Review of Cloverfield (2008) by Thomas D — 18 Feb 2016

Even though it supposedly doesn't have a ton of links to the original, I thought it may be a good idea to take back at Cloverfield in preparation for the forthcoming 10 Cloverfield Lane. Cloverfield is about a group of friends attending a going away party in New York City when suddenly a gigantic creature attacks the city. The group is thrust into the unbelievable task of making their way through the streets of New York in hopes of saving one of their friends.

In an era where the term found footage films started to become a gimmick that people scoffed at, Cloverfield manages to make use of its filming technique to perfection. More impressive though, is the filmmakers ability to get us to care about each and every one of the main characters so that when an emotional scene arrives, we feel for them. Matt Reeves and JJ Abrams did a wonderful job of bringing this film to life as the director and producer respectively. Not only is the film incredibly original in its story telling, but the special effects and realistic take on a monster invasion felt so refreshing to watch. Not everybody makes it out alive and when people die, you don't see it coming. That to me, is a film that nails exactly what its going for.

The cast wasn't and to a certain extent still isn't all that well-known. TJ Miller and Lizzy Caplan being the exceptions as they have broken out into fame. Even with that said, I thought the performances all around were exceptional. I got the vibe from all of the characters that they were really seeing a monster/creatures for the first time and the decision to use hand-held cameras was extremely effective. Miller was perfect for the character who filmed everything as he brought just the right amount of humor and terror to every scene. I also believed and cared for the love story they were trying to sell me on with Rob trying to reach Beth for a good portion of the film.

In many ways, Cloverfield is a look inside the lives of people who would be on the streets in any invasion/superhero film. Perhaps rightfully so, we don't really ever get a chance to see from a normal person's view of the events. The emotion and humor are definitely present, and the action is also handled extremely well as there are a fair share of necessary jump scares. Cloverfield is easily my favorite found footage film along with one of the best invasion sci-fi films of the last decade or so.

+Reeves & Abrams direction.

+Scary & haunting at times.

+Performances.

+Found footage choice made sense.

+Balance of humor and emotion was on point.

8.7/10.