Cloverfield (2008)

Rating: 8/10 (13 December 2008)

Cloverfield is not bad at all. In fact, it's great! I don't think I let my eyes off the screen once during the entire film. That brilliant opening set the tone for the entire film amazingly, and right from that moment I was hooked. If I were to rate it based simply on the level of involvement it requires by the audience, it would be a 10. I can't give the overall film a 10, because there were those occasional out-of-place lines and shaky acting. But the style is nearly perfect; the film feels like a low-budget film because that is what it is supposed to feel like. Not to mention, I was truly terrified in many parts of this film.
I loved how intricate this film feels, like there's an entire backstory to the events that unfolded in the film; I am not only speaking of the origins of Cloverfield, which we get a little tease about right at the end on the Ferris Wheel, but also the backstory behind Robert and Elizabeth. The brief flashbacks were generally effective, although I think maybe they had one or two too many of them; one little detail I loved that wasn't really a flashback, but did reach back to the beginning of the film and bookend it wonderfully, was the use of the time 6:42A.M.. Wonderful little detail.
Also, my favorite moment by far was the moment Rob tells his mother that Jason is dead; you never, ever hear the reaction his mother gives; instead, this film lets the audience member use their imagination as to what her reaction sounds like. There are various moments in the film where the director easily could have fed the audience every little detail, but instead decides to allow the audience to think for themselves, and this film is ultimately all the more brilliant for it.
Cloverfield - 8/10, I appreciated and enjoyed it very much, and it will probably end up in my top 10 of this year.