FRIGHT FEST: SMALLS GOES CUCKOO FOR CUCKOO

 Cuckoo is absolutely one of those films that works best if you walk in knowing as little about it as possible, and let it take you on its weird, bonkers roller-coaster ride. That being said, if you’re still here, let’s review this ish!

In Cuckoo, seventeen year old Gretchen (Hunter Schaffer) finds herself forcibly moved to the German Alps with her dick-head dad Luis (Martin Csokas), his wife Beth (Jessica Henwick), and her step-sister Alma (Mika Lieu). Shortly after arriving, Herr König (Dan Stevens), the mysterious and odd proprietor of a chintzy hotel and the man her father is working for/with, hires Gretchen to work front desk. It isn’t long until Gretchen finds herself stalked by a shady and horrifying woman (Kalin Morrow). With no one else to turn to, she reluctantly teams up with detective Henry (Jan Bluthardt) to uncover answers and stop the woman.

Cuckoo is written and directed by Tilman Singer. This is his sophomore effort (He previously directed and wrote 2018’s Luz). The storytelling is a little muddied/messy, and not everything is fully explained by the end (or maybe it’s the answers aren’t explained well. I can’t decide which it is). All that said, Tilman is an innovative director. The screenplay is pretty solid despite continual foreshadowing involving the meaning of the title. The foreshadowing hits so hard it hurts and quickly grows annoying.

Hunter Schaffer is fantastic as Gretchen, our lead. Gretchen starts out as a bit of a stock cliche: The disaffected, snarky, cynical, angsty teen. As the film moves onwards, she grows a bit of depth and is given some great pathos involving her backstory that only helps to endear us to her. Her weapon of choice (a switchblade not unlike the one Dan Stevens used as David in The Guest) is pretty memorable. You definitely want to see Gretchen come out on top by the end.

Dan Steven’s shines bright as Herr König. He puts on a convincing, stilted German accent. He is perfectly awkward and off-putting in the role, and always keeps us on our toes as to the true nature of his character. This is easily his best role and performance since The Guest. Dan Stevens is back, baby!!!

Kalin Morrow is disturbing, horrifying, and grotesque as “The Hooded Woman”. Her costume, make-up, and prosthetics are very memorable and scary (as are the sounds/cries she makes). She makes for a great, memorable antagonist. Jan Bluthardt is also pretty great and memorable as Henry. The film has some fun with his character as he could be a force for good or bad during the proceedings. Mika Lieu impresses as well as Alma, Gretchen’s mute step-sister. Cuckoo slowly builds up her character, but she proves to be a very sweet and kind girl. Her relationship with Gretchen is one of the strongest parts of the film.

Surprisingly, despite Cuckoo definitely being a very weird horror film, it has a strong, emotional core. It also deals heavily with themes of motherhood. Most of the film moves fairly slowly as it builds its mystery (but never so slowly that it could be considered a slow-burn. It’s not). The third act is where Cuckoo hits its stride as stuff hits the fan in a highly entertaining and tense/suspenseful way (the film practically explodes during the entirety of the third act).

Cuckoo is this year’s Barbarian (another film that dealt heavily with themes of motherhood. Cuckoo could also be compared to 2019’s Vivarium). While it is not without its flaws, Cuckoo is still easily the most original horror film we’ve gotten in quite some time. It’s disturbing. It’s touching. It’s sweet. It can be unpredictable. It’s also 125,000 percent wild, insane, and bat-shit bonkers. With a heavy emphasis on uniqueness and originality, Cuckoo is another of the best horror movies of 2024. It marches to the best of its own weird drum, and we are all the better for it.

4.5 STARS

FRIGHT FEST: LONGLEGS

 "...And you're going to be there, and you're going to be there, and you're going to be there!"

A modern masterpiece and Oz Perkin’s best work to date. Sometime in the 90s Lee Harken (Maika Monroe), a young and “highly intuitive” FBI agent, is given the task of investigating a decades-long serial killer case. That’s about all I can say plot-wise without going into spoilers.

