Cloverfield is great fun. Cloverfield is cool. Cloverfield does exactly what it says on the tin. It’s a bloody-great-big-monster-trashes-Manhattan movie but with the focus on the human cost rather than the bigger picture as a group of twentysomethings battle their way from a Soho loft to midtown to rescue a friend. And that’s it, essentially. Boiled down further: it’s Godzilla meets Blair Witch, but considering all the (internet) hype over recent months, Cloverfield more than lives up to expectation; it arguably exceeds it. More spectacular than anything Michael Bay managed in Transformers or Spielberg’s War Of The Worlds, the shot-on-DV-camera approach really pays dividends, with director Matt Reeves putting you right smack in the middle of the action as military and monster fight it out for control of the streets, bridges collapse, buildings explode and the Statue of Liberty’s head comes rolling down the avenue (the 9/11 allusions are pretty clear). Sure you have to put up with 20 minutes of “character development”, as Rob’s friends hold a party to toast his new job in Japan, before the shit hits the fan. But once it does your eyes won’t leave the screen for the 75 minute running time (minus credits). Watch carefully, too, during the Coney Island coda cos you’ll get a clue as to the monster’s origins. Can’t wait to see it again.
Friday, 18 January 2008
Cloverfield
Cloverfield is great fun. Cloverfield is cool. Cloverfield does exactly what it says on the tin. It’s a bloody-great-big-monster-trashes-Manhattan movie but with the focus on the human cost rather than the bigger picture as a group of twentysomethings battle their way from a Soho loft to midtown to rescue a friend. And that’s it, essentially. Boiled down further: it’s Godzilla meets Blair Witch, but considering all the (internet) hype over recent months, Cloverfield more than lives up to expectation; it arguably exceeds it. More spectacular than anything Michael Bay managed in Transformers or Spielberg’s War Of The Worlds, the shot-on-DV-camera approach really pays dividends, with director Matt Reeves putting you right smack in the middle of the action as military and monster fight it out for control of the streets, bridges collapse, buildings explode and the Statue of Liberty’s head comes rolling down the avenue (the 9/11 allusions are pretty clear). Sure you have to put up with 20 minutes of “character development”, as Rob’s friends hold a party to toast his new job in Japan, before the shit hits the fan. But once it does your eyes won’t leave the screen for the 75 minute running time (minus credits). Watch carefully, too, during the Coney Island coda cos you’ll get a clue as to the monster’s origins. Can’t wait to see it again.
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I saw some missile looking thing on Coney by the water. Is this it? Did it go off and like Hud mentioned about some fish thing being in the water? Buried there or something. I think that's what he said. I'm probably way off. Anyhow - I didn't end up liking this film much, but I'm a sucker for J.J. and felt committed to see it and was looking forward to clues or just little things as shout outs. Of course the Slusho thing, but I saw his favorite number [47] focused on for a bit when they were walking about the stairs.
Yep. Right at the end, when we get the final bit of Rob and Beth at Coney Island, the camera pans towards the sea and you see something drop out of the sky and into the water. Presumably it's the creature. And so presumably it's of extraterrestrial origin...
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