So I went to see the movie Cloverfield this past weekend. Those of you who actually read my very random blogging know I'm not really big on writing movie reviews. I enjoy movies, but I rarely get motivated to go home and spell out my thoughts. But this time is different. Cloverfield has uncovered new senses in my movie taste and has awakened some thoughts I just can't leave swimming around in my brain. What I write below may give some of this movie away, so if you wish to see it some time soon, navigate away from this screen. But if you're curious about my opinion and are wondering what this Cloverfield stuff is all about, read on.
The description on the Cloverfield web site goes like this...
Five young New Yorkers throw their friend a going-away party the night that a monster the size of a skyscraper descends upon the city. Told from the point of view of their video camera, the film is a document of their attempt to survive the most surreal, horrifying event of their lives.
Below is the movie trailer...
So.... After seeing a trailer like that, I really wanted to see this movie. The Metro advertisements of a war-torn Manhattan and a headless Statue of Liberty only provoked my interest even more. So after sitting through the 85 minutes of chaos on the screen, I walked out of the theater very excited and very sick.
The concept of Cloverfield is that what you are watching is a government file. The government file is a personal video recovered by the Department of Defense post-NYC attack. The case is called Cloverfield - but for no good reason other than the fact that it's the name of the freeway exit the producer J.J. Abrams takes to get to his office in Santa Monica.
The attack is basically a monster that crashes the NYC party and starts destroying buildings, bridges and our own lady liberty. The movie doesn't say if this monster is an alien or something that came from the depths of our oceans. All we know is it's big, bad, and very ugly. Oh, it also has small parasites that fall off it and attack while making funny little noises in the dark of night.
The problem with this file - Cloverfield - is that it's supposedly the personal video account of this attack from a young New Yorker named "Rob." Hence why I walked out feeling sick. The director did everything he could to bring a level of authenticity to the home-movie aspect of this film.
To be honest, you can read good reviews here, here and here. I'm not trying to reinvent the wheel when it comes to explaining this flick. I'm just sitting here today still wondering why the director would take an amazing film with high action and drama and wrap it in this sea-sickness merry-go-round style of filming and editing.
I tell people this is my favorite and least favorite film ever. I found myself sitting on the edge of my seat watching intently as if this were a YouTube clip posted on the Washington Post web site documenting a real-life attack on our largest city. As the movie went on and I felt myself getting more and more sick from the chaotic motion, I still couldn't look away. I was facinated by the sights of a 50-plus story skyscraper leaning against another after the monster had pushed his...er...her...uh, its way through the canyons of mid-town Manhattan. The firefight scene in the alley when the films young cast comes face to face with what exactly is attacking the city is one of the coolest visuals I've seen on the big-screen.
But after all the hella-cool special effects, the drama in the plot and the curiosity behind this creature was a very poorly thought out way to execute the desired personal look at disaster. I get the point, but why make us all sick to make it.
Anyhow, if you have the chance to see the film, go. Just be prepared to walk out with a bad case of motion sickness or watch half the film with your eyes closed. And if you're wondering what's next, watch this...
Welcome to urban marinade...a blog that lets you stew in the cultural crock pot of Washington, DC. I'm here to rant and rave about anything and everything in my little urban world. Generally speaking, that includes nightlife, photography, dancing and DC urban development. So there!
