CUCKOO
I absolutely love, love, love this film!!! However the reasons why I love “Cuckoo” so much are probably the same reasons people could potentially hate this film, which is that the whole thing is just bat-shit crazy. It is such a weird film; weird in concept and weird in execution but it has been made by director Tilman Singer with such confidence, flair and style, that I find it impossible not to enjoy, despite how crazy the story line actually is. When you actually stop, sit back and think about exactly what is happening onscreen (which I had to do when I had to explain the film to my horror-loving fourteen year old daughter after we watched it together), it is absolutely mad.
When you are dealing with a story so out there and original, like the one we get from “Cuckoo”, there are two ways to play it, incredibly straight or with a tongue planted firmly in your cheek. There is no doubt that the decision to play it so straight is what makes “Cuckoo” work so well, because whilst the object of fear may be ridiculous when you sit back and analyse it intellectually later on, there is no doubting that that fear is real to Gretchen and her family. Hunter Schafer is extraordinarily good as Gretchen, fully committing to the trauma in front of her from “the hooded woman”, as well as the emotional trauma of just losing her mother, whose death she still hasn't fully processed. The scenes where Gretchen calls their old phone number just to hear her mother's voice on the answering machine are quite heartbreaking, but Shafer is equally as impressive in the physical nature of her role when she is being chased, bashed and bruised. She takes quite a battering in the film, but is determined to never give up until she finds out what is exactly going on. Dan Stevens plays the mysterious Herr König, and let's just say that his character is the one that deals with the most weird elements of the film and then makes them believable for the audience. He does a good job at it, whilst being playful and at times intimidating in the role. I must say that director Tilman Singer must have balls of steel or unwavering confidence in his story to have a character pull out a flute and blow a little tune, that it wouldn't look ridiculous but rather instead signify something creepy. I must admit that the first time Dan Stevens put that flute to his mouth, I thought WTF?!!? but it makes more sense as the story progresses.
The handsome and professional look to “Cuckoo” also helps to keep you engaged, particularly early when the bizarre nature of the film appears almost listless. Due to how well “Cuckoo” has been shot, it gives you a little more trust in the filmmakers that they do know what they are doing and so you stay with the film longer than you normally might. One thing that helps immeasurably with the lush look of “Cuckoo” is that Singer made the decision to shoot it on 35mm film stock, which gives the film an organic quality to it that just makes everything look that much better. While watching “Cuckoo”, I kept feeling the influence of one film in particular, namely Dario Argento's “Suspiria”. Story wise the two films have nothing in common, but many times I saw visual cues taken from this earlier film. One example is when a character is running through the forest and it is very similar to the early scene in “Suspiria” when Suzy is in the taxi, it is pouring with rain outside, and she witnesses a woman running for her life in the forest.
I have watched “Cuckoo” at least three times now (but it is possibly four) and it never fails to entertain me, and I am happy to say that the plot makes more sense after the first time you watch it. I just find the film so easy to watch, and I think that is because you can feel that everyone is giving their all for this crazy little film. The film looks amazing, it is superbly acted by everyone (but particularly by Hunter Schafer) , it has style and atmosphere in spades, and the story line is totally bat-shit crazy, plus it is actually scary....what more do you want in a film?!? It is just so great to watch something original for once. I understand that “Cuckoo” will not be for everyone, but it's a film that I never tire of, and why I have called it my cinematic guilty pleasure of 2024, even though I do not fell the least bit guilty about watching it, because it is so damned fun and entertaining!! Click here to read my original review.
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