What Do The Critics Say?

"Abrahms intended to make an American version of Godzilla, with all the fear and terror that came with the groundbreaking Japanese original... where he triumphs is in the use of special effects that don't remove you from the cinema. Seamlessly blended in with the handheld footage, the carnage is so frighteningly real that I accidentally let out a thrilled yelp of excitement. Definitely recommended. A great summer blockbuster to make you want to go to the movies again." 20/20 FILMSIGHT "The things I admire are that it's unique and the special effects are first class. The scenes of catastrophe in Manhattan are superbly created, equalling anything in recent disaster movies. It does do what it set out to do and doggedley sticks to its game plan." Andrew L Urban URBANCINEFILE "The filmmakers wisely avoid showing you everything, instead showing only bits and hints of what's going on, a technique that really fuels fear in a viewer." Liz Braun JAM MOVIES "A twitchy thrill ride that's relentless in its escalation of tension, merciless in its intensity." Bill Goodykoontz ARIZONA REPUBLIC "The f/x guys have provided a seamless blending of computer-generated and real footage, and by limiting our perspective to just what Hud sees through his viewfinder, the fantastic is rendered plausible." Robert W Butler KANSAS CITY STAR "We saw the film last at a media screening, and let me tell you; when a cinema full of jaded reviewers starts to applaud at the end of a film, you know you’ve got something pretty damn cool. Do see Cloverfield; it’s an outstanding take on the monster movie genre, kicking the shit out of the last Godzilla flick while also offering a poignant commentary on our modern, media obsessed, terrorist-phobic world. And the odd explosion and fighter jet attack don’t hurt none, either." David Hollingworth CULTURE SHOCK

"My take on Cloverfield is that it basically boils down to a good old fashioned “Disaster Flick”, which is well made; and well-acted as well, but ultimately is really as exciting or innovative to me as it was seeing Independence Day for the first time – an exciting, ultimately enjoyable picture that I’ll grab on DVD for sure, but not that re-defining genre pick that you may have been expecting to see." Adam Weeks WEBWOMBAT "Cloverfield is an intense and engaging monster movie that may very well breathe life back into a dead genre while demonstrating that there's fertile soil left to be tilled in this particular cinematic field." Mike Bracken's HORROR FILMS "Cloverfield puts you on the ground level of a disaster: face-to-face with the dangers of this night. It's a fun, fast ride, but also poignant and strangely affecting." Todd Hertz CHRISTIANITY TODAY "Will grab you in its jaws, toss you around like a chew toy for a rollicking 80 minutes (yes, it's a short – but oh so sweet – flick) and still leave you panting for more." Joanna Cohen IGN MOVIES "The monster mayhem is impressive in scale and presentation. In a lot of ways Cloverfield reminded me of the seminal graphic novel Marvels, which told the history of the Marvel superhero universe through the eyes of the man on the street. That perspective makes a moribund genre like the monster movie suddenly come roaring to life." Devin Faraci CHUD "Filmed as if shot on a home video camera, Cloverfield is a nerve-jangling, visually staggering, genuinely frightening monster movie that masterfully blends old-school monster movie conventions with the visual aesthetics of the YouTube generation. The film is a skillful hybrid, a cinematic gene-splicing of the Godzilla legacy, the panic-strewn disaster films of Irwin Allen ( "The Poseidon Adventure", "The Towering Inferno") and the wild, seminal video verite stylings of "The Blair Witch Project". That said, the film's combination of familiar elements produce something truly unique - and truly terrifying. 4 stars." Jim Schembri THE AGE

