Cloverfield (2008)

Using a cast of virtual unknowns and a sneak attack marketing strategy, creative mastermind J.J. Abrams and his team of industry friends put together a non-stop thrill ride of a film, the production of which is every bit as impressive as the final result. Abrams and company successfully bring horror and disaster films into the 21st Century with a YouTube generation treatment that is far more than just Godzilla meets The Blair Witch Project.

The whole point of the film is to create the sensation that you are watching a horrific disaster caught on videotape. This is accomplished through the use of hand held digital cameras, quick cuts replicating when the camera gets turned off, and overlapping footage, indicating that whoever is doing the filming is doing so over top of something that was previously recorded. The advent of high-quality digital film making made this movie possible, allowing for numerous special effects to be inserted without compromising the grainy, low-tech look of the film. It certainly won’t fool people into believing what happens in Cloverfield is real (unlike Blair Witch), but that wasn’t one of the film’s goals anyway.

Cloverfield begins with Rob (Michael Stahl-David) filming Beth (Odette Yustman) as she wakes up in bed with him. They had previously been nothing more than close friends but have seemed to have crossed that line. The film then cuts to approximately one month later, where Rob’s brother, Jason (Mike Vogel), and his girlfriend Lily (Jessica Lucas) are planning his surprise going-away party. Rob has taken a position in Japan and is going to be leaving his friends and New York City the next morning.

The camera is given to a friend named Hud (T. J. Miller), who is tasked with taping various attendees well-wishers for Rob in his in job. Through the course of the party we learn that Hud is accidentally taping over footage that Rob holds very dear to him, as he and Beth had a falling out since sleeping together but Rob still has feelings for her. Before too long though, things go haywire. An earthquake seems to hit the city but not is all as it seems. Party goers flock to the balconies and rooftops and they witness explosions blocks away. People fill the streets with a mix of curiosity and wonder which quickly turns into fear and panic as the mysterious source of danger heads their way.

For the remainder of the film, we follow Rob and his friends as they try to escape Manhattan on foot with their lives. Hot on their tail is some bizarre monster that is tearing the city apart. The protagonists encounter the monster both indirectly and directly at times while also running into the US Army, which is sent into the city to combat the creature. The camerawork and the pacing all help create a very tense hour or so of terror-fueled trekking unlike anything seen before on the big screen.

A great deal is done right in this film. The use of young actors with few credits to their names was essential for Cloverfield to succeed. Had any recognizable TV or film star been cast in this movie audiences would have perceived it as more about that person’s involvement than anything else. Instead, the filmmakers focus solely on the story they want to tell and don’t hire anyone that’s going to be a distraction to their film. While not all of the young talent in this film will go on to superstardom (few have been attached to anything that stands out yet), they all do a fantastic job of capturing realistic terror and fear of living through this kind of event.

Another smart move was to show as little of the monster as possible. Instead of showing us in-your-face style destruction at the hands of the monsters like in Godzilla flicks, the filmmakers give us the before and after. The monster is almost never directly on top of our protagonists. Instead, it oftentimes comes just close enough to dish out the right amount of chills and creep the audience out. This less-is-more strategy is always the way to go. It worked for classics like Jaws and Alien and it works here too.

The only thing I wasn’t so crazy about was Rob’s half-foolish decision to head back into the heart of Manhattan to rescue Beth. This was an obvious necessity for the filmmakers, as it prolongs the film and exposes Rob and his friends to even more carnage but I thought it was a more than a little silly. Beth isn’t even his girlfriend but he’s willing to risk his life for her? Maybe I’m just that cynical but I have a hard time believing that I would go romping through danger-filled street for someone that I’m merely sweet on. At the same time, it is probably equally absurd for Rob’s friends to tag along with him. But without his friends, there would be no one documenting it all.

Despite these few lingering questions that came to mind as the credits rolled, Cloverfield has a lot going for it. It is a great merger between style and substance and its entertaining as well. It’s also a bold and unconventional way to tell a story on the big screen. I can’t see this kind of film making becoming too prevalent because few stories outside of monster and disaster flicks would really accommodate it. Even if used under those circumstances, comparisons to this film would be inevitable. This positions Cloverfield to be remembered as either a unique experiment in cinema story-telling or a ground-breaking original that may be replicated but not duplicated. Either way, Cloverfield wins in a big way.

RATING: 3.5 out of 5