The Cloverfield Thread: Love it? Hate it?Movies

[Danoff]

either way, the method they are promoting this new film with has got me hooked!!

You mean the same way the lost dude does everything? Crappy camera angles that give you a slight glimpse of what's going on but not enough to see anything clearly. That kind of gimmick is good for building suspense but it sucks if there's no good payoff (see lost, and for a different perspective, signs). And it REALLY sucks on the second viewing.

 

[prisonermonkeys]

Looks like total s**t. If it really is basically entirely shot on handheld cameras I will not be watching this movie.

Plus, it's JJ Abrams. The man has absolutely no idea how to tell a story; people stopped watching Lost and Alias when they realised that instead of answering the questions the show asked, the writers simply decided not to tell anyone anything and have audiences ask more questions. When it became obvious that the questions from the first season (ie about the time of the third season) would be answered, people stopped watching. Honestly, I could do a better job than some of the piss-poor things the man comes up with ... I mean, he re-booted Alias four times in five seasons. Anyone who writers knows that don't reboot unless you absolutely have to; the transaion from the Bond films between Die Another Day and Casino Royale being the obvious example. To reboot that often speaks of poor writing.

 

[Solid Lifters]

Looks like total s**t. If it really is basically entirely shot on handheld cameras I will not be watching this movie.

I hope not. I want to see this movie, but not if shot all on handheld cameras shaking all over the place. It such a overused amateur gimmick, I literally cannot stand it when used in movies. Zooming in and out is also another cheap gimmick I cannot stand, too.

I thought the new Godzilla movie used Bikini Atoll for its monster to be born of...
I'll have to give my copy a look over

Now that I think about it, you are correct. They only mention large worms from Chernobyl. Plus, the movie starts off somewhere 'tropic.'

I've only seen that movie twice, so you'd know better than I.

You mean the same way the lost dude does everything? Crappy camera angles that give you a slight glimpse of what's going on but not enough to see anything clearly. That kind of gimmick is good for building suspense but it sucks if there's no good payoff (see lost, and for a different perspective, signs). And it REALLY sucks on the second viewing.

I saw a tiny bit of the monster in the PS3 clip, and It would totally suck if that's all we get to see. I doubt that will happen, 'cause so many people will report after the first viewing what a cheesy rip-off movie this is if that were to be true.

On a side note, I HATED Alias and couldn't stand to watch Lost for more that 40 minutes. Both are garbage. Something tells me I should just stay away from this film, but I admit, it does looking interesting. The "New Godzilla" movie sounds awesome. By the time it comes out, it would have been 10 years since the last Godzilla movie that was considered 'new.' But, it maybe something original.

 

[McLaren]

Looks like the leaked version of the 2nd trailer has a good glimpse of the monster at 1:30... Pretty much what I thought it was going to be. Sorry if it's a repost, but I don't think this has made the rounds yet.



Damn this is going to be awesome.


M

I LOLed.

 

[YSSMAN]

The interview the Cloverfield director gave over at IGN was a bit revealing.

See the full deal here

Basically, they're still keeping it under lock-and-key, but they did reveal that their intent was to make this a monster movie for America, and much like how the atomic bomb was a key to making Godzilla relevant, it seemed like they were sure that events like 9/11 and Hurricane Katrina would make this monster relevant.

 

[FoolKiller]

They have? I've never felt guilty about it. I guess they failed.

For years anytime they had a non-alien monster it was either created or awakened by nuclear testing. Heck, even some of their aliens came here because we were obviously too wreckless with our nuclear technologies to be allowed to exist. That has changed a lot since Godzilla became more of a hero and they have gotten away from the idea that he is the result of nature punishing us.

You mean the same way the lost dude does everything? Crappy camera angles that give you a slight glimpse of what's going on but not enough to see anything clearly. That kind of gimmick is good for building suspense but it sucks if there's no good payoff (see lost, and for a different perspective, signs). And it REALLY sucks on the second viewing.

