Cuckoo (2024), directed by Tilman Singer, stars Hunter Schafer, Dan Stevens, Jan Bluthardt, Mila Lieu, Marton Csokas, Jessica Henwick, Greta Fernandez, and Kalin Morrow. The film follows Gretchen (Schafer), a 17-year-old girl who moves to a German resort with her father, Luis (Csokas), stepmother, Beth (Henwick), and stepsister, Alma (Lieu) after her biological mother passes away. Soon after arriving, Gretchen notices something isn’t quite right about the resort’s owner, Herr Konig (Stevens). Regardless, she accepts his job offer to work in the hotel reception office, though he mysteriously insists she never stays past nightfall. Eventually, she breaks the rules and covers for a co-worker, but when biking home, she is chased by a seemingly demonic old woman with a blood-curdling scream. When no one takes her story seriously, Gretchen realizes that something evil may be bubbling under the surface of the seemingly quiet resort. Teaming up with an ex-cop (Bluthardt) who is searching for a missing loved one, Gretchen sets out to uncover the resort’s secrets and save her family in the process. 

Although the casting of Hunter Schafer as a 17-year-old is absurd, she provides a strong lead performance that finds a satisfying balance between angsty teen tropes and badass final-girl energy. The typical angst is initially annoying but it quickly becomes clear that the script uses this angst as a way for Gretchen’s character to speak for the audience. Because the film is so self-aware about the absurdity of how everyone surrounding Gretchen is so oblivious to what’s going on, it allows her angst to feel mostly justified. She whines a lot, but she’s rarely wrong. For the most part, Schafer proves to be a unique performer who conveys certain complex emotions that many of her peers seem to struggle with. 

As for Dan Stevens, there’s a certain level of novelty to his performance. He takes every advantage to chew the scenery as a creepy German scientist and it’s consistently entertaining. The problem is, that it doesn’t feel like a very creative or unique take on this kind of character. In other words, the script doesn’t provide the character with much complexity. This would be fine if the character was a smaller part of the film, but he’s in almost every scene, so it’s disappointing that he feels so one-note. 

Where this movie succeeds is in its willingness to take big swings that ultimately pay off. There are so many strange moments and occurrences throughout the runtime that cause the viewer to go “wtf?” This may turn away certain audiences, but it ultimately works here because all these strange moments eventually receive an explanation/resolution by the end of the film. The strangeness here also tiptoes into the genres of fantasy and sci-fi, which is a mixed bag. Although it blends its three genres well, it almost becomes a bit overwhelming tonally. 

From beginning to end, this comes across as a film that features mostly moments a person could equally love or hate. It’s often a film that’s hard to analyze objectively because a lot of its enjoyment depends on whether a person is willing to surrender themself to the crazy ride it ultimately is. My only specific issue would be that although the film generally has a great balance of fun as well as scares, it never lingers in my memory as a horrifying experience. I think this is because although there are some truly terrifying moments, the overall tone/feeling is never one that will creep into a person’s nightmares. The blending of the previously mentioned genres/tones makes the film crazy/wild as opposed to scary. 

Overall, this isn’t a perfect horror film, but it’s one of the more original horror experiences I’ve seen in years. Hunter Schafer is a strong lead and the direction mostly succeeds in balancing various strange elements. Although it instills more fun than fear, it’s not necessarily a bad thing, just adjust your expectations accordingly. Whatever else can be said about this movie, one thing is likely, it will probably drive you cuckoo in the best way possible. B+