A Very Innovative Monster Movie

Rating: 8/10 (10 February 2019)

Cloverfield is a mixed bag. I enjoyed the film, but there are problems that I had and that others might have with the film. Cloverield is another attempt by America to do our own original monster movie. This time they used the found footage format to make it their own. Compared to other American monster movies or monster movies in general, I'd say that this is my second favorite. Though, as I said the film has problems.
With Kong Skull Island being first, I'd say this is my second favorite American giant monster movie. I like this more than most Godzilla movies, and I like Godzilla. I even like it more than Pacific Rim. What makes it good for me is the different approach they took. Instead of focusing on the monster attacking and the military fighting it they focus only on a select group of average people trying to survive, get out of the city, and find out what's going on.
They focus all of it on the civilian point of view of what they're going through and they show the immense destruction and casualties from that angle, which you rarely see in other movies like this. It's supposed to be more real in this is what it would really be like if a giant monster did attack a huge city. Plus it took place entirely at night which evoked a greater sense of despair and atmosphere in the film which added to the realistic angle they were going for.
They also kept the monster mostly in the background or in quick clips until the end which evoked a sense of mystery of what it was or where it came from. The latest Godzilla movie tried something similar but it didn't work. It worked in this film and not that Godzilla movie in 2014 because we already knew what Godzilla was, so keeping him in the shadows the entire movie is pointless, other than to save on the budget. Here it works better because we know nothing of the monster so there's more mystery behind it. Also the character in Cloverfield, while not that great either, were still more interesting than the ones in Godzilla 2014.
One complaint I have is the found footage format. I like that they tried a different approach to making a monster movie, but it did not always work for me. The point was to get a sense of realism and put the viewer right in the action like you're actually with these characters during this major attack. It was trying to be a more real experience.
However, the camera was too shaky and it often did not focus on a shot long enough for the viewer to completely take in what was happening. Though I could buy it in the beginning, as the film went on, I found it hard to believe that they would not drop the camera. It would've been better if it had just been a regular movie revolving around these people trying to survive a monster attack.
Another problem is the characters. I did not find them annoying, but I thought they were bland. I did not find one of them especially interesting. They weren't terrible characters. I got with them enough to be invested in the story and what happens to them, but there's nothing much to them either.
The effects were good. I thought that the design of the monster was cool and looked very original. There was a ton of hype surrounding this film when the teaser first came out. People were wondering what this thing was that was destroying New York City. Some were probably let down by the fact that it was a monster. I did not get into the immense hype this film generated so I was okay with it. This film also had a great atmosphere to it as well.
Overall, I did enjoy this film. However, it is not for everyone. If you can't stand the found footage style or you're not a fan of giant monster flicks, for both, than this isn't for you. If you got into the hype like so many did and wanted something more than just a monster than you'll be disappointed. However, if you just want a fun and slightly more realistic take on a monster movie then check this out. I admit I didn't like this film when I first saw it but it grew on me. Now I actually think it's fairly good despite its faults.