There’s a long legacy of vivid, ultra-saturated horror films—think the classics like Suspiria or Texas Chain Saw Massacre, or the more recent Midsommar. So it should be obvious that simply because a story is scary, it doesn’t automatically lead to all shadow and darkness.Enter Cuckoo, the new, wonderfully weird horror thriller from Luz director Tilman Singer. It's only his second feature and boasts a wonderful cast including Hunter Schafer, Márton Csókás, and Dan Stevens, who has cemented himself as one of my favorite horror film baddies after this and Abigail. (And let's not forget The Guest.) Cuckoo follows transplant Gretchen (Schafer) who's just moved overseas to be with her distant birth father and his new family, which includes stepmother Beth (Jessica Henwick) and half-sister Alma (Mila Lieu). They arrive at a strange mountain resort, where Herr König (Stevens) warns her not to be out late. Based loosely on the familial behaviors of cuckoo birds, the story finds Gretchen out of place and uncomfortable in this new unit, desperate to get away even before Alma starts having weird seizures and Gretchen encounters a mysterious hooded woman one night.The movie, shot beautifully on 35mm by DP Paul Faltz, creates a bright and chromatic world for this terror and employs some unique in-camera effects. We were delighted to be able to hop on Zoom with Faltz ahead of the film's wide release to learn more. Enjoy! Faltz and Singer in the Horror GenreFaltz said that since he and Singer have collaborated on two...
Published By: NoFilmSchool - Friday, 9 August