Maika Monroe stars as Lee, and puts on something quite different from what we’ve seen from her before. Lee is quiet and emotionally distant, though she does grow to show more emotion as the film progresses. She resembles a mix of Clarice Starling from Silence of the Lambs and Will Graham from Red Dragon/Manhunter. It’s always good to see Monroe on the big screen, and it’s a joy to see her back in a horror film (where she belongs).

Blair Underwood shines as Carter, Lee’s friendly but no-nonsense FBI superior. His role is certainly a supporting one, but Carter is a likable and very memorable character. Alicia Witt is also pretty good as Lee’s extremely religious mother.

Nic Cage plays Longlegs, the unhinged and cocoa-for-cuckoo puffs serial killer at the center of the film. Wow. Just wow. We are so lucky to have Nic Cage. He is such a gift. As Longlegs, he puts on one of his all-time best performances and in the process emerges as a horror icon. On display are all of his usual Cage-isms, but here you will laugh out of nervousness and unease. To put it simply: Cage’s Longlegs is unsettling and terrifying. The stuff nightmares are made of. Although I couldn’t stop smiling every time he was on screen, I was still very much afraid of him. Long legs has limited screen time in the film named after and about him, but Cage easily runs away with the entire proceedings. 

Oz Perkins (son of the late, great Anthony Perkins. Yes, THAT Anthony Perkins) directs and writes, and does both masterfully. The script is expertly crafted and the direction is taut. Just about every scene is filled with an almost unbearable building dread and tension.

The cinematography by Andres Arochi fits this film perfectly. There is an expert use of negative space, changing aspect ratios, and wide shots throughout (all of which only add to the tension and unease for the viewer). The editing by Greg Ng and Graham Fortin is pretty great too. The score by Zilgi is exquisite and creepy, perfectly adding to the dread and suspense in each scene. The sound design by Eugenio Battaglia is superb as well, and is guaranteed to keep you on the edge of your seat.

Longlegs plays like an ultra-dark, very twisted take on Thomas Harris material (author of Silence of the Lambs, Red Dragon, and Hannibal) with a hard occult/satanic edge and some supernatural shadings. The film moves like a slow freight train gradually picking up speed. The events play out like unavoidable, unstoppable horrors. The ending doesn’t quite hit the mark, but it comes close enough to the bullseye and makes sense considering the subject matter and influences we’re dealing with. 

Longlegs is easily in contention for best horror film of the year. It’s guaranteed to linger long after the end credits roll, and might even give some nightmares. It’s the real deal. If you love horror, Oz Perkins, Maika Monroe, Nic Cage, or Thomas Harris then you owe it to yourself to check out this sick, ugly (and I say ugly in the best way possible) little flick. Get ready to get fucked up!

5 STARS

FRIGHT FEST: I SAW THE TV GLOW

 “This isn’t the midnight realm, Maddie. It’s just the suburbs.”

A24 continues to have an eye for unique talents with unique visions and voices. This is without a doubt the best, most realistic, and most true film about escapism and filmic obsession I’ve ever seen. It’s got its own hypnotic, unique visual language and color palette that lulls you into a trance. It’s ultimately about how we turn to films/tv to get away from our daily lives, how those films and tv shows then shape our view and expectations about our lives and the world, and how when reality fails to live up to those expectations we escape back into film and tv. It honestly hits a little too close to home and is fairly depressing, but it speaks truth.

Both Justice Smith and Brigette Lundy-Paine put on strong, affecting performances as Owen and Maddie, best friends who are slowly dying from their unfulfilling and disappointing lives in the suburbs. Justice Smith in particular really wows with a flat, robotic affect. He continuously breaks the 4th wall to narrate the events of the film directly to the audience (almost like he is entering into a relationship with the audience the same way we form relationships with characters in films and tv). Owen seems to lack emotion, but this is false as it’s all concealed or hidden by him (for whatever reason). You could say he suffers from Dysphoria: a profound state of unease or dissatisfaction. This is easily Smith’s best performance yet. 

