Review: Cloverfield
Jan 15, 2008 by Vic HoltremanBy Vic Holtreman
Short version: Yes, it lives up to the hype – Cloverfield is a blast.
Where does one start a review of a movie that has been the subject of so much attention and hype for months on end leading up to its release?
Bigger than the speculation about what the monster in the movie would look like, the hunting for clues on viral websites, what “Slusho” has to do with the movie – has been the question: After all the hype, will it be a great movie or a huge letdown?
Well I’m sorry to disappoint all the naysayers, but Cloverfield rocked.
Will it win an Oscar or Golden Globe? Heck no. Was it fun and exciting to sit through? Hell yes. This is what the ridiculously weak American version of Godzilla that came out a few years ago should have been.
The following review will be free of any major spoilers – to the point where I won’t even say whether the images that have been making the rounds lately are accurate portrayals of the monster or not. 
Cloverfield opens with a color bar pattern on the screen (which did elicit some unintentional laughs from the audience), but after a few seconds cuts to a very official and government-looking title stating:
“Multiple sightings of case designate ‘Cloverfield’ camera retrieved at incident site U.S. 447 previously known as “Central Park”
Yes, this was shown in the trailer, but as the movie is just starting it impresses upon you that this is not going to end well.
When it cuts from there to a hand held digital camera’s eye view of the interior of a very nice high rise apartment in New York City, it’s quite surprising (and I thought, did not make sense). Here we meet beauty Beth (Odette Yustman) and the guy behind the camera who we presume to be her boyfriend, Rob. Rob (played by Michael Stahl-David) is the fellow for whom the going away party is being thrown due to a new job as vice-president of some company in Japan.
From there it seems that whoever is in charge of the camcorder likes to pretty much record anything and everything as it follows people walking down the streets of New York City and into Rob’s apartment which is being prepared for a surprise going away party for him. We meet Rob’s brother Jason (Mike Vogel), who has been tasked by his girlfriend Lilly (Jessica Lucas) with recording “testimonials” from all the guests at the party. Jason is not pleased and manages to hand off the job to Rob’s best friend Hud, who at first grudgingly takes up the task. Eventually Hud starts to enjoy it as the night goes on and he gets a bit drunk while faithfully filming everything that’s going on.
We also meet a young woman named Marlena (played by Lizzy Kaplan), who Hud has his eye on but can’t seem to work up the courage (or charm) to talk to properly. By this time the audience is finally getting absorbed into the whole camcorder point of view thing, but it does take a while. The official government opening of the film doesn’t quite jive with all this preliminary material, but eventually it does get to the point where Hud wants to keep recording because “someone should see this.”
As we all know already, it’s during this party that all hell breaks loose and when it happens it’s extremely effective. I found myself thinking of Asian horror films, where up until the stuff hits the fan they can be incredibly mundane and almost boring, which then makes for a much more jarring effect when things veer off into the bizarre.
There’s a lot of humor in the film, mostly provided by cameraman Hud (played by unknown T.J. Miller who is not seen a lot but whose presence is constantly felt). One thing I found funny in particular was moments after the initial attack, when the head from the Statue of Liberty ends up in the middle of a Manhattan street, while some people are screaming and yelling “Oh My God!” a bunch of folks gather around the head in the middle of the chaos to calmly take pictures of it with their cell phones and digital cameras.
I didn’t expect the film to be funny at all, but the humor was sprinkled throughout the film very effectively, at time relieving the tension of what was happening on screen. Cloverfield also has a much larger scale than I expected considering the hand-held premise, showing citywide vistas and long shots of the creature. On the flip side, if you absolutely HATE the “jumpy camera” film style I have to say this film is not for you. Well, maybe if you sit in the very last row.
Now when I say “larger scale,” don’t go in expecting some mega-production… Although the effects are, well, effective, it’s more of an intimate film where we get to know the five friends and experience what happens through their eyes in real time.
Yes, 9/11 did come to mind and yes, it did make me a bit uneasy. But what I liked was that in a way it was almost cathartic (just stay with me here): As the people on the street that day didn’t know exactly what was going on despite the fact they were witnessing it first hand, the characters in the film (and the audience) experience similar confusion in the face of disaster of a different sort here.
Regarding the viral marketing of this film: In the end, it fits the final product perfectly. It really is a small film about a small group of friends with the occasional “big” scene here and there.
The creature is very cool and had kind of an H.P. Lovecraft look about it, and it delivers a few surprises. The characters were believable and well acted for this sort of film and that was extremely important, because if you didn’t care about them you had nothing (cough, AVP-R, cough).
So for all you movie reviewer haters out there that think I don’t cut sci-fi movies (AVP-R) or TV shows (The Sarah Connor Chronicles) enough slack, Cloverfield exemplifies what a Screen Rant review is all about: In the end does the movie entertain the audience without insulting their intelligence?
If the answer is yes, it gets a great review from me.
