Cloverfield: Review By ArchAngel

As like many other people watching that mysterious trailer attached to Transformers in July, I too was instantly drawn to Cloverfield. Between the heated debates on what exactly it was, to the almost genius marketing that drew an even bigger crowd to it, Cloverfield was to be a huge blockbuster, and as i sat in the theater as the lights went up i was just as stunned as everyone else. At first I was almost disappointed in the film from the limited amount of screen time of the monster, to the seemingly quick ending, but then as I thought about it and watched it another three times (I have a job at this theater so its all free), I realized what an excellent display of movie making it is. It's something different being not the typical monster movie but a viewpoint rarely seen in any tragidy film. It's bold by the way it takes you on a sometimes confusing but overall entertaining ride. It all made sense why Abrams did what he did, the limited info and views of the monster simply shows the audience the confusion of the events the characters are going through, and the short almost cut off ending (to me at least) symbolized that not all tragedies end in the military happily defeating whatever is at their feet, but that these characters lives are cut short and therefore, their story must be cut short. Abrams unique way of giving an audience "hints" to what may come (the satellite falling at the end) just adds to the thrill of seeing the movie. All in all, Cloverfield is a must see for anyone willing to break free of the typical monster flick, and see a story that shows the true side of catastrophe, the side of the people that it affects and ultimately destroys