Drink Slusho, Make Monsters

I loved Cloverfield. Absolutely adored it. I had been following the project since the first teaser premiered before Transformers, and going into the theater I was incredibly nervous that my anticipation would inevitably lead to massive disappointment. But boy, oh boy, my fears were entirely unfounded. I had none of the motion sickness problems that others have mentioned, nor did I have trouble suspending disbelief and allowing that the film’s 20-somethings were simply going to make awful decisions. Instead, I was entranced by the fulfilled promise of a truly post-modern monster movie. Cloverfield was a pitch-perfect homage and reinvention of an entire genre.

Which is why I’m so goddamn disappointed by the news that they’re making another one. Director Matt Reeves recently commented that a sequel could be made by exploring a different perspective of the same event, an idea that I think is incredibly stupid. The shaky-cam style was pretty much done to perfection already, and any attempt to re-visit it would result in a watered-down rehash of the original. Now, if done correctly, it might be interesting to see the attack through the lens of a “traditional” monster movie, which would specifically address the goverment and military response to the monster(s). On the other hand, that would pretty much defeat the entire point of the first film. Sadly, there appears to be no way around this sequel business; any successful movie in this day and age will be mined for every possible dollar. How disappointing.

Tags: cloverfield, hollywood, jj abrams, matt reeves, monster movies, sequels