CLOVERFIELD review

For all you internet junkies out there who are anxious to know how the new JJ Abrams produced movie will play out and if it is any good, I want to relieve your fears and tell you that the movie is a brilliantly put together cinematic piece that takes the lost footage genre movie to a new level. Director Matt Reeves does an exceptional job creating tension and terrifying atmosphere through the use of hand held video, footage that it tells you from the beginning was recovered by the Dept. of Defense during a horrific attack on New York and labeled "Cloverfield". The film lets the whole video play out as if you were one of the scientists, reporters, or interested party seeing a piece of evidence for the first time.

The first part of the movie focuses on a farewell party that is being thrown for Robert, or Rob as his friends all call him, who is moving to Japan, land of Godzilla of all places. Here, the setting is nothing more than introducing the other charactors and revealing a side story of how everyone learns that Rob and his friend Beth spent the night together, which is shown to you at the beginning of the video. As rumors of their relationship is spread like wildfire through the party, things take a turn for the worse when Beth shows up at the party with another guy, and causes a big fight which has Beth storming out of the party. Most of this is seen through the camera shot by Rob's best friend Hud, who becomes the Bill Paxton comic relief of the movie by saying inappropriate remarks at the wrong time. Once this has all been established, the party endures an earthquake and you know something major has just hit the city.

The rest of the movie deals with the chaos that ensues, and Rob's quest to get back to Beth after she frantically calls him on his cell phone that she is in dire straits. And you wonder how much of the monster is shown? Well, if you were a viewer who wanted to see a lot of the monster, you won't be disappointed, as the camera swings around enough times to show you glimpses of the creature and its devastation. You feel as if you are Raymond Burr looking down at the destruction that Godzilla is making, but instead of watching it from a lofty office, someone is sticking a cattle prod on your ass to get the move-on.

The movie does do a fine job with using the hand held to great effect, but if you are one of those who get queasy at the unsteady, fast shifting style such as the one used in the Blair Witch Project, then this movie is not for you.

The CG effects in the movie are outstanding, and you feel as if you are trapped with our group of partygoers, with the drop jaw amazement that the sh*t is about to hit the fan and your world is falling apart.

I really thought this movie lived up to the hype of the giant monster movie, as it fulfilled everything that I hope it would be. Now, the movie does have some flaws, like certain scenes seemed forced just to play it up for the camera, but those were minor. I loved this movie and would give it Full Price. I can't wait to see it again, which I will be doing soon.