Dir. Tilman Singer | Now in Theaters | Rating: 5/5

I went into Cuckoo with little info and expectations and I’m glad I did. Its vaguely sci-fi-esque premise would have turned me off otherwise. Though I was skeptical in the first half, Cuckoo thoroughly won me over with its creativity, guts, and heart. 

Cuckoo’s outlandish premise stays afloat because the writing is incredibly strong. The script is riddled with foreshadowing and wordplay that masterfully comes full circle at the climax of the film. I haven’t watched Euphoria, so this was my first experience with Hunter Schafer. Her unique look and style bring a competitive edge to her as a scream queen, especially with her range of emotional delivery. 

I’m surprised this was rated R, since the scares were relatively tame. There is some nice work with suspense and jump scares, coupled with impressive sound design. The natural behaviors of the cuckoo bird species are critical to the story. Because cuckoos are creepy as fuck, I did have some background knowledge of them before seeing this, but if you haven’t read up on them – be sure to do a quick review before heading to the theater. 

You can look at this film from multiple lenses and themes, but my preference is looking at this as a blended grief/maternal/found family horror. Gretchen and Alma’s relationship is complex and realistic, within the context of the film, and their conclusion really gave the story a well rounded landing. The weakness of the film is that there are some unanswered questions regarding the “monster,” but I think the film’s stunning creativity outshines the plot hole. 

A pleasant, mind bending, topsy turvy surprise – Cuckoo is definitely one of 2024’s heavy hitters.

Know Before You Watch: Features high pitched noises, vomiting, blood, death, close ups of medical procedure. 

Know Before You Watch: Features blood, death, gun violence.