Brigette Lundy-Paine shines as well. Maddie is an angsty lesbian who has no friends and a terrible home life. Because of this, she chooses to escape into her favorite show, ‘The Pink Opaque’. When Owen approaches her, she effortlessly gets him addicted to the show as well. It’s an addiction that will stick with them for the rest of their lives, and it might prove to be toxic. Paine is asked to become concerningly unhinged later on, and they sell this turn incredibly well.

I Saw the TV Glow is directed and written by Jane Schoenbrun (who previously directed and wrote ‘We’re All Going To the World’s Fair’). They do an excellent job at each, managing to capture the isolation and disappointment of living in the suburbs. The cinematography by Eric Yue is transcendent. In his hands, the suburbs has a consistent etherealness and other-worldly look to it (it almost feels Carpenter-esque). The little we see of ‘The Pink Opaque’ completely nails the 90s aesthetics of freaky/scary kids shows from that era as well (think ‘Goosebumps’ or ‘Are You Afraid of the Dark?’). 

The multiple songs featured throughout are simply superb (highlights include but aren’t limited to ‘Anthems For A Seventeen Year-Old Girl’ by Yeule, ‘Another Season’ by Frances Quinlan, ‘Starburned and Unkissed’ by Caroline Polachek, and ‘Claw Machine’ by Sloppy Jane and Phoebe Bridgers). Needless to say, the album for the film is worth a purchase.

I Saw the TV Glow is a powerful, hard-hitting, surreal film that has a lot to say about film/tv, obsession, escapism, identity, and even nostalgia. It’s guaranteed to speak to any one who has fallen under the hypnotic glow of the television/silver screen, or anyone who has made film/tv their life.

5 STARS

FRIGHT FEST: TRAP

 In Trap, Cooper Adams (Josh Hartnett), buys his daughter Riley (Ariel Donoghue) tickets to a concert for her favorite artist, Lady Raven (Saleka Syhamalan). While there, Cooper notices an upped police presence and soon realizes that the whole thing is an elaborate trap set to snare a savage serial killer named The Butcher. Things are looking rough for Cooper, especially since he is actually the very serial killer the authorities are trying to catch. 

A simple, tight, mostly straightforward thriller (Don’t expect any twists). Josh Hartnett easily carries the proceedings and is the focus for about 90-95% of the film. His Connor/The Butcher is the most likable/charismatic sociopath since Dan Steven’s David in The Guest. Hartnett does a superb acting job, and makes Shyamalan’s occasionally silly dialogue sound authentic and natural. It doesn’t hurt that Hartnett has some serious DILF vibes throughout. He also has believable and sweet chemistry with Ariel Donoghue, who plays his daughter Riley (she’s adorable). Simply put: He’s phenomenal.

Shyamalan manages to perfectly capture the atmosphere of a live concert. Sayombhu Mukdeeprom is in charge of cinematography. He recently shot Challengers. He doesn’t do anything special or innovative here (the cinematography doesn’t really call attention to itself), but Trap is always visually appealing. The first 2/3rds of the third act has another character take center stage, and it’s here where Trap really starts to flounder. Luckily, the last 10-15 minutes manages to end the flick on a pretty satisfying note.

Allison Pill has a small role, but makes her screen-time count. Hayley Mills is memorable as Dr. Grant, the FBI profiler leading the manhunt. She’s great, but is fairly under-cooked. It feels like she should have been a bigger character. Jonathan Langdon is very likable in a supporting role as Jamie, a concert worker who befriends Cooper. Kid Cudi also has a cameo as The Thinker, another artist who performs with Lady Raven (Saleka Shyamalan) and has a big ego. He is a real jerk, but Cudi leaves an impression (and is almost unrecognizable).  As for Saleka Shyamalan as Lady Raven, well...she can certainly sing...her acting, though, leaves much to be desired. It doesn't help that Lady Raven is given no backstory or reason to be invested in the manhunt. We are also given no reason to care about her safety, either

Trap isn’t particularly great. It’s definitely a Shyamalan movie. That said, it’s still mostly solid and is a decent amount of fun. See it for Josh Hartnett, who is having a bit of a renaissance right now.

