Cloverfield Review

Cloverfield
Release Date: 1/18/08
Directed: Matt Reeves
Produced: JJ Abrams

Cloverfield is the most recent film to gain massive internet hype and probably will disappoint those who have long drawn out theories of the monster and where it came from. Me, on the other hand, know too much about how J.J. Abram's Lost can hype people up and inspire horribly complicated theories, when really the explanation of what is going on is always much simpler. The monster really never gets explained, so ultimately the fanatics will be crushed that their theory isn't even explored. Cloverfield as it turns out is less about the monster and more about the characters and their reactions to the attacks. While Cloverfield delivers on the action to a pretty satisfying extent, the characters are much more interesting. We have Rob, Hud, Marlena, and Lily who get developed as much as they can in the short 80 minute running time. We care about Rob's mission to save his girlfriend and even when it gets to a pretty ridiculous extent of them entering a building thats tipping over on its side, we still hope they make it.

What I did not expect is that Cloverfield would have some clever commentary on the information age. Most notably in the now famous "Statue of Liberty" scene that we see in all the trailers, the immediate reaction of most of the bystanders isn't to run as fast as possible but to take pictures of the severed head with their camera phones. The film also cuts between the tape of the attack and some taped over footage of Rob and his girlfriend Beth going to Coney Island, this is very effective and provides the film with more emotional spark than just being a simple monster movie.

So if you go into Cloverfield super hyped up to see a big clear shot of the monster taking out buildings, you will be disappointed. There is plenty of suspense and violence to please the majority of action fans but I can already tell the viral marketing got some people way too hyped for a movie that if anything is more of a clever statement about human behavior and technology in the midst of a disaster. But if you are like me and crave a fresh new take on the monster genre, Cloverfield fills that void completely.

8/10