A piece of art

Rating: 10/10 (3 March 2008)

There are films that take your breath away, and this is most definitely one of them. What could have been just another crappy monster movie is instead a piece of art, with incredible realistic performances from a largely unknown cast. The scriptwriter was clearly at the top of his game, the snappy dialogue keeps the plot moving at a good pace, and the set pieces in the film were genius. Never clearly seeing the monster also gave this film an edge and a sense of enigma. It makes a refreshing change not to have the stock goofy scientist, or any of the other stock monster/disaster movie characters, you find out the information as the characters do, which makes it easier to identify with the characters.
J.J.Abrahms made a risky move in shooting this film on hand-held cameras, and thank goodness he did. Contrasting films like the Blair Witch Project, it works brilliantly, and contributes to the success of the movie. The sequence in the subway tunnel for example shows how the camera can build tension and create suspense. That this film works makes me look foreward to Diary Of The Dead, which will be an incredible experience if George A Romero utilises the camera half as well as Cloverfield has. Definitely a must see.