Our Rating:
4.5 out of 5
Around the web:
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I have no problem with outgoing links to relevant sites. Now if it was about how Rob used Viagra to impress his girlfriend… that would be a different story.
Vic
Hahaha
This just in! The parent company of Tagruato is the Dharma Group.
Zachary, yea a nuke would have destroyed the camera I agree,,, a MOAB bomb if dropped directly over this creature would have killed it for sure…unless it dosnt breath air.
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Most Satilites burn up in the atmosphere, and also I don’t see the relavance..?
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Also how did you play the message backwards and why wasn’t it forwards.
If it would have said at the end “its not dead” I think the crowd would have loved it. But instead they all just said what? and bailed.
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If they do a sequel it woulk be cool to see Lilly reprise her role and also please JJ try to steady that camera just a little bit better.
Sara,
While I respect your opinion, I’d just suggest not trying to discourage people from seeing this movie. If I had taken your advice, I would have missed out on one of the most thrilling experiences I’ve had at the theater in many years, probably since seeing Jurassic Park.
Vic is right when he says that this movie will divide audiences – sharply. This is simply one of those movies you have to see before deciding on.
Steve, the URL link plays forward and reverse.
Vic, has that audio been authenticated? It sure came out quickly.
The message “It’s still alive” seems unnecessary since there are little creatures apparently all over the city. We don’t know if they are junior monsters, or even prey that lured the monster in the first place. (Big whales survive on little plankton). But they are somehow related.
We also don’t know what happened off-camera. Did the monster shrug off any ordinances that were dropped? Did it return to the ocean?
JerseyCajun, Sara had some good points and her post was well written.
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Her reviews had little effect on me seeing the film I’m surprised you debated on it…
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Cloverfield made 16 mill on friday.
This one if it keeps up will break over 48 mill easy this weekend.
Everyone I talked to about the shakycam said they didn’t care they were going anyway..
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Also Jerseycajun, what did you think of NY gettting wasted? Were alot of the landmarks acurate?
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I was trying to figure out where the helecopter crashed at the end.it looked like Central Park but Central park is in Manhatten… So anyone out there know that area?
The URL played it backwards.
Huh, JJ sure is leaving a bread trail for us to follow online.
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I’m sure if this goes over 200 mil a sequel will happen.
I know the parasites couldn’t all be dead if there tunneling down in the subway, but I hope if they do a sequel we don’t centralise on them.
I’m sure that JJ is going to leave Star Trek open as well for a sequel and the film will have all kinds of clues and easter eggs.
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Bring on the Cloverfield dvd!!!
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Can’t wait I’ll have control of the camera that way !!
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I’ll be freeze framing alot.
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I would also like to see how many handhelds were actuall used in the film. To me they prob had 5 cameramen and then edited it all together while incorporating Huds voiceover.
Should be a huge dvd release as well.
CONTAINS SPOILER!!!
Steve, I’m pretty sure the helicopter crashed in Central Park (I was so surprised they survived!). Central Park is in the heart of Manhattan and according to Wikipedia is 843 acres or so with several large open fields. I don’t live in Manhattan, but I was just there in November and spent half a day walking around Central Park. It’s huge!
Yea Morgan I think your right BUT,
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Warning last chance MAJOR. Spoilers ahead….!!!
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If recall, the camera was knocked on the ground while they were dragging Rob out of the crashed copter. Ok, the POV on the camera was slightly angled and you could see Jets flying into the smoking remains of lower manhatten (the battery) its called.
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Well Central Park is located north of the Battery in Mahhatten NYNY.
The coptor looked to me like it crashed way south west and on a totally different island.
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(IMO).
I was under the impression the creature bailed out of Manhatten and back in the water to avoid the carpet bombing.
Prob took it 20 min to get to this other island and that was also right around the time our heros were coming too..?
What am I missing here HOW can that be Central park?
And why would they have a sattilite crash instead of the creature..
Can’t be a sattitlie
I’m hoping we can get a image of that last clip somehow and freeze it. ??
Jesus, guys when unFiction stops being slow. (Every since the movie came out there is been SO MUCH traffic. Like 250 lurkers just in the CloverField area)
I will try to post links to maybe help you understand some things alittle better. It’s the least I can do, I suck at explaining things. So why not put some links up. Just give me a sec.
Has anyone been to 1-18-08.com some puuurdy interesting photos.
For those of you wondering about the last scene, there is definitely something that falls and hits the water in the right side of the last scene where the camera looks out over the water at Coney island. I def think this is J.J. Abrams wants everyone to see and talk about
Thanks Zac, I mean I know its kinda obviouse that the camera was found in what’s left of CP but the view looked askew..
