Stop By. Make Yourself at Home.

Rating: 9/10 (8 April 2016)

10 Cloverfield Lane (2016): Dir: Dan Trachtenberg / Cast: John Goodman, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, John Gallagher Jr., Suzanne Cryer / Voice: Bradley Cooper: Tense independent science fiction thriller about the question of safety. Mary Elizabeth Winstead plays Michelle who is fleeing town after leaving her fiancé. She is hit by a truck and awakens in a bunker chained to a wall. John Goodman plays Howard, her captor although he claims that he saved her life. He explains that the air outside is toxic and that extra-terrestrials are attacking. Director Dan Trachtenberg does a great job at placing the audience within Michelle's point of view not knowing whether Howard is crazy or not. Goodman plays Howard as a Navy soldier shell shocked with regards to traumatic experiences and he showcase of affection is countered with bouts of paranoia and aggression. Winstead as Michelle attempts to live within her compounds while planning an escape. A trip through the air ducts leads to further clues as to Howard's sanity. John Gallagher Jr plays Emmet, a naive and injured guy who buys into Howard's logic until Michelle presents alternate clues that call to question. Suzanne Cryer appears briefly as a screaming decaying woman outside the bunker who demands entry. Bradley Cooper provides the voice only to Michelle's pleading fiancé. While not directly related to Cloverfield the climax is exhilarating with Michelle left to face what sanity is clearly evident. She is our point of view as she turns on road to Houston leaving the route to freedom behind and choosing instead to fight for it. Score: 9 ½ / 10