Who gives a damn about Godzilla anymore?

Rating: 9/10 (2 February 2008)

Many months ago I sat at my computer screen and watched the very first trailer for Cloverfield, the trailer that showed a mysterious attack on New York and ended with a shot of the Statue of Liberty's head being thrown through the air and hitting the ground in front of the camera. I have to say, despite many people going absolutely mad about it, I didn't really know what to make of it. Sure I practically pencilled in the release date on my calendar just to see what the hell it was, but I genuinely wasn't sure about the whole thing. Then the second trailer and endless hype arrived, once again it guaranteed a seat in the cinema for me, but I still just didn't truly buy into the hype. I admit I half expected Cloverfield to suck, I really did. The hand-held camera thing looked like a five second wonder and the I just didn't think it'd live up to the astronomically high expectations. Well today I finally saw Cloverfield, and it is an absolute success! This is a re-invention I never thought possible, sure the good old fashioned monster flicks like Godzilla were fun, but after so many films where the generals shout orders and the President debates what to do about the creature, you get sick of it. Cloverfield takes a more risky and far more fulfilling approach by putting us head first into the situation. We see and hear everything from the average persons perspective, what makes this even more successful is the fact that the characters seem real. They're likable, they're believable and they are undoubtedly the best characters in a monster movie I have ever seen! This movie is just a non-stop thrill ride, the minute the attack starts you will be on the edge of your seat! Sure at first we barely see the monster, we get a couple of quick glimpses, but the movie works in terrifying because we don't see it. Once you see the monster it gets even better! Cloverfield only gets a 9/10 for one reason, I'm not sure if it will work as well second time. This is so close to getting a 10/10, and once I see it again next week I might even up the rating.
Okay lets go onto the performances, let me start by saying there is nobody famous in this movie at all. And that's part of the beauty of the whole thing, you can relate to these people more because they aren't Tom Cruise and Angelina Jolie running through the streets. The main characters, I suppose as its from his perspective, is Hudd played by T.J. Miller, however he is off-screen for the majority of the film. Still he is hilarious with some of his comments he makes during the film. Michael Stahl-David is the next biggest character and the one we see on-screen for the majority of the film. He plays Rob, and he is the most believable and brilliant character of the bunch. His story is superbly executed and oddly touching. Just watch the scene where he has a phone call in a subway station, its hard to watch it so sad. Jessica Lucas delivers a killer performance as Lily, a very great character who once again goes through a lot during the course of the movie. Lizzy Caplan as Marlena is great although a tad underused, however saying that she has one extremely memorable scene towards the final third, trust me you will know it when you see it. Mike Vogel, whose past credits include Poseidon, is great although once again underused.
Well I suppose the big question everyone wants answered is how was the monster? Or more specifically what does it look like? I absolutely refuse to spoil what the monster looks like, I'll just say it doesn't look like Godzilla. The monster is just brilliant, when I first saw it I was a bit unsure, but when its seen up close the monster looks very cool. I also very much appreciated the fact that the monster is never explained, we know as much about it at the beginning as we do the end. And I loved that, its nice for a movie to have a of bit mystery surrounding it. The movie also succeeds with the way it is shot, after seeing the movie you will never again worry about hand-held camera movies. It works superbly and I cannot picture the movie in any other way. It puts you head first in the action, the scene where the army attacks is thrilling as a result of this! Also it makes you feel more sympathy for the characters as you actually do feel like you a apart of their little gang wandering round the streets. The movie is action packed, tense and just thrilling. Sure its not incredibly smart and sure there is the odd movie it feels a bit cheesy. But in general this is a short, sharp punch of a movie which is an incredible cinema experience.
Cloverfield might not be perfect, but its sure as hell entertaining. Its one of the best monster movies ever made and very much worth paying the admission fee for. I cannot believe I am saying this but believe the hype, this is something that just has to be watched!