are creating these time shifting anomalies. The modified women are pulling eggs from their womb and attempting to implant their eggs into other women. Thus, the cuckoo behavior, where a cuckoo deceives another bird to mother her chicks. EWWW!!! The final act teeters on near chaos as Gretchen and Henry attempt a rescue mission and to right the wrongs of the wicked experiments.
Analysis (End Spoilers)
Cuckoo feels fresh. The story builds ring after ring of mysteries. With each subsequent ring, the stakes get higher and the plot gets stranger. Your mind needs to move quickly to keep pace with the aggregation of plot points, or just let your perceptions slip, and let it all in. Unfortunatley, not all of these elemente are explained. The cuckoo metaphor reveal happens fairly late in the movie, and if you are not focused on the plot, confusion may set in.
The antagonist motivations are not easily understood either. Why are they running these experiments? How are these sonic time shifts possible? The execution works, but the exposition might be lost in translation a little. I asked other atendees at Overlook if they comprehended the plan, and they seemed the latched onto the plot elements better than I did. As always, your mileage may vary.
Hunter Schafer steals the show. Her performance oozes confidence. She manages to thread the needle of being the petulant teen and the action protagonist we can get behind. Perhaps this will be a star making turn for her. Dan Stevens also impresses with his very good German accent and raw charisma. He plays menacing and disarming at the same time.
Visually the cinematography is stunning, capturing the essence of alpine Bavaria. The special effects for a modestly bugeted film like this also pay off, particularly the sonic waves. Most impressively, the bicycle chase sequence with Gretchen and the hooded woman was thrillingly shot. Shadows and quick cut editing really paid off. The sound mix blasted loudly though. The mix was overcooked, and after a while I had to cover my ears to get relief. It may have been the theater though.
Conclusion
Cuckoo is ambitious. It takes a whole lot of swings and doesn’t miss much. If you long for something new, and unpredictable, this is a good movie for you. If you forgive some of the confusing plot threads, you will enjoy a rollicking original story. Tilman Singer remains an interesting director to track. He delivered an amusing, often humorous, and action packed memorable thrill ride. More good stuff to come, I’m sure.
This film received an R-Rating for violence, intensity, strange sexual (in the reproductive sense) depravity, and language. Look for Cuckoo in wide release on May 3, 2024.