Crazy ‘Cuckoo’ guaranteed to drive you bonkers
Tilman Singer’s “Cuckoo” is a strange bird, indeed. Told from the perspective of a teenager sent to live with her father and his new family at a resort in the German Alps, Singer warbles a peculiar tune bursting with catchy hooks. But in service of what? Beats me; something to do with ghouls, mishaps and transplanted eggs. Narratively, little of it adds up. Yet, Hunter Schafer and the great Dan Stevens make it sing.
They are the main combatants in a story that begins weird and only grows weirder. Take the cold open in which a young woman flees into the woods to escape what sounds like a murderous attack we never see but vividly hear. Who is she? Is this her family? It’s spooky but not particularly engaging.
But post opening credits, it becomes alive, largely because the next scene features Schafer as Gretchen, a 17-year-old wannabe rock star. Nothing odd about that. But why is she riding in the front seat of the moving van when there’s plenty of room ahead in the wagon carrying her dad, Luis (Marton Csokas); stepmom, Beth (Jessica Henwick); and non-speaking 7-year-old half-sister, Alma (Mila Lieu). Is she not welcome? Or, is it because she refuses to acknowledge that her Pops has moved on, leaving her and her mom behind?
Certainly, that’s a common situation with split families, but why should we care? One, because she’s played by Schafer; two, because the unctuous Herr König (Stevens) is there to offer a grippingly bizarre greeting when the family pulls up to his sprawling retreat. He and Luis go way back. In fact, Luis and Beth had a significant hand in designing the place. Yet, nothing seems quite right, particularly Herr König, whose graciousness feels more like menace.
True, Singer does little to camouflage his characters’ true natures, but the intrigue builds just the same. Events culminate with Gretchen robbing the hotel till and speeding off into the night accompanied by an older, seductive female guest. The escape ends badly, with Gretchen in the hospital where her dad is a resident. Being she’s the titular cuckoo, her broken arm is analogous to a broken wing. It’s also part of a running gag involving Gretchen’s knack for getting injured.
What is the catalyst for all this mayhem? Is it her perky stepmom attempting to gaslight her? Or, is it something far more sinister, given that local cop, Henry (Jan Bluthardt), persistently seeks the teen’s help in identifying the banshee he believes killed his wife and forced Gretchen and her friend off the road.
This is the point where Singer starts to run short of clever schemes, as “Cuckoo” devolves into a typical horror picture complete with jump scares, big reveals and final showdown between good and evil.
The film’s downward trajectory is frustrating because the dynamic between Stevens and Schafer is spot-on, even though the issue that divides them isn’t. I freely admit Stevens (“I’m Your Man”) is one of my favorite actors. There’s nothing he can’t do, including taking a convoluted script like this one and getting you to literally laugh in the face of credulity.
And Schafer, who made a name for herself on HBO’s “Euphoria,” is fearless in the role of a teenager who has no inkling of the malevolent power she’s up against, or how much strength she’ll need to fight it. And she does it all wrapped in bandages like a mummy.
All the more reason to accord her a script that doesn’t leave audiences scratching their heads. I will not reveal the film’s big secret, which I think has something to do with a cuckoo laying its eggs in another bird’s nest and leaving the hatchlings to be raised by the foster mama. In a way that’s what Singer is doing with his movie – taking ideas conceived by others and trying to pass them off as his own. But there’s no denying he executes it in an appealing fashion with highly appealing actors. To suggest otherwise would be, dare I say, cuckoo?
Movie review
Cuckoo
Rated: R for language, brief teen drug use, bloody images and violence
Cast: Hunter Schafer, Dan Stevens, Jessica Henwick, Marton Csokas, Jan Bluthardt, Mila Lieu
Director: Tilman Singer
Writer: Tilman Singer
Runtime: 102 minutes
Where: In theaters Aug. 9
Grade: B-