I believe the slight glimpse that shows us barely anything is just the advertising gimmick. The production staff have to know that if we never get a payoff it will fail. They only have to look at the non-hardcore scifi fan reaction to Contact to see how zero payoff is received.

Even in Lost payoff is given on certain mysteries. Usually the payoff leads to new mysteries, but the show wouldn't work without mystery of some form.

Plus, it's JJ Abrams. The man has absolutely no idea how to tell a story; people stopped watching Lost and Alias when they realised that instead of answering the questions the show asked, the writers simply decided not to tell anyone anything and have audiences ask more questions.

That's funny, because all the message boards had people complaining about reruns and mid-season breaks, the same issues that plagued Heroes last season. Some of them were tired of the slow payoff, but most were tired of the breaks for sporting events and holidays. That is why they have gone to a February-May 16 episode season. The creators basically decided that they could keep their audience better if they had no breaks and didn't have to drag things out to fit the advertising schedule.

But, I like Lost, own Seasons 1 and 2 and look forward to Season 3 on Blu-Ray. So, I may not be the most unbiased person.

As for Alias, I never watched so I can't say.

I hope not. I want to see this movie, but not if shot all on handheld cameras shaking all over the place. It such a overused amateur gimmick, I literally cannot stand it when used in movies.

You may want to give this a pass then.

I saw a tiny bit of the monster in the PS3 clip, and It would totally suck if that's all we get to see. I doubt that will happen, 'cause so many people will report after the first viewing what a cheesy rip-off movie this is if that were to be true.

I believe that is because it is a trailer. I find the reaction to this advertising campaign to be hilarious. If a movie gives the reveal everyone complains, but when a trailer hides everything but the basic premise from us then people still complain. Personally, I prefer an advertising campaign that just gives me a premise and not all the best scenes. After viewing McLaren's link I realize that 99% of every trailer we have seen is just from the first five minutes of the film. We still have about two hours of story to be fleshed out.

On a side note, I HATED Alias and couldn't stand to watch Lost for more that 40 minutes. Both are garbage.

May I ask what TV shows you find to be good? I am very picky about my television, but Lost is one of the few that keeps me coming back and makes me not want to ever miss an episode.

Something tells me I should just stay away from this film, but I admit, it does looking interesting.

Since I will probably see it opening weekend, how about I report back here and let you know if it is all shot on camcorder?

Basically, they're still keeping it under lock-and-key, but they did reveal that their intent was to make this a monster movie for America, and much like how the atomic bomb was a key to making Godzilla relevant, it seemed like they were sure that events like 9/11 and Hurricane Katrina would make this monster relevant.

It sees like he is referring to the attack on New York and how people deal with that and how it makes us feel. He hopes to have this evoke the same response.


And for those concerned about the camcorder style and no pay off, the IGN interview says not to worry.

The other, potentially more damning comparison between Cloverfield and Blair Witch is that audiences might have the feeling from the trailer that perhaps they're getting hoodwinked here, and that maybe, just maybe they aren't going to get to see anything in terms of monster action. After all, Blair Witch pretty much copped out in that regard. Reeves says that's not going to be the case with his film in the slightest, however.

"That's the way that our film is incredibly different from Blair Witch," he says. "They very, very smartly used that aesthetic so that they could avoid showing anything, and what was effective about [that] and what I think is also effective in this film is that you can create a lot of suspense that way. But in this movie, you do see a lot. At the end of the day, it still has that huge scale, it's just that it's shot from this point of view. So you're going to see the monster, you're going to see huge-scale destruction, you're going to see a lot of crazy stuff! … We're a studio film, and we're making this sort of crazy thing, but it's made just from this unique point of view. And really what that adds, again what I think makes the film very different, is this kind of very realistic aesthetic even though it's such an outrageous, outlandish idea. And that makes it a kind of thrilling idea. You wind up getting swept along in the action of the thing and it starts to gain a kind of tremendous momentum, we feel, and that's hopefully how people will react to it."

 

[McLaren]

You guys know how Slusho has been associated with this movie, and hypothesized as the cause for the destruction?

