Dir. Matt Reeves, US, 85mins, 2007
Cast: Lizzie Kaplan, Jessica Lucas, Michael Stahl-David, Mike Vogel, TJ Miller
Review by Matthew Rodgers
The viral campaign started almost seven months ago, when before screenings of Transformers in the US a trailer without a distinguishable title depicted the head of The Statue of Liberty bouncing through Manhattan upon removal by an unknown entity. Some said it was “a lion”, others that it was the “Stay Puff Marshmallow Man”; the key point is that people were beginning to ask questions about what 18-01-08 actually was? It’s not the first time that the tinterweb has been used to create hype surrounding a forthcoming movie. Most famously The Blair Witch Project, whose makers successfully marketed the film as a true story to blockbusting effect, and less so, last years Snakes on a Plane which was interactively entertaining until the finished movie was released and nobody was interested.
LOST genius J.J. Abrams is a master of the “tease”, as viewers of that show will testify, so for every glimpse of the film that was to become Cloverfield was released online, the anticipation grew greater. The fact that they retained the title is something of a testament to what they believed they were doing because it wouldn’t matter what it was called, the final product would be so mind-blowing that the desire to see it would negate any need to say what it was. So like the unseen beastie that obliterates New York, Cloverfield smashes onto the screen and delivers everything that was promised and so much more; believe the hype and prepare for every preconception you had about what you were to witness dissipate into jaw dropping, arm chair grabbing excitement and the re-invention of a B-movie genre and one of the most original theatre experiences in a long time.
Cloverfield is a monster movie that’s not really about the monster. Following via camcorder technique, that is utilised so much better than you would expect – the fritting between what was previously on the tape and the unfolding carnage is a wonderful trick – a group of partygoers bidding farewell to Rob (Michael Stahl-David) before he departs for Japan. We have his brother Jason (Mike Vogel), and wife Lily (Jessica Lucas) along with his best friend and Seth Rogan-alike Hud (TJ Miller). So instead of the usual clichéd hero fighting to take down the monster, or the grey haired general barking orders at his troops, or even the unbelievable scientist researching the origin of the beast in order to stop it, we follow a group of very scared, very real, and surprisingly likeable thirty-something’s as they try to find their missing friends and stay alive.
Implementing the hand held point-of-view is a very risky move by director Matt Reeves but the natural way in which it is used is important in immersing the viewer into the mind-set of the survivors. Never are the shots gratuitously lingering, the fact that when then audience think “run” the characters do, rather than standing around focusing on the monster we get fleeting glances as the camera schizophrenically jumps around the screen, we believe that this is really happening. In fact, its only a couple of moments of intimacy between characters in which the camera remains held that you think, okay, put it down for a couple of minutes, that prevent Cloverfield from becoming classic and make you step back from the experience. Counter that though with the way that it adds to stand-out scenes such as the excruciatingly tense subway tunnel journey and the scope of the Brooklyn bridge attack. This may be relatively low budget in terms of today’s blockbusters but don’t be fooled into thinking this is a small movie by any means.
The 9/11 parallels are obvious, in particular the huge clouds of smoke that fill the streets and consume the frame, you will have seen countless amounts of footage from that day that are echoed here and it only helps in generating an unsettling atmosphere. Those themes are enforced by the chaos caused due to the lack of motivation for the attack, there is no explanation for the monsters origins, it just appears from nowhere as a singular force of destruction and decimation. Cloverfield is an exercise in fear.
As for the beastie itself you do get to see it in its full body glory but you will not find a description here for the simple reason that it is a creation from your nightmares, best experienced as Reeves’ unveils it bit-by-bit, and isn’t it always scarier not knowing what’s chasing you?
Reading reviews about Cloverfield is quite a redundant exercise; it won’t be to everyone’s taste as some will not be able to look past the gimmick and towards what is a sensory cinema experience that is like no other.
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