Editor Reviews:

Product Description:
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.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: ACTION/ADVENTURE/THRILLERS UPC: 097363520641 Manufacturer No: 352064

Amazon.com:
One of the first things a viewer notices about Cloverfield is that it doesn't play by ordinary storytelling rules, making this intriguing horror film as much a novelty as an event. Told from the vertiginous point-of-view of a camcorder-wielding group of friends, Cloverfield begins like a primetime television soap opera about young Manhattanites coping with changes in their personal lives. Rob (Michael Stahl-David) is leaving New York to take an executive job at a company in Japan. At his goodbye party in a crowded loft, Rob’s brother Jason (Mike Vogel) hands a camcorder to best friend Hud (T.J. Miller), who proceeds to tape the proceedings over old footage of Rob’s ex-girlfriend, Beth (Odette Yustman)--images shot during happy times in that now-defunct relationship. Naturally, Beth shows up at the party with a new beau, bumming Rob out completely. Just before one's eyes glaze over from all this heartbreaking stuff (captured by Hud, who's something of a doofus, in laughably shaky camerawork), the unexpected happens: New York is suddenly under attack from a Godzilla-like monster stomping through midtown and destroying everything and everybody in sight. Rob and company hit the streets, but rather than run with other evacuees, they head toward the center of the storm so that Rob can rescue an injured Beth. There are casualties along the way, but the journey into fear is fascinating and immediate if emotionally remote--a consequence of seeing these proceedings through the singular, subjective perspective of a camcorder and of a story that intentionally leaves major questions unanswered: Who or what is this monster? Where did it come from? The lack of a backstory, and spare views of the marauding creature, are clever ways by producer J.J. Abrams and director Matt Reeves to keep an audience focused exclusively on what’s on the screen. But it also makes Cloverfield curiously uninvolving. Ultimately, Cloverfield, with its spectacular effects brilliantly woven into a home-video look, is a celebration of infinite possibilities in this age of accessible, digital media. --Tom Keogh

Rating : - How many times is Hollywood going to destroy New York City?
THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS!

The visual effects in this movie were very good, and once the action gets going, it never ends. What this movie REALLY lacks is one original idea.

A group of young adults are video taping a very scary event. Blair Witch rip off!
A monster destroys New York City. King Kong rip off!
The monster has alien tick like beings which lay eggs in humans and rip their stomaches out from the inside. Alien rip off!
The Statue Of Liberty's head is flying down the street. The Producer admits he ripped this off from an Escape From New York poster.
The Producer takes the "Cloverfield" exit on his way to work everyday. He couldn't even come up with the name on his own.

I especially liked the scene where the guy's cell phone battery dies, and they go to an electronic store to get a new one off the shelf. "Hey genius... That one's not charged either!"

In the theater, I frequently found myself saying "take the Lincoln Tunnel, take the Tunnel out, and run to Pennsylvania!"

Gee, it sure seems like it didn't take that much time to mobilize a Military command force on Manhattan Island complete with tanks, troops in full body armor, and full aerial support on a weekend.

The Military scene leader just let's them go, and tells them when the last helo out will be? I don't think so.

This movie runs for about an hour and a half. Most camcorder tapes are only 60 minutes. The movie should've been a LOT shorter.

On that note, the Human Race tends to be survivalistic. In a crisis situation such as the events in this movie, I really doubt very many people would maintain the presence of mind to video tape the whole thing when their personal safety is at risk, especially the moron who was doing all the taping. Example: A big monster is about to eat you... Do you zoom in and adjust your focus, or do you throw the camera at the monster and run for your life? I'd pick option B.

While we're on topic, why is it always New York City that gets destroyed in all the movies. Why can't aliens destroy Dallas? Now I'd pay to watch Dallas/Ft. Worth destroyed. We've destroyed NYC in earthquakes, military attacks, aliens have destroyed it with an alien super weapon, monsters of all types have had their way with the island, floods, hurricanes, tsunamis, and Howard Stern have all reduced the city to cinders, and New Jersey seems to come out unscathed EVERY TIME. We've seen this city destroyed so many times, that when it really was attacked, it just seemed like something else on TV during a 24 hour news cycle.

This movie had good acting and great production values. I just thought it was very obvious that most elements of the film were ripped off from other films, and at times, it was difficult to watch because the camera was too shaky, and it randomly would skip over to what the event was taped over. Cute idea, but I found it far too distracting for this type of movie. That said... The action does tend to suck you in, and the visual effects and sound were well produced. All in all, this would be a great rental. I wouldn't feel my DVD collection was incomplete without this title.