Well, there is now a Slusho commercial being aired on G4, and apparently, people think it holds clues as well.


Now, what the heck does this have to do with the attack?

And a commercial I have never seen.

Music kind of kills the tone, though.

 

[Solid Lifters]

The guy in the first video represents the 'monster' in the movie. He cannot get to his slusho in the beginning. Notice he lifts his shirt and a little human is on it, I guess representing he's pregars. Thus, he now has motive to get to his slusho. The monster in the movie is searching for food to feed her unborn infant. Infant monster is born on land, chaos ensues.

 

[McLaren]

The guy in the first video represents the 'monster' in the movie. He cannot get to his slusho in the beginning. Notice he lifts his shirt and a little human is on it, I guess representing he's pregars. Thus, he now has motive to get to his slusho. The monster in the movie is searching for food to feed her unborn infant. Infant monster is born on land, chaos ensues.

How the? When did everyone suddenly figure out the story?!

 

[Solid Lifters]

How the? When did everyone suddenly figure out the story?!

I figured it out?

 

[McLaren]

I figured it out?

I don't know, but you fooled me.

 

[YSSMAN]

The spoiler-filled story that was posed on AICN doesn't signify it being the case, but who knows?

I'm not sure how the hell that story is going to unfold...

 

[Omnis]

I have what most likely is actual art of the monster if anyone wants to see it. It's really crazy (not to mention huge). That meteor-like thing in the commercial is related to it.

 

[Dave A]

Yeah I would.

 

[Omnis]

POSSIBLE SPOILERS
**************
Okay, here is the link: http://la.gg/v/cloverfieldmonster.jpg/
**************
That meteor thing looks just like the monster louse.

 

[FoolKiller]

You guys know how Slusho has been associated with this movie, and hypothesized as the cause for the destruction?

Well, there is now a Slusho commercial being aired on G4, and apparently, people think it holds clues as well.
<clip>

Now, what the heck does this have to do with the attack?

Viral marketing. People see it and say, "What the?" then they Google Slusho and the first hit is Slusho.jp, the second is some random guy who owns Slusho.org and the third is the headline "Confirmed: Slusho.jp is a Cloverfield Viral Website." Then they search for more on Cloverfield. Suddenly, with one odd and of-the-wall ad you have people advertising your movie to themselves.

POSSIBLE SPOILERS
**************
Okay, here is the link: http://la.gg/v/cloverfieldmonster.jpg/
**************
That meteor thing looks just like the monster louse.

I think I had heard/read the director say that was neat, but not their monster.

 

[Omnis]

Oh, okay. I think it's cool anyway.

 

[Solid Lifters]

Oh, okay. I think it's cool anyway.

Plus, it was already posted on page one, someplace.

I think it looks really silly. Seems to have a flea problem, too. Heh.

From what I've seen of the monster in the one clip, it looks Godzilla-like. Green, with a long neck, but looking more like a quadruped than a biped.

 

[land sea air]

Plus, it was already posted on page one, someplace.

I think it looks really silly. Seems to have a flea problem, too. Heh.

From what I've seen of the monster in the one clip, it looks Godzilla-like. Green, with a long neck, but looking more like a quadruped than a biped.

agreed, but I think the theory of the large explosion/meteor looking things having something to do with smaller monsters or whatever was happening to that girl being held by the hazmat guys sounds possible

 

[YSSMAN]

Ruh-Roh

Spoiler

Word is on the street that the smaller monsters come off when the big one rubs up against buildings. They attack the folks, a lot of people die, and some pretty horrible things happen to them in the process. The spoiler post on AICN related it to something kinda melty-ish, so I assume it will remind us all of the way the Zombies were in Planet Terror or something...

 

[McLaren]

Seems pretty possible considering in the commercial, they say, "We've got a bite!" And I'm sure a monster of the original's size would not leave the victim alive with a bite.

 

[Omnis]

Plus, it was already posted on page one, someplace.

