Cloverfield (2008)Movie Info
| Field | Details |
|---|---|
| Movie Name | Cloverfield (2008) |
| Director | Matt Reeves |
| Screenplay Writer | Drew Goddard |
| Based on Novel by | — (Original screenplay) |
| Lead Actors | Michael Stahl-David, Lizzy Caplan |
| Cast | Michael Stahl-David, Lizzy Caplan, Jessica Lucas, T.J. Miller, Mike Vogel |
| Genre | Horror, Sci-Fi, Found Footage |
| Release Date | January 18, 2008 (United States) |
| Duration | 1h 25m (85 minutes) |
| Budget | ~$25 million |
| Language | English |
| Country | United States |
| Box Office (Worldwide) | ~$172.4 million |
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A modern version of the old fashioned mega monster movie, Cloverfield is seen through the camcorder of a group of young people who’ve gathered for a going away party, shown to us as archival footage from the area called Cloverfield, formerly known as Central Park. Once their party is interrupted, our main characters go on a quest to save a true love from a giant monster while an entire city collapses.
Basically another “little story in a big story” flick, which I do like. The characters appealed to me enough that I really did feel invested in the story. The other style of the film is the one that’s going to have half of movie goers calling for their money back, it’s that Blair Witch controversy all over again. I just hope monster movie fans can get past all the hype and gimmicks and enjoy a pretty good movie.
I’ll be honest, I find it a little annoying too. For the most part, the shakey cam does add a little to the flavor and can be used effectively to change the mood of what’s happening. That being said, about halfway into the movie it’s really annoying. I’m not a gimmick person, I don’t like them at all. I didn’t like the scratches on the film in Grindhouse, I don’t like the CGI-style of Beowulf, I’m just a big fan of a movie being shown in the way that least intrudes upon my viewing experience.
But it wasn’t that bad. Throughout the movie we’ll see little flashes of event that happened previously, and seeing the young couple so happy, then coming back to the carnage really set a good horror mood each time it was used.
Also Cloverfield really follows that old idea of letting the anticipation build up so that when you really get to see the monster it seems all the more rewarding. That really worked here. The shakey camera sneaks the audience little bits of the monster from street level, what we get to see grows slowly toward the end of the movie where it all pays off pretty well.
I’ve heard that there were a few people upset that the monster attacked the Statue of Liberty and New York because it reminded them of the 9-11 attacks. If you’re one of these people, please stop being a vagina, you’re just annoying the rest of us.
Still, at it heart there’s not enough of the story here for me. The execution was really great, the story about the main characters was really good, but I did feel a little cheated on the monster story. I’ve told you that whole story already, a monster attacks NYC, that’s really it. Some great visuals and an enthralling plot, but I wasn’t satisfied.
Well done, though. Entertaining and impressive once the story got started, I can’t say that I didn’t enjoy Cloverfield, but I did see some flaws that will piss a lot of viewers off. Some of the other theatergoers were obviously a little irritated as the credits silently rolled, more than a couple moans and snide comments could be heard. People looking for a Godzilla remake would probably be happier with the one with Matt Broderick, but if you’re looking for something new and big, this is a good call.
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