Review of The Cuckoo (2002) by Don S — 17 Feb 2008

The 2002 Russian production KUKUSHKA ("The Cuckoo") is an entertaining tale of mutual understanding across language barriers on the Finland-Russian front in World War II. As the film begins Veikko (Ville Haapasalo), a recently drafted Finnish student who doesn't seen the point of fighting, is being chained to a rock. Punished for insubordination, he is forced to wear an SS uniform so he won't surrender, and given a gun to shot passing Russian troops. Only a couple of kilometers away Ivan (Viktor Bychkov), a Russian soldier who has just been arrested for the counter-revolutionary activity of writing poetry, is set free when his jailers perish in a bombing. Both of these condemned men are taken in by Anni (Anni-Kristiina Juuso), a Sami woman resident in the area, who holds on to her small farm four years after her husband disappeared.

Each of these three characters cannot speak the language of the others, and Ivan initially hopes to kill Veikko, whom he believes to be a Nazi soldier. The misunderstandings that arise make for fine comedy, but the final reconciliation amongst the three characters is heartwarming. The cinematography really brings out the beauty of the land above the Arctic Circle, and the writers have represented the traditions of the Sami with care. Director Aleksandr Rogozhkin has expertly handled the actors and the action.

The DVD extras are quite entertaining, especially Juuso's bafflement at the suggestion that the Sami people are sex-obsessed.

I watched this film as a student of Finno-Ugrian linguistics resident in Finland, passionate about the Finnish and Sami languages and with training in Russian as well. Audiences with different backgrounds might not care as much for the film, and you might find it a three-star effort instead of four. Nonetheless, I am sure you'll find KUKUSHKA an entertaining film.