The Inside Story The seed for "Cloverfield" was planted in June 2006 while producer, writer and director J.J. Abrams and his son were on a publicity tour in Japan for Paramount’s "Mission: Impossible III". The creator of the hit TV series "Felicity", "Alias" and "Lost", who made his motion picture directorial debut with "MI: III" and will direct the next "Star Trek" feature, stopped by a local toy store with his son, Henry, and noticed a plethora of Godzilla-themed toys. "It struck me that here was a monster that has endured, culturally, something which we don’t have in the States," he says. Shortly thereafter, Abrams conceived the idea of making a movie involving a new monster, though he realized it would require a substantially different approach from the original "Godzilla" and its numerous sequels and remakes. "I began thinking, what if you were to see a monster the size of a skyscraper, but through the point of view of someone, relatively speaking, the size of a grain of sand? To see it not from God’s eye or a director’s or from an omnipotent point of view." Abrams contacted frequent collaborator Drew Goddard, the screenwriter with whom he had worked on both "Alias" and "Lost".” The writer recalls J.J. calling him and saying, "Drew, I’ve got to talk to you; it’s about something huge. At that point, all he had was the basic framework of a movie about a giant monster, but shot with a handheld camera." Goddard immediately replied, "I’m in." "Drew was the first person I thought of, because he knows how to combine spectacle, genre and monsters with comedy and humanity," says Abrams. Emmy Award winning producer Bryan Burk ("Lost") adds, "This was definitely going to be a genre piece, but we really wanted it to be about the people going through this experience, to make it an emotional movie. There was no one that we knew in our world who was more perfect for that than Drew." Abrams and Goddard met a week later and hammered out the film’s first act in a five page treatment, which Goddard expanded into a 58 page outline over the Christmas holiday break. The idea of, as Abrams puts it, "a Cameron Crowe movie meets Godzilla meets Blair Witch Project" was then pitched to Paramount senior executives Brad Weston ("Stardust") and Brad Grey ("The Departed"), who were immediately taken with the concept and gave it the green light. Burk recalls everyone at the studio saying "We get it. Really, can you do this?" We said, "Yes." "It was the exact opposite of everything you hear about Hollywood," Goddard says. "Everyone was immediately onboard, and it was really this dream experience." "I think it is rare for a movie to live up to your expectations," notes executive producer Sherryl Clark ("Twisted"). "I continue to be as excited about it now that it is finished as I was when it was a five page treatment." Now it was time for the producers to start thinking about who would direct "Cloverfield". They settled for Matt Reeves, who with Abrams, had in 1998, created the hit TV series "Felicity". "This movie is completely counter to everything I’ve ever seen Matt do," Abrams said. "But the reason I chose Matt is because I know he has always principally been concerned with character, and that he would apply a scrutiny to the heart of each character that many other commercial or video directors might not." There was another reason. "So many horror movies we see today are sort of torture porn, ultra hyper violent, but there’s nothing about them you can relate to. I knew that Matt would make us feel for the characters," Abrams explained. "What was intriguing to me about this project," says Reeves, "is the idea of taking something that has such a huge scale, but filming it on an intimate level. The mood emerges from being with these characters. The challenge then became to figure out a way to take something extraordinary and almost absurd; a monster attack, and deal with it in a way that feels utterly real." The first portion of the film features a 20 minute party sequence, during which those relationships are firmly established. "The idea was that if you started a movie that appeared to be all about character, the audience wouldn’t know it was going to be about anything other than that," Reeves explained. "Then, all of a sudden, after you’ve established this complex network of friends, how they’re related and what’s important to them, we suddenly intrude on this situation with a crazy monster movie, which completely ups the stakes." "Once the head comes off the Statue of Liberty, you’re not really going to get much of a chance to stop and check in with the characters. So it was important to set up everything we needed before the world fell out from under us," Goddard notes. The world falling apart is conveyed to the audience as an adrenaline charged roller coaster ride filmed through the eye of a single camera. "In this 'YouTube' era, watching