3 STARS

FRIGHT FEST: ALIEN: ROMULUS

 In Alien: Romulus, we follow a rag-tag group of penal colonists who dream of escaping to a better world and a better life. There’s our heroine Rain Carradine (Cailee Spaeney), her android best-friend/brother Andy (David Jonson), the leader of the group/Rain's ex-beau Tyler (Archie Renaux), Tyler's cousin Bjorn (Spike Fearn), Tyler's pregnant sister Kay (Isabela Merced), and Bjorn's girlfriend Navarro (Aileen Wu). 

When a derelict Weyland-Yutani research and development vessel blips onto their radar, the group decide the cryo sleep pods on board might be their ticket to paradise. Unfortunately, once they break in they inadvertently awaken the horrors lurking within the ship. The group’s new end goal: Survive.

Alien: Romulus is directed by Fede Alvarez (He also shares screenwriting credit with Rodo Sayagues, who previously helped write Evil Dead and Don’t Breathe). Romulus is Fede’s first horror film in eight years, and his first director credit in six years. It’s great to have him back in horror, even if Romulus isn’t his best horror film.

Romulus has a solid plot and decent enough character development. The screenplay is pretty good too, though there is a good deal of fan service. Some is subtle, some is hit you in the face with a mallet annoying. Luckily, when this film finds it’s groove, it can be really fun and really f’d up.

Benjamin Wallfisch scores Romulus, and does a phenomenal job. He borrows elements from Jerry Goldsmith’s score for Alien, but his work here never feels like a copy-and-paste job. It is it's own beautiful, freaky thing. Wallfisch continues to impress with his scores. Whenever I see his name pop up before a film, I get excited.

The production design (by Naaman Marshall), set design (Kinga Básci, Paul Chadeisson, Pablo Domínguez, Franciska Hutter, Lizzie Osborne, Helga Petro, Mary Pike, Col Price, Mauricio Ruiz, Kaitlyn Sandeman, Matthew Savage, Nick Stathe, Silvia Stroppa, Joshua Viers), creature design (Dane Hallett and Antony Nguyen), sound design (Lee Gilmore and Chris Terhune), and cinematography (Galo Olivares) are just about perfection. The cinematography in particular is consistently gorgeous and stunning. There is also one creature/Alien that is incredibly disturbing. He/She/It is pure nightmare fuel. Romulus doesn't rely on jump scares to frighten, instead leaning heavily on atmosphere, tone, and pure tension to get the job done. That said, the film does feature two top-tier jump scares.

Cailee Spaeney plays our lead, and consistently looks like a young Sigourney Weaver throughout. She’s given a decent amount of meat to chew on, but this isn’t her best or strongest role. That said, she still impresses. Archie Rénaux as Tyler is very likable and feels like a stabilizing force throughout. He is great in his role.

Spike Fearn as Bjorn plays a jerk very well. You aren’t necessarily supposed to like him, but I sure did. He has a real presence about him. He’s definitely a stand-out, memorable role. Isabela Merced might be the best she has ever been as Kay. She is a pretty strong woman who is easy to root for. She also has hands-down the most disturbing scene in the entire film.

David Jonsson might impress the most as Andy, a very human and very lovable obsolete android (Oh my God, I just got it. Andy…android.). He cares deeply about Rain and his primary objective starts out as doing whatever is best for her. Of course, he is an Android, so his loyalties are ultimately questionable. Jonsson does a great job at keeping us guessing as to if he is truly a good guy or not.

Jonsson is given a lot to work with as he has to play with some Autistic-esque qualities, he has to be icy/stony and cold, he has to play determined, and he also has to have a warmth or empathy to him too. Jonsson pulls it all off effortlessly. He really might be the best actor/role in the film, and his Andy reminds of a specific character from Fede’s Evil Dead (As far as his character progression/arc goes).

