Cloverfield

Cloverfield is the best monster movie I have ever seen. However, it has some flaws. Im willing to overlook alot of things for this movie. For instance, how does Rob get cellphone reception in the subway tunnel? How does Beth (and Rob and Hud, for that matter) survive a helicopter crash after being empailed and left bleeding for hours? How does the glass on the camera not crack during any of the crazy shit Hud puts it through? I willing to overlook all of these things, but I am not willing to overlook the fact that when they turn off the camera occasionally, the tape continues and does not tape over Beth and Rob's Coney Island trip. That shit is too much. I said my beef, now lets move on.

Cloverfield had the odds stacked against it. It has the problem of introducing the viewer to a bunch of charactors right off the bat. Once the shit hits the fan, there is no more time for exposition. By the time the monster attacks, in order for this movie to succeed, the viewer needs to understand the various relationships between the people. It needs to know that Hud has a major crush on Marlena while she couldnt give two shits about him. You need to know how much Rob loves Beth. But most of all, you need to see that look in Rob's eyes when his brother Jason tells him that Rob is not good enough for Beth. That moment is what makes this movie amazing. That moment when you realize that Rob will go through hell and back, which he eventually does, to save Beth. And it all happens during a pretty boring goodbye party filled with people who I do not care about.

People love to shit on found footage movies, and, for the most part, they are right. It is a cheap way to get scares by tunnel-focusing the viewer and only showing them bits and pieces of information. Before Cloverfield, the most note-worthy found footage movie was Blair Witch Project, which everyone thought was super scary when it came out, but in retrospect is really stupid. The camera shakes a bunch, that one chick tells us that she is really scared. And then it ends. Nothing happens! In Cloverfield, a ton of things happen. And JJ Abrams and Drew Gooden (producer/mastermind and screenwriter, respectively) know how to use the benefits of found footage to their advantage.

The key to a good monster movie is not showing the monster. Or, more accurately, showing the monster a piece at a time, and never too soon. Cloverfield uses the tunnel-vision of Hub (our trusty cameraman) to only show the viewer what they see, which is alot, but not alot at the same time. Mostly, Hud shows you the damage that the monster has done the weapons that the government is using to try and stop it.  Mostly, you see everyone freaking out and running. The viewer doesnt really get a good shot of the monster until the end, when it sniffs and then eats poor Hud.

The secret (and not so secret) heroes of this movie is the love story between Rob and Beth. Not only does it drive the story and keep out protagonists in the city, but it is the only romance that makes it to the end. It also leads to the greatest shot the movie has, which is the two of them hugging and kissing while waiting for the helicopter to come save them. The bright lights are shinning in the background, they made it to the helicopters before 6:00am, and it looks like they are going to get out alive. The wind is blowing, and they are alone in the shot, after going through hell to get there.

Unfortunately, the do not survive. Stuck in the blast zone, they each say their goodbyes to the camera as the sirens sound, letting them know that the bombs are coming. Right before it hits, you get a real quick "i love you" from each and thats all she wrote. The final shot of the movie takes us back a month to their Coney Island trip, whose origins started the movie. They embrace, tell the camera that they had a good day and say goodbye.