1.22.2008

4 days later...

Four days after we saw Cloverfield, I'm itchin to go back and see it again. In all honesty, I'm a huge gore / horror / scifi / cult film freak. I'm not saying I'll go digging through VHS tape piles to find that obscure flick like Terrorvision [sorry, couldn't resist], but I know excellent cinematography and plot when I see it. More so than the aforementioned qualities, I feel that Cloverfield's execution was key. Abrams nailed the characters. I know, or have known people that fit the character types to a 'T'. The Upper East side débutante, the quirky, talkative, socially awkward dunce, the o.c.d. idiot and the smart ass girl who knows when to leave a loft party in the Financial District. [I'm right there with you girl. Sorry your head explodes.] The camera movement was highly successful as well. I know I know, Blair Witch did it first. WRONG Cannibal Holocaust did it first. The difference between those two films and Cloverfield lies manly in the original intent of the film. It's not a lost excursion into the woods of rural America, or some vast jungle. It's a kid making a good-bye video for his brother that turns into a rather long Youtube video about the events unfolding. Then there's the pretentious and long-winded complaints of the NY Times about it being "too soon after 9/11"... Shut up please. It's a freaking monster flick you moron. The potential for sequels, hidden clues, ect. can be found all over the net. I did find this one blog interesting though and this guy pretty much sums up how I feel about the movie. Anyway, this isn't a review or a term paper, just wanted to say that this movie is the best Monster flick I've seen in a long time. The ONLY one that comes close is the Host.

3 comments:

Calvin said...

Aye. I'm tired of hearing the relations to 9/11. The only similarity was that it took place in the same freakin' city. And if people didn't want to be reminded, you could clearly see the Statue of Liberty's decapitation in the previews, so that should be warning enough.

I think that what made this film great was the point to which the director kept the idea behind the film going - we know absolutely nothing more and nothing less than what Hud could see. Great film.

Unknown said...

Gotta agree with splic...Love the way the director never really tries to explain anything. You know what they know, and I think that is what makes the movie the most intense. Very successful at keeping you tied into the characters.

Prolly said...

It IS interesting how Abrams is using the internet and youtube to create the background on the Cloverfield project.

I am hoping to see this again Sunday night.