The rave reviews that the movie received from "Aint It Cool News" and the like are way overblown... The movie is no major turning point in cinema, by a long shot. It's exactly what it looks to be: A Godzilla flick from the view of some amateur cameraman caught up in it. You get no explanation of anything that happens, really... although since you've seen some version of each of the events before in many other science fiction movies, you don't really need one.

The stuff that I thought would annoy me didn't annoy me nearly as much as I feared. There were some pretty cool moments. I actually could have stood to see *less* of the monster, as he was more interesting when left to the imagination. I've not seen any accurate images of him online, so his look is a bit of a surprise.

Many people in my theater were disappointed, and I can understand why, I suppose. If they wanted more than just the mayhem of a monster attack then they were bound to be disappointed, because that's all that's here.

One hint though... at the end of the movie when you're looking out over the ocean, keep an eye on the right side of the screen. There's no explanation of what it means, but a lot of people miss it.

Really, this flick could make for a really great "extended edition" video release, with documentaries and other segments to expand on what made it into theaters... but what's there isn't bad.

So you can confirm that the monster is not Voltron?

I am somewhat interested in seeing "Cloverfield", even with the internet hyperbole. But I still haven't gotten off my duff to go see "No Country For Old Men" which looked tremendous in the ads so who knows? Maybe Monday.

...But if there was any indication of a link in the film itself, it was too subtle for me to catch.

I know in the viral campaign leading up to the movie there was a website for a drink called "Slusho" or something. Apparently, it's a fictional beverage that J.J. Abrams refers to in all of his projects. Anyway, the fake website for Slusho had some Cthulhu-esque overtones to the backstory. Something about the creator's mother setting off on a sea exploration never to be heard from again, and her son becoming obsessed with the ocean, and making a dive into some unexplored trench, coming back with some irresistible ingredient that made the family's drink business wildly successful beyond measure.

Of course, "Slusho" only appears on a T-shirt and cup in the Cloverfield movie, so it likely doesn't really have all that much bearing on things. Plus, the story could fit all sorts of angles: The creator could have taken to worshipping an elder god like Dagon, leading to the success. Or, in a non-Cthulhu angle, the harvesting of whatever from the ocean trench could have awoken a sleeping monster. And then there's the bit about the scientist who discovered it dreaming that he drank enough and turned into a giant whale... so it could be the old mad scientist origin for the monster who used to be a man. Or the Slusho story could have nothing to do with it.

In any event, the look of the monster doesn't immediately scream of any kind of Lovecraft connection.

Hardly any huge lions were to be seen.




I was torn between Cloverfield, Charlie Wilson's War, and Juno... but knowing that people in the office would be talking Cloverfield on Monday, I decided to go that route. I didn't see "No Country For Old Men" playing out here yet, but that's likely something I'll see on video.

I got that one mixed up with "There Will Be Blood". Both of them are on my radar, but both seem like good at-home viewing where there are less distractions.

When I saw the tentacle smash the bridge, I was hopeful for a moment...I thought the monster looked cool...I also thought hitting it with bombs and missiles would surely take it out. : )