Good Found-Footage/Kaiju Film

Rating: 9/10 (13 March 2020)

This was film I was intrigued by when I first heard of it as I'm a big fan of kaiju/giant monster films. My first viewing for this one was right after college. I enjoyed it, but that was the only time I'd seen it. I have now seen it a third time, this time introducing my girlfriend to gauge how she would react to found footage movies. The official synopsis is a group of friends venture deep into the streets of New York on a rescue mission during a rampaging monster attack.
It starts off telling us that the footage we are about to watch is from the area now know as 'Cloverfield'. It is formerly known as Central Park. The footage begins with a guy looking out of an apartment overlooking the area. He goes into the bedroom where we see Beth McIntyre (Odette Annable). The man is Rob Hawkins (Michael Stahl-David). They plan their day together going to Coney Island.
The footage then shifts to Lily Ford (Jessica Lucas). She is with her boyfriend, getting things ready for a party that night. His name is Jason (Mike Vogel), Rob's brother. Rob is leaving for Japan for a new job and they are throwing a going away party. They don't realize they are filming over the great day that Rob and Beth spent together.
Back Rob's apartment, Hudson 'Hud' Platt (T.J. Miller) is convinced to film the party and to get people to say on their goodbyes on tape. They give a surprise to Rob and he had no idea. He starts to ask about Beth. She shows up with a new guy, upsetting Rob. All the while, Hud is trying to get the attention of Marlena Diamond (Lizzy Caplan) and figuring out what is going on between his best friend and Beth.
Things take quite the turn though when an earthquake hits. They turn on the news to hear about a ship overturned in the harbor and then rush up to the roof to see it. There's another earthquake and they flee the building. There's a giant monster that moves past and the head of the Statue of Liberty rolls down the street. They decide their best chance is to get off the island. This all changes when Rob gets a call from Beth. She's trapped in her apartment and he decides to try to save her. This won't be easy with whatever this giant monster and the things that fall off its back.
I knew from the first time that I liked it, but after my previous rewatch, there were a lot of things I didn't remember. The first thing that struck me is the emotion of this film. It starts off as a really good drama. I love the editing of the happy day that Rob and Beth had together, with the reality of where they are today. Building that emotion in the beginning makes sense as to why he is risking his life for her, especially since he messed it up. To be honest, this is something that I've thought about on a regular basis if something like this happened around me. I was a big fan of that aspect.
The next thing was that I for whatever reason thought they really didn't show the monster much. I was wrong about that. We get to see the monster quite a bit. Making the film found footage is interesting as well, since we get to see it from the perspective of what it would be like trying to survive this. The group is doing something pretty stupid, but if they don't, we don't get to see all of things that happen. This is an of course thing, that I know. There's some pretty interesting set pieces though.
There is a section where the surviving members of the group have a run in with the military. I love what happens to Marlena during this stretch as I found it interesting. Everything all happens in one night, so they wouldn't have the answers yet. It was interesting how this plays out for sure. I did have a bit of an issue that the military lets them go. Not sure that they would, but the only thing would be the humanity of the military officer which could cause him to break protocol. He probably wouldn't be found out so there is that.
Now really the only issue I have with this film goes back to the found footage aspect. I believe that Hud would keep the camera and continue filming. It is even more prevalent in today's society that we would film things around us like he is. This is a major event and will change the course of history. There are just times where I'm like; wouldn't you put the camera down here? It just makes it implausible that you would risk yourself to just keep filming. This doesn't hurt the film, but it is an issue with found footage.
This brings me to the pacing, which I think is great. The film doesn't waste any time. The introduction of the characters is good and it doesn't take too long. We continue to learn about each one as they try to survive this event. I really dug that aspect of the film. Rob becomes the catalyst for what they are doing and I thought it was interesting how it presents his issue and how he actually grows from it. I thought the ending was good and bringing us to how the footage was found. I dug the making confidential and that the government has confiscated it.
Acting was something else was really good. It is crazy that quite a few of these actors have gone on to do other things and this film really shows their potential. Caplan is solid as the outsider. She does bring some sarcasm and I thought her role was good. Lucas is interesting and her frustration was fitting. She is a good friend throughout. Miller also brings humor. His character isn't that different from his in Deadpool. I love his nervous tick to just talk, especially about inappropriate things. Stahl-David is good. He is kind of the hero and I thought his growth was solid. I just love that he's scared to fail and can completely understand it. He needs to overcome this though. Vogel was also solid as his brother. Annable is gorgeous and it is just a shame she wasn't in the film more. I'm also a big fan of her. It does well at making you care about these characters, so when some of them die, you feel something. The rest of the cast round out the film for what they needed as well.
Next would be the effects of the film. To bring a monster like this to life, you have to go CGI, which I thought looked great. The monster looks real and the things they have it doing are as well. There are a few moments where it doesn't hold up, but very little. As I said earlier, I was actually surprised how much they do show the monster, but also how quickly or being shown from a distance as well. The setting is also great to make New York look as empty as everyone is trying to flee. That is an underrated aspect of the film as well. The cinematography is very well done for being found footage. It does make you feel like you are really there.
The score is something else that can be tricky in a film like this. The only music I remember was at the party and it felt like we were really there. The rest of the sound design was good to make it feel as real as possible. You get the sounds of monster, the army fighting back and just buildings falling part. It is done ambient, so it builds that realism.
Now with that said, I'm definitely glad I gave this film a rewatch. I knew that I liked it the first time, but I can confirm this film is really good. As a fan of giant monster films, this one feels so real. Going with found footage like they did make it feel like this really happening and the realism is great. I thought the acting, effects and sound design were really good. The low running time and editing of the film keep the tension building to a satisfying conclusion. I even like the beginning being somewhat of a drama helps us to like the characters and care about what happens to them. If you don't like found footage, I would avoid this. If that's not the case, I think this is a really good film, especially if you like giant monster films. I'd recommend giving this one a viewing and it really does hold up to multiple viewings.
8.5/10