MOVIE REVIEWS

Dan Stevens had a chance in "I'm Your Man" (2021) to hone his German impersonation skills for this rather weak mystery. He owns a sprawling resort in the Bavarian countryside that's visited by the teenage "Gretchen" (Hunter Schafer) and her family. Her father "Luis" (Martin Csokas) is to design a new complex for "Herr König" who kindly offers the young woman a job in his hotel. It's when she cycles home after a very quiet shift one night that she is pursued by a mysterious woman with bright red eyes. Luckily, she can take refuge in the local hospital, but of course nobody believes her far-fetched tale. Meantime, her mute step-sister "Alma" (Mila Lieu) seems to be experiencing some serious inexplicable traumas and ends up in the same hospital. Might the incidents be connected; just what has their enigmatic host got to do with things and what's the agenda of the outwardly friendly ex-cop "Henry" (Jan Bluthardt)? Auteur Tilman Singer has a good go at creating something a little off-the-wall with this film, but sadly the really mediocre acting talent on display here let's the potential quirkiness of the plot down quite badly. There's far too much meaningless dialogue, dysfunctional familial drama and the pace, presumably designed to build a sense of menace, rather builds one of ennui and inevitability as the "cuckoo" theory is disappointingly undercooked and the denouement quite rushed. It's watchable enough, but I'm sure I'll never remember it,

A new midgnight classic.

Cuckoo, directed by Tilman Singer, is kind of a mixed bag. I didn’t really like it, but I didn’t completely hate it either. The movie starts off with a slow, eerie pace in this isolated setting, and for a while, it felt like something big was coming. I was waiting for that moment where it would all click and be great, but it just didn’t happen. The story seemed lost, like it couldn't make up its mind, and it really dragged the whole experience down. It was frustrating because there’s good cinematography, and the production quality is there, but the plot? Just a mess. Hunter Schafer, who plays "Gretchen," didn’t bring much to the role. I know they can act; they’re solid in Euphoria, but here, Gretchen felt cold and flat, with no real emotion or depth. It’s like the character was there, but there was nothing to connect to. Overall, Cuckoo had some promising elements but just couldn’t bring it all together. It’s one of those movies that leaves you feeling a bit let down because you can see the potential — it just didn’t live up to it.