Review of 10 Cloverfield Lane (2016) by Roseisayovo — 14 Mar 2016

10 Cloverfield Lane.

With my head spinning, I regrouped in the restroom. (Also with a running time of almost two hours and a large diet coke I had to use it.) While at the sink washing my hands, I hear some teenagers talking about the film. “What’s the point?” I was aghast at that statement. Did we see the same movie? The slogan on the movie poster outside the theater was “Monsters come in many forms.” John Goodman’s character Howard is the monster. It became clear at the beginning of the movie that this was much more that a man prepping for doomsday. Michelle played by Mary Elizabeth Winstead is in a car accident and awakes in a bunker chained to the wall. Yet, a key scene happens at a gas station before. Howard’s truck pulls up at the pump behind Michelle’s car. Michelle feels uncomfortable and turns around to face the other way. Perhaps the bathroom teenager has never felt this. The knowledge of something not being right, the intuition of heightened alert was felt by me in the theater. In the bunker, Michelle meets Emmett. Emmett (John Gallagher Jr.) is wounded as well. The reason for his wound is far more suspicious. Emmett had helped Howard build the bunker. When Emmett knew the proverbial **** had hit the fan, he went to the bunker. He tells Michelle that he was injured when Howard was closing the door. Was Howard being cautious or intentionally trying to keep Emmett out? When Michelle first sees the bunker, Howard tells Michelle and Emmett not to touch. Michelle notices one night at dinner that Howard is becoming agitated with Emmett. Michelle, still trying to escape, notices Howard’s keys are on his belt loop. She begins to flirt with Emmett in order to send Howard into a rage. He threatens her by cornering her against the wall. During this moment Michelle takes the keys. She attempts to escape the bunker. While she is unlocking the doors, a woman runs up begging Michelle for mercy. It is clear to Michelle at that point that Howard’s claims of apocalyptic chaos are true. This is a turning point of Michelle beginning to accept her fate. As the film progresses in the bunker a pivotal scene takes place. The group is trying to avoid boredom by doing a puzzle. The puzzle is of a cat with a snorkel getting ready to enter a fish tank. Emmett is disappointed because there are pieces missing. This symbolism must have been missed by the teenager. The missing pieces, the containment of the fish while their predator is watching, and the cat’s breathing device are all significant. The puzzle pieces are Howard’s story. He keeps talking about his daughter. He gives Michelle her clothes. He has pictures of her and things by which to remember her. At one point, the air filtration device shuts off. Michelle is required to climb into the ducts and finds herself in an electrical room. There is a window in this room. Michelle discovers the word “help” scratched into the window. She also finds an earring which she recognizes from a photo of Howard’s daughter. Michelle realizes she has let her guard down and is indeed being watched by a predator. She confides in Emmett by showing him the photo of Howard’s daughter. Emmett tells Michelle that the photo is of a girl from his high school. He also says that she went missing and was never found. Michelle realizes what is going on; Howard built a bunker not for protection, but to capture and hold his prey. Michelle enlists Emmett’s help to get supplies so that she can try to get out of the bunker. She creates a gas mask out of a 2-liter bottle. Michelle refuses to accept her fate and begins her fight again. The teenager failed to realize that the “point” of the movie wasn’t doomsday it was Howard. Howard’s story isn’t fully developed on purpose. The viewer begins to ask questions and is kept in the dark like Michelle. The emotions that the viewer experiences during the film invoke the fear that is inherent of being human: not knowing the missing pieces of the puzzle of your predator.