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Rating: 8/10 (6 April 2008)

The marketing department for J.J. Abram's Cloverfield did an excellent job to build up the mystery surrounding this film; it was the first time in years I had gone into a movie theatre without knowing much of the film's premise.
The film seems to be combining elements from The Blair Witch Project and Godzilla in this tale of survival and love amidst a monster attack in New York City. Although this sort of apocalyptic story has been done well over a thousand times in New York, it is executed brilliantly and it seems as though the filmmakers have reinvented the way we see monster films by taking this home video style approach to the film. However, the shaky cam could make some individuals feel somewhat disoriented as a result.
Many people criticise this film for not shedding light on where this creature comes from, what it is, and what happens afterwards, although that is the film's strongest asset; keeping the audience in the dark allows them to let their imagination run wild and fill in the gaps themselves. It is a much smarter approach than to have a random scientist in a lab coat spoon feeding the audience exactly what is happening, but unfortunately, that is what many people were expecting. The exclusion of recognizable stars gives the film more credibility, but that could also have been because of budgetary constraints. What the actor's are experiencing looks genuine and convincing enough for me to watch the film without judging their acting performances.