During the press tour for Romulus, Fede Alvarez boasted about his use of practical sets and practical effects, and indeed there is a lot of that here. Unfortunately, CGI is utilized (or looks like it’s utilized) a good deal too. There is CGI used for one character that is just PS4 cut-scene level bad, and some might be offended by the character in question (I imagine the words distasteful and disrespectful might be thrown around). That said, it's still good to see them included. Some of the sets seem to have a CGI gloss painted over them as well (not many, but I’d say at least two or three).

Fede is clearly a mega-fan of Alien. The pacing and structure for Romulus is heavily influenced by that film (It also is essentially a haunted house/ship, much like Alien was). That said, Romulus more often than not feels closer in tone to Aliens. There are plenty of tense, suspenseful, and scary scenes, but there is a clear emphasis on action a good deal (especially in the third act. I’d say the first two acts are Alien, the last act is Aliens). It’s also appreciated that Fede finds a way to make the events of Prometheus and Covenant important to what is happening in Romulus (I’d say more-so Prometheus than Covenant. Elements from Alien: Resurrection are lightly included as well).

Alien: Romulus does a lot right, it also slips up at times too, though. It tries to add emotional stakes so audiences can get invested in our leads and their plight, but your mileage may vary. Luckily, it is always cool and fun. The first 5 minutes and final ten minutes are incredible. Honestly, the last ten minutes might be the best part of the movie. 

Alien: Romulus tries/wants to be the perfect organism: a blending of Prometheus, Alien, and Aliens. Unfortunately, perfect this is not. Luckily, there are enough great scenes and moments that it earns a recommendation. It will definitely F you up. As is, it’s  the third best Alien movie.

4 STARS

FRIGHT FEST: ALIEN COVENANT

“Why are you on a colonization mission, Walter? Because they are a dying species grasping for resurrection. They don’t deserve to start again, and I’m not going to let them.”

“When one note is off, it eventually destroys the whole symphony, David.”

In Alien: Covenant, the crew of the Covenant vessel are searching for a good place to settle down, mate, and re-populate the human race. When they stumble upon what they call Planet 4, they find the planet inhabited by various different Proto-Morphs and David (Michael Fassbender), the android from Prometheus. David offers them assistance and refuge, but are his intentions truly altruistic, or are they maybe something a bit more sinister?

Alien: Covenant is a more technically competent film than Prometheus. The screenplay is better too, and the ideas presented are more fully explored. Tennessee (Danny McBride), Daniels (Katherine Waterston), Walter (Michael Fassbender), and David (Michael Fassbender) are the stand-out characters. Unfortunately, there is very little plot or forward momentum as most of the film exists to explore the David character.  The decisions made regarding him, while very interesting, ultimately fuck the entire canon of the Alien franchise. Another detriment is that most of the Aliens appear to be completely CGI creations.

Covenant is not a film Scott wanted to make, but fans revolted, demanding the sequel to Prometheus be closer to what came before. This is the result, and you can feel Scott’s resentment, anger, and disappointment throughout. 

Covenant is not a bad film, but it is at war with itself. It feels like there were at least one or two films that should have come before this. I can’t say that Covenant is entertaining, but it is interesting and has a few ideas worth exploring. Unfortunately, the best thing about it (David’s story) is also its fatal flaw.

3 STARS

FRIGHT FEST: A LOOK BACK AT PROMETHEUS

Wow, my opinion on this film has changed. I still like it well enough, but that’s mostly for its fascinating ideas that are never fully explored or fleshed out. Noomi Rapace is great, as is Guy Pearce, but Michael Fassbender’s David effortlessly steals the entire thing. 

The film is seriously hindered by taking short-cuts throughout (especially in the third act). The way it’s written (screenplay by Jon Spaihts and Damon Lindelof) is bad, a lot of the dialogue is laughable or cringe, and most of the characters are really dumb and continually make stupid decisions. Much of the film is fairly cool, and the set designs are pretty good. The action and “horror” of the third act kind of feels unearned. 

Prometheus tries something new and fumbles, but it’s still an admirable attempt. Maybe with a better screenplay this could have been something. It honestly would have likely worked better as a 5-8 episode mini-series. Really give it time to flesh out its characters and more fully explore its multiple ideas.

3 STARS