Ahoy, squirts! Quint here. Yes, I’ve seen the movie and yes it is good. But for the love of God I hope you guys lower your expectations.

It’s easy to get caught up in the hype of a movie, especially a film like CLOVERFIELD which has been marketed amazingly. The team at Bad Robot made this film an event and they’ll be rewarded with a huge box office tally, no doubt in my mind. The line at the theater was insane and that I’ve noticed that the movies that are that in-demand at the press/word of mouth screenings always do well that weekend.

And the movie is good, so it’s not like you’re being duped into seeing a sub-par flick.

But I’m here to tell you that talk of this being a landmark, first of its kind movie is a little wrong. You’ve seen movies about earth shattering events told from the perspective of a small group of people before. You’ve seen movies told through a video camera. You haven’t really seen them cobbled together so well, which is why I think people are jizzing all over the movie like it’s the second coming.

I’m not here to shit on the parade of those who love it. I’m actually close to being one of those people. I thought the flick was really damn fun and showed a lot of smarts in execution. It’s heaps better than Romero’s attempt at a similar style with DIARY OF THE DEAD and it’s CITIZEN KANE compared to POUGHKEEPSIE TAPES.

The real strength of this film lies in director Matt Reeve’s ability to really build suspense and a world of wonder. There’s an awe to the film, the events really do seem real-world and they do a good job of keeping the characters realistic enough that you buy the story.

But I think what’s being overlooked by a lot of people is the kind of shallow character work. Rob, the lead, is played well by Michael Stahl-David but his character is a hard one to relate to and sympathize with. I’m sure that’s the point of the character, that’s what gives him his arc when he decides to forgo safety in order to be the hero, putting someone else’s needs before his own. That’s fine, but I still found it hard to connect to him, which made it a little difficult to fully give myself over to the movie since he is the centerpiece.

The character of Hud, however, is great. The only problem is that funny, likable, smart Hud is the cameraman, so he can never be the center of attention. He’s commentator and even though Rob is the main character Hud is literally our eyes.

If you’re in it for the big creature action (like a good deal of our audience last night) you’ll get some really nice stuff, but know going in that you only get about 3 ½ minutes of the big creature and another 2 or 3 minutes of the smaller ones. The creature’s presence is felt throughout, but I know a lot of the audience last night voiced disapproval as the credits began and I bet my bottom dollar that they expected a bigger creature feature.

The creature itself is pretty badass. By keeping it hidden for most of the movie, or only half-glimpsed or seen in brief moments during heavy “oh shit!” moments, they keep it mysterious until you get your first really long, good look at the fucker. I won’t spoil the design, but I will say it’s lithe and it has not been leaked yet. The little creatures that come off the big one reminded me a whole lot of little spider versions of the bugs from STARSHIP TROOPERS or the aliens from PITCH BLACK.

One thing I must bring up is ROAR! the Michael Giacchino score that plays over the credits. I love that the film has no score, it really helps sell the gimmick of the premise, but goddamn… Once you hear Michael’s score you’ll wish to all the film score Gods you pray to that you could hear his entire score. It’s like Godzilla, but not quite, It’s huge, epic and instantly iconic.

I think I might be at a disadvantage with this movie because I recently saw [REC], the Spanish horror flick told from the perspective of a cameraman in a news crew. [REC] is the best possible way this “camera perspective” type of movie can be done. It’s incredibly smart and suspenseful. It’s not as flashy as CLOVERFIELD, but it’s certainly the better movie.

Like I said at the beginning of the review, CLOVERFIELD is good and you’ll probably dig the hell out of it. I know I dug it, but if I hadn’t been told immediately before by a few people that I’d hate the movie I think I might have been really disappointed in it. I’m hoping I can be that voice for you guys right now.

It’s a solid flick, but it doesn’t feel like a cinema revolution to me. It’s not the first time this kind of story has been told and it won’t be the last.

I'm posting this during my layover before Salt Lake City. I'll be in Sundance land shortly. Keep an eye out for my adventures in the snow and watch me OD on film.

-Quint
quint@aintitcool.com