One Viewing Seemed Not Enough, Twice Was One Too Many...

Rating: 6/10 (1 October 2009)

Cloverfield seems as if after watching you could, perhaps, appreciate more about it the second time...Well, not so much. It's a bit off-putting to start a review like this, but I think it's apt. WYSIWYG so just go with it.
This movie is a bit slow for, say, 15-minutes. After that it takes off and due to the (no longer a gimmick, but a bona-fide cinema school accepted story-telling vehicle)-jerky camera method keeps you straining not to miss anything. If your a fan of sci-fi and, in particular, the monster genre you are going to definitely be "in".
Now, since you have a commitment it's going to be a fast past rocky ride so you...Just go with it. And it really doesn't disappoint as even things that seem annoying pass quickly due to great tension. Unlike "Lost" we pretty much know what our protagonists are dealing with, an unexplainable unthinkable creature whose appearance has changed everything in short order. What makes it work is the jerky camera, the quite serviceable acting from the heretofore unknowns, and decent special effects. It is, I feel, hard to make a horrific monster that isn't campy, but the producers have succeeded in doing that with the limited revealing segments showing it and it's offspring(?).
If you like sci-fi see it, if you are enamored with "creature movies" definitely see it...Just, if you're like me, don't expect it to be better or more revealing a second time. With Cloverfield once is enough.