Dominatio Per Malum

Cloverfield (2008) 6/10

Cloverfield takes a classic Godzilla “monster genre” and mixes it with the verite, docudrama style of the Blair Witch Project, and the result is a reasonably entertaining albeit schizophrenic film that doesn’t quite know whether to emphasis the guerilla filmmaking or the high tech spectacle.

Cloverfield opens with an excellent exposition depicting a party as filmed through the lens of the cameraman. In fact, the early part of the film unfolds strongly, with the monster’s first attack on the city being one of the strongest scenes of the film. Having the head of the statue of liberty fly through the streets was a brilliant piece of symbolism. But the film rapidly descends to mediocrity after that, when the characters embark on a “Saving Private Ryan” kind of mission to save one of their own. The rescue mission is largely uninteresting because it is unrealistic and characters are stereotypically dumb. In fact, this review states exactly what is wrong with the plot:
“I may have said this before, but if there’s one thing that will get me to hate your movie, it’s giving your characters actions that make them seem like they’ve lived in a box all their lives. Never seen a horror film, never lived through a catastrophic world-changing disaster… So when none of his friends tell Rob that he’s an idiot or physically restrain him from this suicide mission and instead cheerfully volunteer to join his crusade like they’re going to the corner to get pizza, it’s not just bad writing, it’s an insult to what precious intelligence I have left.”

Another weakness is that it doesn’t really know whether it should be a big monster movie or a small arthouse flick. It gives hints of the monster but never shows it rampaging in its full glory and that creates a sort of anticlimax. The Blair witch style is not well served by meshing big budget Hollywood sensibilities with arthouse techniques with the result that the final product never reaches its full potential. Overall, its entertaining but never reaches its potential with a weak and lacklustre second half.

[Rec] (2007) 7/10

Like Cloverfield, Rec uses a jerky hand-held camera in the tradition of Blair Witch to document the film. But unlike Cloverfield, Rec is a fairly low-budget production centered in only one locale. But it effectively makes use of the claustrophobia, the unknown to craft a thrilling experience that keeps you at the edge of your seat. Here, the Blair Witch style is not just a gimmick, but it is central to the tale. It uses the device of the handheld camera to tell the tale, sometimes with the most horrific moments obscured by the camera. Indeed, it leaves the most horrifying to the imagination instead of explicitly depicting it as a more Hollywood orientated filmmaker would have. That is not to say that it is not gory, because it does have its scenes of terror and blood, but that it balances what needs to be shown and what should be left to the imagination.