My Cloverfield review

[Goblin19]

I thought it was good, not great. The big flaw for me, as Joe pointed out, is I didn't really care about the people. I was interested in what was going on, but didn't give a hoot if anyone survived. I did have a lot of scares throughout, but even at about 1 hour 20 minutes, it dragged at points.

[Hulk]

My wife and I saw it and...

WE LOVED IT

It was fast paced, and the video effects were not as jittery as Blair Witch. It did a great job of telling the story fairly completely while still maintaining the first person perspective. It gave you the impression of what it might have been like to be in NY during a Godzilla movie without having the safe third person movie goer perspective, which of course was the entire premise of the movie. Imagine the unimaginable happening during the course of your normal day without any warning. It was a completely intense thriller that moved quickly due to incredibly well placed and paced action.

Oscar nomination for Best Movie, no way. Best Monster movie ever, no way. Great summertime movie in the middle of January. Definitely.

[JDeRouen]

But you have to at least admit that the initial party scene dragged on forever!

[Hector]

No, Joe, I actually think it was necessary...you just can't bombastically start things off with a bang.



I just came back from the movies myself.

Cloverfield was actually very good.

That monster made Godzilla look like chump change.

You could feel the might of this beast, it was quite effectively done.

The first person video cam prespective was much more effective than the Blair Witch Project...way better.

I give it a solid B.

[ctc]

>I don't Think the idea really was to care about them.....only because it was supposed to have been a found tape. If you were to find a video of people in it I don't think you really care about them.It's more of being a voyeur and seeing the tape.

But.... a giant monster DOES stomp NY right? That's what I REALLY want to see. I NEVER care about the characters. Even when I was a kid I always rooted for the monster. (I was 3 when I saw the original Godzilla, and I creid for weeks when they killed him.)

I'd heard it was a giant monster Blair Witch over a year ago, and I'm okay with that. It's different; and I like different. If a giant monster attacked you really wouldn't have time to care about everyone around you; and it really bugs me when a monster movie tries to pretend there's a story or characters. (See "It Waits" for a worst case scenario.) Trying to play it "realisticly" results in a radically different situation from most movies, especially if it's supposed to be filmed by the participants. (Who probably wouldn't take the time to frame off "development" shots and the like.)

For the record I HATED the Blair Witch... not 'cos of the whole "first person" thing though. I hated it 'cos it wasn't scary! OOOHHHH!!!! The tent is rattling! EEEEEKKKK! A stick figure! The stupid kids even get lost WITHIN WALKING DISTANCE OF A ROAD! That's not a monster flick, it's an advocacy film for natural selection!

I'll probably see this one in the theater. It'll be the first time I've gone to a show since "Attack of the Clones."

Don C.

[Captain]

Heres the part I'm most interested in knowing.....What was the audience reaction to the Trek trailer?

[Hector]

Heres the part I'm most interested in knowing.....What was the audience reaction to the Trek trailer?

Dead silence.

[megoscott]

I loved it. I thought it was brilliant. I was involved from the very start and got a spectacular monster movie for my money. It wasn't a movie so much in that the story or plot were important, it was a powerful experience of what it would be like to be a witness on the ground when a 20 story monster attacks New York. The shaky glimpses of the creature---then the shots from the news media--holy crap! the confusion of the crowds as it dawns on them that the impossible is happening. The creature was great, and all told you see it for 3 minutes total---but that was SO MUCH more effective than an 3rd person film where you see the creature over and over again in perfectly composed shots. I say don't wait for video---see it big.

Two things that bug me about some criticism I have heard. 1) I didn't care about the characters. This to me is one of the most overused and most meaningless criticisms. The acting was fine, they weren't totally annoying, the characters had enough backstory to matter, I don't get how caring about them improves the movie. They were a little pretty (the party scene was the best beer commercial ever made someone said), but we like to watch young good looking people run from scary monsters.

2) It's all a gimmick. I don't get this complaint either. The fake documentary style is a good tool to show a certain kind of experience. One we are all familiar with. As I was watching the crowds when the Statue of Liberty's head crashed and they were all filming it with their cellphones I thought "Man, they could make a thousand different Cloverfields" each with totally different stories and feels.

Cool movie, glad I saw it.

[JDeRouen]

I loved it. I thought it was brilliant. I was involved from the very start and got a spectacular monster movie for my money. It wasn't a movie so much in that the story or plot were important, it was a powerful experience of what it would be like to be a witness on the ground when a 20 story monster attacks New York.

I guess, more than anything, that's my point - that it wasn't a movie, which is what I wanted.

It seems like most people either really liked or really didn't like Cloverfield, with not that many people on the fence.

As I said before, I enjoyed what there was of it - there just didn't seem to be much meat. I needed more meat.

And, for me, I do need to care about the characters, at least a little, to invest my emotions in the movie. Rob just seemed selfish, dragging his friends along on his Quixotic quest to save Beth, and the others seemed stupid for following him, especially Marlena, who barely seemed to know any of them.

[kingdom warrior]

Heres the part I'm most interested in knowing.....What was the audience reaction to the Trek trailer?

Snickers small laughter and alot of Oh please......

[Hector]

The Cloverfield monster looks like a gigantic mutated whale/crab hybrid:



Godzilla has nothing on this thing.

[csstuba]

The movie itself is really a huge gimmick....blair witch style of course. But I have to admit to liking it anyhow. I too could have done without the whole Beth sidebar, and the 1st person narrative is a little annoying. But still......the movie had a pretty realistic feel to it, especially when you take the events of 9/11 into account. 3/4 stars.

The Trek teaser was greeted with many giggles, but I remain excited/horrified/scared. Screw those rooting for the flick to go down in flames. I hope it rocks.

[megoscott]

That's not what the Monster looks like. Those are fakes that appeared weeks ago.

[Hector]

Of course it's a fake.

You think I'm going to spoil it for anyone who has not seen it yet?

[Goblin19]

.

I give it a solid B.

I'd agree with the B rating.