You may be surprised at how much this film doesn't suck.

Rating: 10/10 (16 January 2008)

Most of us know that 99% of the films released between January to mid April pretty much suck, it's been Hollywood's dumping ground for years. This film may just change that and may lead the way to better films being released this time of year. (yah right)
If you like the horror genre and of course Godzilla monster movies then you should have a blast with this one. The unique angle to this film is how the story unfolds, through the lens of one very lucky camcorder (because obviously it survived).
The first 25 minutes of the movie unfold slowly but help us get to know the characters through small snippets of reality recorded (and over recorded) onto the camera - in a fashion pretty much how we all use camcorders - candidly, sporadically, erroneously and spontaneously .
This may try your patience but look at it as the ride to the top of a roller coaster, enjoy the pretty people and get to know them. This will help to make what comes next even more entertaining and suspenseful.
The script does a good job of escalating the horror and for the most part it feels real, as much as one might expect given the circumstances.
Three suggestions for seeing this film, - see it in the theater (don't wait for it to come out on DVD) - see it in as big an audience as you can for the group reaction - avoid seeing any spoilers that show you the actual monster. I say this NOT because the monster is surprisingly original, it's just that the less you know what to expect the better the suspense. During the film you get caught up in the discovery of 'it' and in the small doses one might in real life.
Bonus extra suggestion, sit as far back in the theater as you can - at least that helps me to deal with all the hand held footage.
##2ND VIEWING UPDATE: After the first viewing I had the oddest experience in that I kept expecting to turn on the news to get an update on how things were in NYC, very much like post 9/11, 'it' had left that much of a resonance in my head.
So, I went to see it again with a bunch of friends and found the movie to be even better. I was able to pick up on many of the little details that I missed the first time. For me, this is a film that improves the more you see it.
3rd Viewing notes:(yes I've seen it 3 times now) In the previous two viewings I didn't stay for the credits. The music is AWESOME, and there is a geek tease at the very end. The very last bit of audio, but you have to record it and reverse it to hear what is said. (and that's all I'll say about that).
*********************************** Technical Spoiler section ***********************************
The Monster  Not a great design (my opinion) and kind of a cliché style - I can see why it was kept a secret. At times it reminded me of Violator, other times like the Rancor Monster from Star Wars. (ewww what if Violator and Rancor mated???) I'm sure it's real hard to come up with genuinely original looking monster these days. Frankly a large crab would have been as effective. :)
The smaller Monsters  looked pretty much like the bug monsters from Star Ship Troopers, again not original but still fun to have attacking people.
The star of the film, the Camera (and this comment is VERY petty): The film was shot on a tape based camera (the film presents itself as a single tape recording) 80 minutes is too long as most camcorders by default are set in SP mode giving you 60 minutes tops. It could have been set to LP mode (about 95 minutes) but it's not likely.
Oh and for you American Godzilla fans there is one shot in this that should come across as sort of an homage.
##2ND VIEWING UPDATE: The film opening said it was found on an SD card / camera. SD video is recorded in individual files with each start and stop of the camera, plus the actors refer to the tape a number of times. This is another petty technical over site, BTW.
##3rd viewing note: At the end, you find yourself looking out at the ocean, keep a close watch just to the left of the boat near the shoreline. Something falls from the sky and splashes into the water. No smoke trail.
Also - the reversed audio at the end of the credits sounds like Rob saying "It's still alive".