Cloverfield (2008)

Cloverfield (2008)

Written by Drew Goddard

Directed by Matt Reeves

 

            It comes as no surprise that my love for this movie is due in part to the participation of both J.J. Abrams and Drew Goddard.  My fascination with Lost is well documented and widely known by my friends and family members.  Not so coincidentally, J.J. Abrams produced both Cloverfield and Lost, in addition to writing and directing the pilot and several episodes of the latter.  Upon Abrams’ departure to focus on directing Mission Impossible III and Star Trek, Drew Goddard briefly became the showrunner for the remainder of season one of Lost, until Carlton Cuse and Damon Lindelof took control.  So, when I saw the trailer for this then at-the-time untitled movie before Transformers with my good friend White Goodman, I nearly shat my pants in excitement.  If you haven’t seen the trailer for this, well then I certainly suggest you do (I tried to post it here, but I had trouble finding the original teaser, so I abandoned that venture).  It was a simple teaser trailer, shot on a handheld camera, following people around a party in New York City.  Suddenly there was an explosion and the head of the Statue of Liberty came flying at the camera, landing in the street.  It was about 1 minute long and ended just as simply as it began– with the words “From Producer J.J. Abrams” and then “Coming 1-18-08.”  Needless to say, I was floored, just like everybody else.  The movie soon became a cultural phenomenon, taking the internet by storm with a vicious (then unheard-of) viral marketing campaign, leading to rumors upon rumors about what the film was about.

            Cloverfield is presented as “found footage,” similar to Paranormal Shitivity and The Blair Witch Project, as well as countless other films.  The difference, in my opinion, is that Cloverfield has a story worth watching.  The story revolves around a small group of 20-somethings in New York City.  During a going away party for Rob (Michael Stahl-David), a monster attacks New York City, not surprisingly leading everybody to panic and flee the city via the Brooklyn Bridge.  When the monster tears the bridge down, the group turns back to Manhatten, now intent on rescuing Rob’s unrequited love from her semi-collapsed NYC apartment.  The story is told via a hand-held camera, shot by a cast member.  It’s a home video, essentially.  Now, in most movies, hand-held doesn’t work, unless the viewer is given a damn good reason for the camera to never be shut off.  Here, they give us a good reason.  Rob’s brother Jason (played by Mike Vogel) and Jason’s girlfriend Lily (90210’s Jessica Lucas) give a camcorder to their friend Hud (played by the hilarious T.J. Miller) in order to document Rob’s going away party before he moves to Japan for his job at Slusho (Slusho is a regular staple of everything J.J. Abrams produces, from Alias, this, Star Trek, and MI:3).  Hud is in love with Marlena (played by Lizzy Caplan, who I have a not so secret crush on), and Rob is in love with Beth (played by Odette Yustman, who is the worst excuse for an actress I have ever seen, although I suppose she looks nice, although wayyyy to skinny for my tastes).  Much carnage and destruction ensues.

            Here’s what I like about this movie…pretty much everything.  The cast works great together.  You really believe that they are friends and that they have been for years.  Rob is a little whiny, but not too much that you are annoyed by him.  Lily is strong enough that you really care about her.  Jason is the smartass little brother.  Hud is absolutely hilarious, spitting out one-liners and witty remarks deep into the third act of the movie.  Marlena is just the right comibination of uncaring bitch and sweet young woman.  One thing that might bother some people is the hand-held aspect.  It does get a bit shaky at times.  I’ve been told that this can cause nausea, although it never has for me.  In fact, it’s quite the opposite.  For me, the hand-held camera only helped me get more into the movie.  We only know what they know.  We only see what they see.  There are no clever camera manipulations.  I’d like to see Transformers 2 from a hand-held perspective.  While those giant Autobots and Decepticons are destroying each other and the pyramids, what does it look like from the civilians’ point of view?  I can only imagine that it’s absolutely terrifying, and in Cloverfield, I really felt that.  The special effects for this were awesome as well.  The filmmakers definitely went the same route as the makers of District 9 and used the “Less is More” philosophy, and it really worked.  This movie has one of my favorite cinematic scenes ever, as well.  For those of you who have seen the flick, it’s the subway sequence.  For those of you who haven’t seen it, then why the hell are you still reading this and not watching the movie?

            What do I not like about this movie? Well, there are a few things, and they’re both minor and major.  First, I don’t like Odette Yustman or the Beth Character.  She does nothing buy whine and cry the whole movie, and she irritates me.  You can’t make a movie where the plot hinges on the fact that the main character loves another character that is annoying and whiny.  Fortunately, Beth is actually kind of a minor character, and she only appears in the movie for about 15 minutes total.  This brings me to the only other thing that I didn’t like.  Why did Rob go back for Beth?  Not just that, but why would Lily, Jason, Marlena, and Hud follow him?  What the fuck do they care about Beth?  From what I could tell, she was barely a part of their group anyway.  I can tell you that the only people I would have gone back into that terrible, terrible shit for are my brothers and sisters, and even then, once I encountered those horrible creatures in the subway, I would have abandoned it all together.  Not only that, but Rob wasn’t even sure if Beth was even alive!  IMHO, it’s not worth it to risk your life for somebody else who might already be dead.  I mean, what if they got back uptown and Beth’s building was collapsed, not just on a tilt? Where would the movie have gone from there?  Those are just two minor pet peeves of mine about a movie that I absolutely love, so take them or don’t.

            Overall, Cloverfield is a great action movie with a lot of heart and humor.  The pace is incredibly quick, and you’ll be on the edge of your seat the entire time.  My last comment comes from my 12 year old brother, who after watching it, said “I think I’m gonna have nightmares.”  I think that’s pretty awesome.  I’ve officially succeeded as an older brother.  I’m giving it a 8.5/10.