THE FOLLOWING REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS OF THE DISCUSSED FILM. READERS DISCRETION IS ADVISED.
When Producer JJ Abrams went to Japan and saw tons of Godzilla merch, he felt that America deserved an equivalent to the iconic creature. In 2008, we got a monster movie that was pretty much just that.
PLOT
Cloverfield shows retrieved footage of a camcorder, recovered by the US Department of Defense, bearing a disclaimer of the titular designated case. We see that Robert Hawkins (Michael Stahl-David) is planning to go to Tokyo for working purposes. A party is planned by his brother Jason (Mike Vogel) along with his girlfriend Lily (Jessica Lucas). Jason originally documents the event but passes the camera to Hud (TJ Miller) to continue. Rob originally enjoys himself until ex girlfriend Beth McIntyre (Odette Yustman) arrives with another man. They quickly argue and she leaves afterwards. Hud discovers that there was an affair between the two but Rob ended it after his promotion. As Hud and Jason try to cheer him up, a sudden earthquake occurs. We see that it was not an earthquake but a giant extraterrestrial crash landed on New York. As everyone leaves the building, the head of the Lady Liberty statue is severed and hurled onto the streets of the city. They attempt to cross the Brooklyn Bridge to evacuate but the beast swings its tail across, destroying the said bridge and taking many lives including Jason's. When reaching an electronics store, Rob tries to reach Beth, only hearing voicemails of her in agony as she is trapped in her apartment. He now plans to go rescue her. While aware that it's suicide to go find her, Hud and Lily go with him along with Lily's friend Marlena (Lizzy Caplan). They get trapped under the subway as the National Guard continues to fight the creature. When it gets dark, Hud puts on the camera's night vision and encounter parasitic creatures that were spawned by the giant alien. They were able to escape the subway alive but Marlena got bit by one. When they reach a command center/field hospital, Marlena begins to bleeds from her eyes. She is taken to a tent and she explodes; This breaks Hud's heart as he originally had a crush on her. The remaining group are able to leave the area with aid by another soldier. Before they leave, he warns them that they have until 6am to reach the last helicopters to depart from the city because until then, Manhattan will be leveled in order to defeat the monster. They reach Beth's apartment and rescue her as she was impaled on an exposed rebar. They all make it to the last helicopters in time but Lily is separated by the others as she boards another helicopter. As Hud, Rob and Beth depart, they see the creature fall as the bombs drop on it but it lunges and attacks the helicopters. Rob and Beth survive the crash but Hud is quickly killed by the creature when retrieving the camera. Rob grabs it as he and Beth hide under a bridge. They give their testimonials of what they've transpired before the bombs go off and they are buried under the rubble. The film ends with footage of a date they had in Coney Island, which was shown throughout. THOUGHTS
I've been seeing this film since its theatrical run in 2008 and with every viewing, I gotta admit this is one holds up to be a terrifying film more than one can remember. Writer Drew Goddard and Director Matt Reeves succeed in creating the most realistic monster movie to ever behold due to the shooting style of found footage. Because of the said style and NY setting, the movie got more terrifying as I felt a 9/11 vibe in almost every second of destruction. I find it ironic because Godzilla originally reflected the Nagasaki/Hiroshima bombings in 1945. So the fact we got a modern monster movie that reflected another tragic event in human history is downright bold. The main monster credited as the Clover is slowly earning its place as one of the most iconic creatures to ever be seen onscreen. Every time you see this thing shriek and cause chaos in Manhattan, you're just relieved that it doesn't exist and the same can be said with the smaller parasites. What makes the Clover's presence terrifying besides the design and the mystery of its origin, is that according to the designer Neville Page, it's supposed to a newborn. The fact that this creature is a newborn, meaning that will grow to be much bigger is bone chilling. Even the smaller parasites that scatter around the city are nightmare fuel, whenever they appear. While I said it is mainly a mystery, there is a hint that could be more of a deep sea creature. Near the ending, something lands into the ocean as we see Beth and Rob's date at Coney Island. It is a 'blink and you'll miss it' moment but it's the closest we would get until this unexpected franchise would later expand. I'm not so crazy about the cast but due to the makeup/costume design, they all felt and looked like any average people, continuing to bring the realism that this movie succeeds in providing. The big payoff on making us root for Rob to get to Beth is seeing their Coney Island date throughout because with it, we truly understand how much he loves her. So without it, it would be hard to accept his reckless decision. This is the kind of movie that gets better every viewing but even after more than one viewing, I admit there were a few flaws that caught my eye. First off, if Hud has the camera, how did he not stumble around footage of Rob and Beth's affair as he's using it? I mean it would've been another clever way for those scenes to be useful. And I know Hud is immature but it ain't cool spreading his discovery and recording it, not cool at all. Also, he should've just ran after he grabbed the camera. I know it's suspenseful when characters have a dramatic pause when they shouldn't but if he left as the monster wasn't looking, he would've lived just a bit longer. I love the subway scene a lot but continuity is messed up. Somehow the light is shining bright on the human characters but doesn't get a glimpse of the parasites until night vision is turned on. I mean I know you want to build suspense but it still would've worked if the creatures were spotted with the same light. Other than that, this movie will remain incredible. In short, Cloverfield is another unique monster movie and should be recognized more of its quality than its clever marketing campaign. If you love monsters and/or found footage movies, than this is the best of both worlds that'll be up your alley.
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