this kind of video has a voyeuristic quality, even if you’re just watching people do mundane things," Goddard notes. "For some reason, when it’s real, you can watch it forever: it's like you’re intruding on people’s lives." "We wanted the film to look like real life, as if a giant monster was attacking my city and I grabbed my camera and ran out into the street," says Goddard, "and this would be exactly the footage I’d have." "It had to look amateurish," says director of photography Michael Bonvillain. "It still had to sell the story points, but in this case, as captured by someone who isn’t a trained operator." Doing so also meant avoiding showing what is attacking Manhattan. "There’s something very scary about what you can’t see," adds Reeves. "You’re in there with Hud, and there’s no reverse angle showing you what he’s not seeing. They don’t have any more information than you do. Every moment becomes charged, because you know that, just off-frame, there might be something horrible happening. But you don’t know what it is, because he hasn’t turned the camera there yet. It becomes all about what your mind fills in." "Hud is very much led by the direction the other characters are giving him. They usually see something before he does, and he tries to find it; but by then, he’s already too late. He’s just missed it. His friends are already running away," visual effects supervisor Michael Ellis ("World Trade Centre" and "Enemy at the Gates") explained. "T.J. actually operated a lot," explains Bonvillain. "He was always joking that he should have gotten his union card for all the work he did." Having Miller operate the camera had several advantages. "For one thing, he had good instincts of what to do, because he is Hud," Bonvillain said. "Also, having him operate helped us make sure we were providing the right eyeline for the other actors in the scene, so that it felt correct when people were talking to him." "I wasn't just an actor," Miller says. "In some ways, I was a cameraman, and in most ways, I was a voice-over artist." Another feature of "Cloverfield" is that the cast are not instantly recognizable faces. "The key to casting this movie well was to cast really great, talented, likeable people that you hadn’t seen before," Abrams says. Michael Stahl-David was cast in the pivotal role of Rob. "What attracted me to the project was that I haven’t really made a lot of movies. But I really got excited about the prospect of working with Matt during the audition process. I got the sense that he was somebody interested in character and nuance. He got very animated when he talked about the dynamics between the characters." The unusual, heard but rarely seen character of Hud Platt fell to T.J. Miller. "I had a meeting with the casting director and we talked about the fact that I’m a comedian," says Miller. His audition material, however, was anything but funny. "I came in to read and they gave me the material and it was this really heartfelt, serious monologue." "When you watch the movie you are T.J. because the character of Hud has humanity and emotion and a sense of humor. He’s totally relatable. He’s not only the voice of the movie, he’s the heart of the movie," says Clark. "Everybody’s got a friend like Hud," says Burk. "He’s the guy who’s missing the self-edit button. But he’s also the person that is always there for you when you need him. He’s insane, and you love him." Jessica Lucas describes her character, Lily, as "the bossy one. She’s the older sister living in control all the time. She’s the only one of the group who really has her life together." Odette Yustman plays Rob's love interest, Beth. Odette was sitting in the waiting room when casting director Alyssa Weisberg said to Reeves Burk and Clark, "Do you mind sitting in? There’s this girl and I think she’s great." Clark recalls: "We were blown away. We saw her and we knew she was Beth. She’s lovely and so talented and bright." The two more recognizable faces in "Cloverfield" belong to Lizzy Caplan (Marlena) and Mike Vogel (Jason). "The thing that attracted me to this movie was J.J. Abrams," says Caplan. "At first I thought it was a coming of age movie." Stahl-David and Vogel were cast as brothers Rob and Jason Hawkins. "We were trying to pair actors and look for chemistry. There’s a scene in which these two brothers are talking and having a beer. He brought in two beers, and they drank during the audition and it was sort of charming, and real. We just fell in love with Mike, and felt like he really was acting kind of like that older brother," Clark said. "We hired him based on that audition." For these six talented actors, the excitement of being cast in a huge science fiction thriller produced by J.J. Abrams came with a proviso: they were forbidden to breathe a word about the movie to anyone, and even had to sign nondisclosure forms. Synopsis