I think it looks really silly. Seems to have a flea problem, too. Heh.

From what I've seen of the monster in the one clip, it looks Godzilla-like. Green, with a long neck, but looking more like a quadruped than a biped.

Oh, wow. That must've not loaded for me because I don't know how I could've missed it.

 

[TDUFreak]

ive only read the 1st page comments and half of the 2nd so i dont know most of what is said.

Me and a friend stayed up all nite (not to do this, we just didnt want to sleep) and found the slusho website and got intruged. I had heard about Cloverfield and saw the 1st trailer but didnt know there was so little info leaked about it.

We started to speculate and looked over the trailers frame by frame looking for clues.
Then i googled "Cloverfield, 01-18-08, J.J Abrams" and got the "picture" of the monsters
and compared it with the clip of the monster in the 2nd trailer and they look similar.

And on the slusho website, we were looking around the flash animations and noticed on the history page that if you click the crab holding the sign it goes from Happy, to sad, to bemused, to alert (or close to that order) And they say the harvest the "Seabed's Nectar" on the site. And what lives on the seabed? Crabs.
Now i dont think that its "CRAB PEOPLE!!" attacking, thats stupid and its done its rounds on the web allready.

Also, if you put your mouse over the fish and squid, one is thinking of cheese and another a hammer, which in the Slusho Commercial on site, bottom left near the end theres a woman hitting cheese with a hammer. And in the last split second theres a monkey holding a flag with cheese on it.

---POSSIBLE PART-SPOILER---


What we think is:
Slusho harvests this Special plant which incourages growth which was been eaten by Wales and other smaller creatures. But when Slusho started harvesting this plant, the SeaCreatures started having withdrawl effects.
But in the past Slusho started dumping Toxic waist and Run-off into the sea which was ingested by wales and Creatures. And since it was Toxic, it had mutinagenic(sp) properties and also increased the growth properties. Which is why the Possible picture looks like a wale. and the Flea-like creatures are the parasites on the wale which have sucked the infected blood and have become infected themselves.

But since the world has become a more Eco-Friendly place, the dumping has stopped and caused the Creatures to crave the Toxins and want more. Which is why they come to land.
Slusho, who are hiring employees from all over the world, which is were our main carachter comes in.
Slusho have told them and the government about "cloverfield" And to expect an attack at some time.

---Where Trailer Comes In---

The party insues and in full swing. These loud, groaning noises are heard. hich if you think about it, sound like Wales. The main carachter (Crap, i forgot his name!) Is very keen in the trailer to stay away from the windows or the edges of the building, and acts reluctant to go on the roof.
As all the governments have been warned of this threat, the army attacks the monster first to try defend NYC, but the monster has/aquired some intellence and swipes the statue of liberty to attack back sending the head crashing down in the street.

Thats all we could realy get out of a few pictures an roughly 3 Minuites of footage....And a few cans of Red Bull and im leaving out a lot of other minor stuff that i thought had no relevance and ive forgotten.
Obviously, i dont think its it, but im guessing it has some relevance to the actual plot.

What do you guys think? Can anyone expand on it a bit?


Edit: Also, on a hi-res picture of the poster, its dawn and the waves are leading away from NYC and there are pieces falling off the Statue, which brings up the possiblity that it cannot be in sunlight (mabye for the reason it could dry up lol) or be in the daylight for some strange reason....?

 

[FoolKiller]

Interesting theory.


A couple of things though that I think are just a case of you trying too hard.

1) The main character being reluctant to go outside or near the edge of the roof. Post 9/11 New Yorkers are kind of skittish when they hear loud noises and explosions. It is completely natural to behave that way. Plus, as I understand it he was just hired and was moving to start his job. I doubt he would be privy to information like that this early. If he was I think he would be trying to get all his friends out of town with him.


2) Your nighttime theory. That's just a movie ploy because everything seems scarier at night. Darkness increases suspense because you can't see things clearly until they are close. I know when I walk my dog in the day and he starts barking I calmly look up to see what has him worked up. If I don't see anything I just assume he got a scent of something small or out of sight. At night I end up imagining everything from a skunk to stray dogs just out of my sight that could be dangerous.

