imagine a very good hand-held version of "The Birds"

Rating: 8/10 (16 June 2008)

First of all, "Cloverfield" is probably the last title that I would envision for a horror/sci-fi movie. But aside from the fact that it is, there are two specific things that I find very impressive about the film. The main aspect of course is that it's shot with a hand-held camera and contains a cast of unknowns so as to create very realistic sense. But I also would say that it follows the same structure as Alfred Hitchcock's movie "The Birds". You see, during the first fifteen or so minutes, both movies look as though they're going to be romantic comedies. But then the horrific element arrives and dominates the rest of the movie. And both films have the same sort of ending (although different things happen).
Anyway, this is more than a monster movie. I totally recommend it.