I had a few preconceptions going into this: I knew it was going to be handheld but had though that meant zero budget, bad acting and mainly people waiting around in the dark for some unseen horror to strike for 80% of the movie. Boy was I wrong.
First things first, Cloverfield is brilliant. It might not have much to say about the human condition, but as an action/horror it’s at the top of its game. Exhilarating, terrifying, funny, and with a great ending to boot, it just shows what can happen when Hollywood allows creative people to be, you know, creative.
Now the monster rampage (and especially the mini-monsters) might be swiped straight from Godzilla (gee, I wonder why the lead was going to Japan…) but here it’s used to devastating effect, no doubt aided by our new conditioned reaction to seeing tall buildings fall in clouds of white dust. Each moment has clearly been carefully planned by the director and writer, yet when watching seems like a natural progression into a situation spiralling increasingly out of control, as the characters stumble from one set piece into another.
I won’t list all the highlights, but the subway attack and crossing between the skyscrapers particularly floored me (though that may have something to be with my aversion to heights and the dark). Quite how they’ll make the sequel without ruining the original I don’t know, so make sure you check it out now, before the follow ups and spin offs and pale imitations start turning up in their droves.