Of course, your idea that it can't be out of the water in daylight could be used by the writers to explain why it is only out at night. Another thought is that many large sea creatures (giant squid) enjoy depths that we cannot even explore and it is very dark. But if it is a whale then the drying out idea may be most likely as whales can breathe out of the water, but it stresses their huge masses and causes skin conditions. Many sea mammals face the same problem.

I think that if they try to delve too much into marine biology and the effects of stress from coming out of the water they will have to explain to me how whatever the catalyst (most common theory being lack of food) didn't already create enough stress to kill it. Any mild hobbyist with an aquarium can tell you that slight stresses on marine life can lead to fatal diseases.

I would imagine they would avoid trying to use too much science to explain a lot when it is incredibly easy to just use the most common catalyst to violence in nature, hunger.



With the movie less than two weeks away I have given up trying to make guesses. Before I guess correctly I will be able to see the movie.

 

[TDUFreak]

Us in ireland have to wait til Feb 1st (or im my case, March) so that leaves plenty of time

 

[FoolKiller]

Us in ireland have to wait til Feb 1st (or im my case, March) so that leaves plenty of time

Well, when I report back I will use spoiler tags then.


When oh when will they start doing worldwide releases regularly? It's like with Transformers how Europeans were starting to talk about it almost a month after most Americans had watched it. I guess the movie industry is so anti-interwebs that they refuse to admit that a movie gets ruined for most of the planet when one country that speaks the same native language as another gets the movie months in advance.


I mean, what difference is there from an American release to another English-speaking release (England, Scotland, Ireland Australia, etc) that would require a delay? Do they go in and change the accents of all the characters? I can understand if you have to give a voiceover or subtitle for a different language, but when the only difference is accents, Ss for Zs, and an E at the end of town what is the hold up?

 

[Jedi2016]

I think the idea of "creature going after missing food source" is a bit cheap, because it makes the creature out to be nothing more than a dumb animal looking for food.

Which is not the impression I've gotten from the posters and recent viral videos. Before the title was announced, they had a series of teaser posters with things like "Monsterous" across the top. It wasn't a potential title so much as it was a description.. the news just ran the wrong way with it. Another poster had the word "Furious". Which is VERY interesting.. anger implies intelligence. A day or so ago, they began releasing viral videos of something attacking a drilling platform (you can guess what the "something" is). I've gotten the impression that this thing is not just randomly attacking New York, that it's not just passing through or hunting or feeding or nesting... it's attacking. It's pissed about something, and it's coming ashore for no other purpose than to inflict as much damage as possible, likely in retaliation for something.

That's my two cents.

Truth is, we'll probably never find out until maybe the DVD. What are the chances that the random guy-on-the-street with the video camera knows why the thing is attacking? Pretty slim chances, I'd imagine. I think we'll go the entire movie with barely a hint of the "why".. just the aftermath.

 

[Solid Lifters]

You just know talking about this movie before its release is going to be 10 times more fun than watching it.

Just 10 more days until the fun ends.

 

[YSSMAN]

I occasionally get the feeling that this could be the scariest movie I'll ever see, and then again, maybe not.

My guess is that this will have the most "OH 'S'" moments in any film of recent history...

 

[TDUFreak]

a series of teaser posters with things like "Monsterous" across the top...

...Another poster had the word "Furious". Which is VERY interesting.. anger implies intelligence...

Truth is, we'll probably never find out until maybe the DVD. What are the chances that the random guy-on-the-street with the video camera knows why the thing is attacking? Pretty slim chances, I'd imagine. I think we'll go the entire movie with barely a hint of the "why".. just the aftermath.

never seen those posters before!

And yeah, im guessing therl be very little storyline, just Destruction and explosions and stuff. And who knows, they may even make a Sequel or a pre-quel to explain the story more. Which would be annoying, but we'd all be just as hooked!