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Photos, links info, “now that’s what I’m talkin bout”
To quote HUD,,
I am a fan of this movie and i just wanted to say that i think the monster comes out of the water because at the last scene we see something crash into the and at the party when after the crash when they are all watching the news they show a sinking oil shiping hinting that the monster came out of the water and then took the head of the statue of liberty
Steve,
Not dissing Sara’s review. This film isn’t for everyone, I admit. I just feel that telling someone not to see this movie when the audience is so sharply and clearly divided might turn some people who would love to see something like this on the big screen away from it. I find that its a common statement among those who didn’t like it.
As for New York, the landmarks were well represented in my opinion. The bridge they take cover under right before the film ends is exactly of the kind found in the park. I spotted the Chrystler building in there too as one of the attacked buildings, and the destruction of the Brooklyn bridge made me think it wouldn’t look any differently if they destroyed it for real.
I can not believe that anyone could find this movie in the least bit enjoyable. This looked like a badly made indi film gone worse. The storyline is disjointed at best and non-existent at worst when taken from the point of view of the small group of characters who somehow manged to, for the most part, survive until the end. If his is the future of the silver screen, count me out. I would have rather stayed home with a good book.
RJ,
I don’t believe the purpose of the film was to tell a coherent story, just as the average Joe’s home movies aren’t meant to tell a coherent story. It’s purpose was to record an experience. What separates this “found” home movie from the average Joe’s is that it’s capturing an event that’s larger than life and impacts society on a huge scale. It’s more about capturing what its like to experience a real life monster invasion than it is trying to narrate a tale, much as our home movies aren’t made to tell a narrative, but to recall an event. Loosely, it does tell a nominal story of a rescue and two people who are brought – through extraordinary circumstances – to recognize what’s really important to them – but its peripheral to the experience itself.
I doubt this feature represents the future of cinema as knock offs would be virtually guaranteed to fail because the conceits of the movie only work here due to a specific combination of elements. As much destruction occurred in “Transformers”, the hand held approach and less structured story would not help and only hurt that film, as it would most other films.
Too bad I haven’t been able to see this yet.
I’ll gladly read SPOILERS tho!!!!
And I agree,Vic’s reviews,IMO,generally are good.
Jersey, exactly! You’ve hit the nail right on the head, bud.
Vic
No one should waste their time, money and effort to go see this movie… What the hell is all this shaky camera movement… I must say that its really nice to be kind off creative but come on this is what my television production teacher taught me on the second day of class… We all noe that this is not sooooooo much of a big budget film but in looking at it, where is the continuality not there… whats the plot where is the climax did anyone not learn anything in screen play writing or English class. Bloody hell if you are to get any type off award this is what it will be… And the worst movie of the year isssssssssssssssssssss… Cloverfield and guess what before y’all even get up there to receive that award y’all will be booooooooooooooooooooed just like it was boooooooooed at the theater and I will personally say get of the stage or platform what ever it is… As a youth filmmaker and Media Arts Major I regret paying $11.25 to go see… I should have just sat at the merry comfort of my house and either looked at it online or bought the DVD bootleg… this sadly to say should have never been made…
John, what did you think of the Star Trek trailer and would Cloverfield effect you seeing Star Trek ?
John,
Real people in real disaster situations do not stop to think how their actions and words conform to what you learn in a screenplay writing class. Watch footage of people in the street reacting to the events of 9/11 and you’ll find that what they say isn’t all that different from what the cast of Cloverfield is given to say. It’s rough and raw because this is supposed to be a movie that documents an event more than it tells a specific story.
What’s great about the film is that in spite of the uninspiring dialog and the shakey cam work, still manages to capture just enough visual information to keep the movie taut and the audience on edge.
I consider my money well spent, and I’ll repeat my objection to anyone suggesting that their money would be wasted on this movie, considering a large number of people have come away feeling very entertained by the results. And the movie never outstayed its welcome. It came, it scared the crap out of me, and it left in a timely fashion.
I can understand how this movie isn’t for everyone, but this is also a movie you have to see in order to decide if its for you or not, which is why I would recommend people check out the matinee first.
Steve, I think I need to see this movie again just to pay close attention to anything I may have missed.
SPOILERS!!!
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Such as, the scene where they take Marlene away into that tent because she got a bite. What on earth happened in there? And I’d like to pay closer attention (if it’s possible) to the helicopter crash scene. Did anyone else feel like they were falling out of the sky with them? And I really want to see that uberawesome monster again. Man, this movie was fantastic! Steve, do you think Lily survived? Or perhaps the monster smashed all the helicopters?
So many questions!! lol
END SPOILERS
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I wish the haters would stop discouraging people from seeing this movie. Everyone should give it a shot and make their own opinion of it. I respect you all!!
Wow Vic, this must be the most traffic you’ve ever had on one of your boards!
And I can understand how it would take such a high profile and divisive movie like this one to generate it!
Also, Zachary, do you have any background on the photos? Although extremely cool, what are they from? I can tell some are characters, but are those chunks of flesh on the shore from the monster? The image of the “nuking” is wicked!
LOL! And when you stay long enough at that site it ROARS!!!