Matt Reeves
Cloverfield

Months of waiting. Bloggers who said everything and wrote entire posts on just a few-minute trailer. Dozens of artworks of the alleged monster(s) invading the web... But in the end, even if 2 weeks late compared to the USA, Cloverfield has arrived here too, a phenomenon that has struck many people. I confess that avoiding the countless spoilers during these two weeks was tough, considering they appeared everywhere, but in the end, I managed to know nothing about it.

Let's start by saying that Abrams is a genius. His touch is evident almost immediately and can be recognized in many sequences. Those who love Lost will recognize many of the mechanisms behind the American series in several scenes. It is presented to us as a document, found on an SD Card in Central Park, "the Cloverfield Incident." Then the actual film begins. If you are used to classic monster movies with the monster destroying everything and the hero almost tackling it barehanded... Well, you're far off. The 4 protagonists of the film are not new Willis or Stallone, but common beings, with their own fears, their own emotions. They don't think about destroying the monster, knowing they will never manage it, but they think about saving their own lives. They don't perform heroic gestures (except for the will to save the protagonist's ex), but, on the contrary, they are frightened by everything happening, as any of us might be. In classic monster movies, the role of the 4 would be that of civilians who flee, who think about saving themselves.

The first 20 minutes are almost meant for relaxation; someone who doesn't know Abrams might mistake the film for one of those classic American romantic comedies. But it's the calm before the storm, before an earthquake (or presumed one) gives birth to fear within us. At times in the film, it feels like being in a mega episode of Lost, with many unanswered questions, the ending reveals very little. Indeed, it seems to open new questions that will not be answered until a possible sequel (or prequel). 

The film is heavily tinged with realism; the camera shakes, often goes out of focus, falls into darkness for several seconds. Many, due to this feature, have compared it to "The Blair Witch Project," but, if in the case of the horror it was just advertising for a not very good film, in the case of Cloverfield the film withstands the massive advertising campaign well. During the screening, it will sometimes seem like we are the ones holding the camera, we are at the center of the action, with our own fears. If we can find a flaw in this film, we could say that it perhaps leaves too many open questions which, on one hand, will lead the vast majority to await a new chapter, but on the other may lead to frustration for those who spent €7 to learn many things and instead find themselves knowing less than before (because, clearly, besides the monster, very few other things are revealed to us).

If you are fans of Lost, if you want to remain for months with many doubts in your head to understand what happened, if you want to see an "atypical" film, Cloverfield is for you. If, however, you expect a classic monster movie, don't spend your money...