Cuckoo (2024) Review – A Watchable but Messy Exercise In Indie-Style Pretentiousness

Welcome to Knockout Horror. Today we are checking out yet another horror movie that has been receiving a tremendous amount of hype in 2024 – Cuckoo.

It acts low budget but has big name stars

Cuckoo sits in a bit of a strange place when it comes to hyped-up horror movies. It sort of presents itself as this kooky indie horror that has appeared out of nowhere and is bravely sticking its neck out to do things a bit different, yet stars high-profile actors like Dan Stevens and has all the trappings of a fairly high-budget film.

It is one of those horror movies that will hold a particular niche of horror fans against its chest. Fans that will be devoted to it, rave about it, and claim that you aren’t a proper horror fan if you don’t enjoy it. Something which reminds me of another title from a few years back – The Neon Demon.

“Cuckoo feels like a Neon Demon for 2024.”

People raved about that movie and enthusiastically took a huge shit on people who disliked it. Despite it, again, being a high-budget, indie-style horror with a famous cast and not a whole lot to say, Cuckoo feels like a Neon Demon for 2024.

Often messy and convoluted

Cuckoo follows 17-year-old girl Gretchen (Hunter Schafer) as she is forced to move to Germany with her father, Luis (Marton Csokas). Luis is taking on a job renovating a resort for her father’s boss, Herr König (Dan Stevens). Despite the resort’s idyllic presentation, something appears to be strange about the place and König himself, who seems to be taking a special interest in Gretchen’s deaf sister.

It’s pretty straightforward stuff but writer, director, Tilman Singer manages to weave this narrative into something rather convoluted and confusing. Cuckoo feels pretty messy and is presented in a rather abstract manner. There is an obvious desire to reflect, in the viewer, the strangeness of the situation and the difficulty that Gretchen is facing in dealing with, and understanding, what is taking place. But the way that is accomplished often doesn’t land and frequently feels unnecessary and a bit silly.

Rewinding scenes to replay segments, dream sequences, odd use of sound, and camera work. It’s interesting, if nothing else, but it really didn’t land for me. You definitely don’t want to watch this movie when tired, let’s put it that way.

“Rewinding scenes to replay segments, dream sequences, odd use of sound, and camera work. It’s interesting, if nothing else, but it really didn’t land for me.”

It’s almost Twin Peaks-esque in its presentation, but with a B-movie campiness that isn’t backed up by the usual cheesy, tongue-in-cheek, nature that you would expect with such approaches. Cuckoo takes itself ruthlessly seriously which feels very at odds with some of the stylings. I couldn’t help but feel, at times, like the cast, crew, and director weren’t on the same page.

Not really a horror

Obviously, the trailer for this movie does a nice job of presenting Cuckoo as an actual horror. And while there are a few sequences, here and there, that feel fairly fitting of the genre, it really leans far more into a number of other genres ahead of horror.

In fact, the horror scenes are all spoiled by the trailer itself. Cuckoo trends far more towards being a thriller than anything else, but there are strong drama elements and even a strong focus on action. There are times, especially towards the second half, where Cuckoo feels like a Luc Besson film. It’s a weird melding of different styles.

Aesthetically, it works, for the most part. As mentioned earlier, some elements don’t land but Cuckoo stands out for some of its unique approaches. Well, unique if you are used to watching American movies, that is. The concept behind the story is interesting but there is a hell of a lot here left unexplained. I can imagine a few people will be left needing a lot more exposition. Still, if you have any knowledge on the Cuckoo bird you will probably guess what is happening fairly early on. Plot holes are a problem and when you really think about it, the antagonists’ motives make little sense.

Stellar performances and a lot of foreshadowing

Acting is fantastic throughout. Hunter Schafer is of particular note as Gretchen. She is not an easy character to care about and not particularly likeable. Schafer manages to make her a much more relatable person by the end of the movie. Schafer also has a fantastic way with subtle comedy. She manages to perfectly interject some humour in moments when you aren’t expecting it. My only criticism would be that Schafer looks far older than 17, something which can be very jarring, at times.

“Hunter Schafer is of particular note as Gretchen… Schafer manages to make her a much more relatable person by the end of the movie.”

Dan Stevens is a joy to watch, as always, though I could have used more screen time from him. It is probably worth pointing out that he plays his character like a B-movie villain, something that goes against the seriousness of the rest of the movie, adding to the feeling that Cuckoo doesn’t quite know what it wants to be. I really thought Mila Lieu did an excellent job as Gretchen’s deaf younger sister, Alma. It’s great to see so many talented young actors in horror, as of late. 

There is a hell of a lot of foreshadowing in this movie. A lot of it doesn’t make sense and some of it actually does some serious damage to one of the more tense final scenes. There really needed to be a stronger focus on building suspense and sustaining it. Some of that tension is sacrificed at the altar of family drama and romance, something which I didn’t feel like the film needed and really didn’t benefit it in any way.

Our Scoring Philosophy: A Fair Fight

Horror is a genre that thrives thanks to indie film makers and low budget creators. At Knockout Horror, we firmly believe that every movie that we review deserves a fair fight. That's why we grade on a curve. Our star ratings are all about context, judging a film on what it achieves with the resources it has.

A 4-star rating for a scrappy indie horror made for $10,000 is a testament to its ingenuity and raw power. A 4-star rating for a $100 million blockbuster means it delivered on its epic promises. We don't compare them side-by-side; we celebrate success in every weight class, from the back-alley brawler to the heavyweight champion. Please keep this in mind when considering star ratings.

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