On the eve of his departure for Japan where he will take up a position as a corporate Vice-President, Rob's friends decide to through him a surprise going away party. It's nothing less than Rob would expect but never the less he shows surprise in respose to his friends efforts. He sees it as an opportunity to confess unresolved feelings and tie up loose ends, but the evening takes an unexpected turn when a huge jolt shakes both the building and the revelers. The lights go off momentarily. The guests quieten down, turning to the TV to watch news reports of what is thought to be an earthquake. They rush to the roof to assess the damage. A fireball explodes on the distant horizon. A power failure follows. Confusion gives way to total panic as the partygoers stumble through the blackout and into the streets. Amid the human screams and one inhuman roar, Rob and his friends are confronted by a landscape that has dramatically changed. As buildings collapse around them, Hud who has been recording testimonies at the party, keeps the camera rolling. Then the Marines arrive, directing huge firepower at something unseen by the fleeing crowd.

The Verdict "Once you have seen "Cloverfield" the secret is out. So instead of being a smarty pants, keep this clever secret to yourself and let others enjoy the film by finding out for themselves just what it is that is destroying Manhattan. The film sets itself up extremely well by taking the time to introduce the audience to the characters who are the main players in "Cloverfield. It then rapidly changes into an almost real-time, life and death struggle for the films main characters. It's all done exceptionally well. We witness the mayhem and destruction through the images captured on a minicam being operated by one of the party guests, Hud. It is this absolute feeling of 'being there' that adds to the emotion of "Cloverfield". A word of caution though! If you were one of those who suffered 'motion sickness' while watching "Master and Commander: The Far Side Of The World", you may need to reconsider whether "Cloverfield" will have the same effect on you. I'm sure that amongst 'younger' viewers, "Cloverfield" will become a cult classic. There is another aside to this J.J Abrams production. Will there be a sequel? I for one am hoping so. And finally, forget the hype some critics are touting that this film is only for audiences aged 30 and under. It's a very unique film and one worth experiencing by anyone who appreciates a well done production. The SFX, CGI and creature effects are first class. Very recommended. 4 STARS." Cast & Crew Bytes "CLOVERFIELD" stars .......
Michael Stahl-David ["New Port South" and "Uncle Nino"]; T J Miller [TV Series "Carpoolers"]; Mike Vogel ["Poseidon", "The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants", "Rumour Has It" and "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre"]; Lizzy Caplan ["Hardcore Action News", "Orange County" and "Mean Girls"]; Jessica Lucas ["Where Did You Sleep Last Night?", "She's The Man" and "The Covenant"] and Odette Yustman ["Dear God", "Transformers" and "Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story"] as Beth.
"CLOVERFIELD" was .......
directed by Matt Reeves ["The Pallbearer"]; screenplay by Drew Goddard ["Buffy the Vampire Slayer", "Angel", "Alias" and "Lost"]; casting director Alyssa Weisberg ["The Spittin' Image", "Who Slew Simon Thaddeus Mulberry Pew" and "The House of Usher"]; costume design by Ellen Mirojnick ["Don't Say A Word", "Unfaithful", "The Chronicles Of Riddick" and "Deja Vu"]; production design by 2005 Art Directors Guild Excellence in Production Design Award winner Martin Whist ["Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events", "Tenacious D in The Pick of Destiny" and "Smokin' Aces"]; edited by Kevin Stitt ["Conspiracy Theory", "Lethal Weapon 4", "X-Men" and "The Kingdom"]; cinematography by EMMY Award winner Michael Bonvillain ["Rolling Thunder", "A Texas Funeral" and "The Last Marshal"]; set decoration by 2000 EMMY Award winner Robert Greenfield ["Bad Santa", "Norbit" and "Blades of Glory"]; art direction by by Doug J Meerdink ["Jurassic Park III", "The Scorpion King", "The Italian Job", "War of the Worlds", "The Good German" and "1408"]. Who's Who?

Michael Stahl-David Mike Vogel Odette Yustman Lizzy Caplan Jessica Lucas T.J. Miller Anjul Nigam Margot Farley Theo Rossi Brian Klugman Kelvin Yu Lili Mirojnick Ben Feldman Jason Cerbone Billy Brown Tim Griffin Chris Mulkey

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Robs Jason Beth McIntyre Marlena Diamond Lily Ford Hud Bodega Cashier Jenn Antonio Charlie Clark Lei Travis Police Officer Staff Sgt Pryce Command Center Officer Lt Colonel Graff

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