Nominated for Best International Feature
Q&A with Director Tilman Singer moderated by Finn Halligan
One of the festival’s favourite events, the Opening Gala Night, is always filled with excitement and anticipation as we get ready to Rain-dance.
Raindance Film Festival will open with the U.K. premiere of Tilman Singer’s “Cuckoo”, a horror feature starring Hunter Schafer and Dan Stevens, playing at the grand Curzon Mayfair.
Doors Open: 18:30 PM
All Seated by: 19:00 PM
After-Party (Wonderville): 21:00 PM
Reluctantly, 17-year-old Gretchen leaves her American home to live with her father, who has just moved into a resort in the German Alps with his new family. Arriving at their future residence, they are greeted by Mr. König, her father’s boss, who takes an inexplicable interest in Gretchen’s mute half-sister Alma. Something doesn’t seem right in this tranquil vacation paradise. Gretchen is plagued by strange noises and bloody visions until she discovers a shocking secret that also concerns her own family.
Summer Drinks at The House of Raindance
57-60 Haymarket, St. James’s, London SW1Y 4QX
Doors Open 21:00 PM
Make your way to The House of Raindance at Wonderville (Piccadilly) as we dance the night away in the heart of London’s West End.
Join us for a summer drink after our big opening as you meet the festival’s honoured guests and dance until the early hours as the sun sets.
The Raindance Icon Award Presentation
This year we are giving two Raindance Icon awards, the first will be awarded to Chiwetel Ejiofor and presented by Steve McQueen at the festival’s opening gala.
Previous Raindance Icon Award recipients include Vanessa Redgrave, Jonathan Pryce, Gemma Arterton, Sir Michael Caine, Sally Hawkins, Jude Law, Olivia Colman, Terry Gilliam, Guy Richie, and Ken Loach.
Cuckoo Review
Following her mother’s death, Gretchen accompanies her father, stepmother and eight-year-old half-sister Alma to a German resort run by the charismatic but creepy Mr König. Here, Alma starts to experience violent seizures, while Gretchen is pursued by a strange and terrifying woman.
There are strong performances all round from the small cast. Hunter Schafer is compelling as the troubled Gretchen, while Dan Stevens is fun as the Bond-villainesque Mr König.
Vibrant cinematography and elegant set design come together in a predominantly blue and teal colour palette, reflecting the ice-blue of Mr König’s eyes, calling to mind the blue-tinted plumage of the symbol of his mysterious resort – the eponymous cuckoo, and bringing out the pink of the weird cabin known only as ‘the love nest’.
What stands out most is the sound design. The woods around the resort team with atmospheric wind, squawking, chirping – augmented and distorted by a recurring jarring sound that links the soundscape with the narrative. Music too plays a role in the story, and Simon Waskow’s score comes into its own here.
As well as being an exhilarating horror/thriller, Cuckoo explores family ties, ultimately emerging as a battered, bloodied, yet triumphant study of sisterhood – both biological and chosen.
Review by Anna Taborska
