Mind-Screwing In A Good Way

Rating: 7/10 (7 February 2018)

10 Cloverfield Lane, in short, is about a creepy dude, Howard (John Goodman), who claims there's been a chemical attack and that's the reasoning behind keeping a young woman, Michelle (Mary Elizabeth Winstead), locked in a shelter under his equally-creepy farmhouse.
Michelle doesn't believe it, she thinks he's kidnapped her. She was in a car crash, and Creepy Dude saved her. Ok, sure, but let's go to the hospital, demands Michelle. Nope, the air is poisoned, creepy Howard confidently tells Michelle, who by now is really sketched out. Emmett (John Gallagher Jr.) is also locked in the shelter, but he says it's by his choice. He knew about the shelter because he saw Creepy Dud building it a long time ago, so when the attack happened, Emmett rushed over to the farmhouse and essentially forced his way in. Sounds believable, right? Even Creepy Dude is locked in the shelter with them. Is Emmett in on this thing, too?
The story is pretty good and keeps you in the dark. Is creepy Howard telling the truth, or is he brainwashing these two victims? There's evidence of both. Creepy Dude keeps reminding Michelle that he saved her life and she should be a little more grateful. Can't she understand that? Creepy Dude is prone to violent outbursts, but don't worry he won't hurt you, it's just the stress. After all, no one really knows how long they'll all be underground. One year, two? That'll stress anyone out, for sure. Everything is pretty convincing; everyone's story makes sense. You'll be like, WTF?
I like horror movies that focus less on gore and more on storytelling to scare. This is one of those movies. It's trippy and mind-screwing in a good way. 10 Cloverfield Lane is well done.