Review: "Cloverfield"

I"ll say it right now: "Cloverfield" had one of the greatest viral marketing campaigns of any film I've ever seen. The teaser trailer, the fake websites, the internet hype-- it all worked perfectly. But for all of the groundbreaking that was done in the field of marketing the film, the film itself ended up feeling a bit like an afterthought, albeit a hell of an exciting one.

As if you don't already know, the film is about a group of hip Manhattanites who put together a surprise party for their friend who is leaving for a new job in Japan. On that same night they become witness to an attack on New York City the likes of which haven't been seen since, well, since 9/11.

This was my first moment of pause in the film: In the post 9/11 climate we live in today, especially in New York City, what is the likelihood that the first place the minds of these characters wouldn't go to is "It's another terrorist attack!" It seemed almost as if the filmmakers purposely avoided having any mention of it at the onset of the attack which, for me, was distracting. It would seem obvious that if you were in New York City and witnessed a building exploding and crumbling, your first instinct would be that we were once again under a terrorist attack. Now, this is quickly dismissed when they actually see the source of the destruction, but nonetheless it stuck out to me. But I digress...

After the attack begins, the film becomes a heart-pounding mixture of chaos and confusion, for both the characters in the film, and the audience watching it. This worked especially well because the video camera recording the attack continued to record, but the filmmakers were not afraid to allow the character holding it to act as any rational person would in that situation. This led to some shots being framed terribly, some were zoomed in or blurry and others were simply shots of their feet as they tried to figure what to do next. This was a nice touch that added to the realism of the film, and actually bordered on the abstract at some points. I supposed when J.J. Abrams has got your back, the studio is more likely to allow new and different ideas.


The film's style will no doubt be compared to that of "The Blair Witch Project." However, the comparisons are more than just the superficial "shaky cam" approach that the film is shot in. In both films, the character who helms the camera (i.e. the audience perspective) uses the distance that the camera provides as a buffer against the reality of what is happening. Somehow it's more palatable to watch through the camera than to simply shut it off and run for your life. This is particularly interesting when considering the amount of real life footage we see every day that looks like the footage of this film, and how we've become accustomed to watching truly horrific things with relative ease, so long as there is that one degree of separation that the camcorder provides.

My second, and final, moment of pause came in response to the driving force behind the plot of the story. Four people set out on a trek literally across the city, on foot, so one of them can get to a girl he essentially wants to apologize to. While I can appreciate that this type of setup is a convention of the monster movie genre, it just didn't seem likely that the group would have stayed together as long as they did.

Did the film live up to the hype? I would say yes. What they set out to accomplish was a new and interesting take on the monster movie, and they definitely did that. The simple fact that the monster is only in the film for a relatively short amount of time makes for a new kind of antagonist-- the Cloverfield monster doesn't even have any particular personality, as far as movie monsters go. What I enjoyed about the film is that it is more concerned with the reaction and damage control that takes place when people are fighting a massive enemy and losing, than it is with showing how we eventually kick the monster's ass. No, that will be saved for the sequel.

In all seriousness, though, I do believe that this somewhat experimental monster movie would make a wonderful backstory to a more practically filmed sequel, showcasing the events that take place after this film ends-- and don't be surprised to see it, either. A $41 Million opening weekend is all this film needed to no doubt guarantee a green light for an entire franchise. I know I'd see it.

Score: 3.5 out of 5