Fans of the 2008 film Cloverfield will be disappointed to find that this new film is only very loosely related to it. The final act seems tacked on as lip service to hungry cinemagoers who want to see more alien action from the J. J. Abrams-produced found footage flick. Indeed, along with a few references thrown into the more generic discussion of an apocalyptic event/unidentified attack, and a single unnecessary shot that cheapens the whole movie, this is the only link between the two. In fact, Dan Trachtenberg’s film was developed from a spec script by Josh Campbell and Matt Stuecken that was doing the rounds with studios before being snaffled up by Abrams’s Bad Robot Productions, finally giving it the chance to produce a sequel to the sci-fi horror.
As such, the end result is a story centred around three people – a mysterious loner called Howard (John Goodman) and his two captives Michelle and Emmett (Mary Elizabeth Winstead and John Gallagher Jr. respectively). Having been involved in a car crash, Michelle finds herself in a bunker with Howard and Emmett, two men who claim that the outside world has been destroyed and/or contaminated by an attack either by a foreign military organisation or alien life-forms. Unsure of who to trust, Michelle must try to figure out the truth and adjust to her new life underground.
This bastardised version of Campbell and Stuecken’s original project shoe-horned into the Cloverfield universe (done so under wraps for maximum publicity appeal upon release, and with additional material from Damien Chazelle) is, despite well-deserved cynicism, a solid psychological horror. Trachtenberg works well with the material, giving it a tone and atmosphere that remains consistently tense and unpredictable. He is helped by some terrific work from his sound and editing departments, with the former providing a crisp and creepy quality best appreciated in the cinema, while the latter showcases the talents of newcomer Stefan Grube. Steve Cutter must also be congratulated for his cinematography, which adds to the claustrophobia of Ramsey Avery’s production design and the script’s tight focus on its central characters.
Most impressive, however, are the performances from the small ensemble themselves. Winstead is gutsy and determined as the intelligent but reactionary protagonist caught up in constantly changing events, while Goodman provides a skillful rendition of a man who swings between sympathetic and sociopathic with incredible and unnerving ease.
This is not to say that the film is perfect – indeed, it is far from it. After walking the tightrope between the two throughout, the final act descends into the relentlessly tense and the utterly ridiculous with a sudden burst of computer-animated carnage and violent narrative mayhem. This section is admittedly entertaining, but this is the only reason to let the film get away with it. What is more, Bear McCreary’s overbearing score is an unnecessary distraction from the shock and horror evoked by the actors and their surroundings. It creates an ugly clash between the bombastic compositions, the low-key production, and the understated tone of the majority of the script, adding nothing in the process.
Nonetheless, there is no denying that the film is a solid, well-made and thrilling romp, with some truly gripping sequences, twists, shocks, and a mordant sense of fun (mostly explored through its pop soundtrack and John Goodman’s mischievous performance). It is no masterpiece, and is not quite as deserving of the levels of praise it has received from most critics, but it is a perfectly adequate thriller with some strong moments that is a vast improvement on the shaky, found-footage bore-fest to which it is now inexplicably and unnecessarily linked.
Die-hard fans of Cloverfield might be best to avoid it (and the sequel it heavily suggests will follow) but other viewers might find themselves more disposed to its trashy charm and effective thrills.
10 Cloverfield Lane is on general release now.
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