10 Cloverfield Lane - directed by Dan Trachtenberg
**** SPOILER FREE ****
Starring: Mary Elizabeth Winstead, John Goodman, John Gallagher Jr, Bradley Cooper, Mat Vairo, Cindy Hogan, Jamie Clay
Screenplay: Josh Campbell, Matthew Stuecken & Damien Chazelle
Music Score by: Bear McLeary
Cinematography: Jeff Cutter
Edited by: Stefan Grube
Running Time: 104 minutes
Rated: M - Violence
There are no images in this review and there was almost no censors rating or cast list.
Far be it from me to ruin even a single thing about this movie.
The filmmakers behind "10 Cloverfield Lane" don't want you to know anything about it before you see it and that is a rare thing these days.
Trailers usually show you far too much and often completely ruin surprises that you have no business knowing until your butt is in a cinema seat ready to watch the film.
The trailer for "10 Cloverfield Lane" actually seems like it is showing you more than it is and it is.... and it isn't.
For reasons that I cannot go into it is one of the best trailers in recent memory for its ability to give you a sense of what sort of movie this is all while not really telling you anything of substance.
It is of course no surprise that JJ Abrams has a hand in this movie - he is a master at keeping as much back as possible.
In the case of "10 Cloverfield Lane" it is a smart and very necessary move.
What I can say about "10 Cloverfield Lane" is that it is ostensibly a suspense thriller and a very effective one at that.
Mary Elizabeth Winstead's character Michelle is in an accident and finds herself in a bunker with John Goodman's Howard and John Gallagher Jr's Emmett.
They tell her that the bunker was built in preparation for an event and that there has indeed been an attack.
They are not sure if it is chemical or nuclear, human or non-human but Howard figures that they will need to keep themselves locked underground for a year - maybe two.
Howard is one of those ready-for-the-end-of-the-world guys that has been planning for this for years and he has enough food and life support systems in place to allow the three to live for the required time period.
But was their really an attack?
Is Howard what he says he is?
Given that we are required to spend a lot of time in a confined space with very few people it is a relief that "10 Cloverfield Lane" has found such a perfect cast.
Goodman is a master at both subtle and overt menace.
As Howard he presents a man who could be a hero, a nut, a very, very sick guy or none or all of the above.
If you are starting to get the idea that this film is a very open book then you are correct.
Mary Elizabeth Winstead who is a fine actress and one who I hope follows in the footsteps of Brie Larson to finally garner critical acclaim looks tiny next to Goodman.
She completely holds her own and then some.
If you want to know how good Winstead is before seeing this check out "Alex Of Venice" on Netflix - she is very, very good.
She delivers the sort of performance here that should get her more of the recognition that he has deserved for years.
Also available on Netflix is the terrific drama "Short Term 12" starring the aforementioned, now Oscar winner Brie Larson and co-starring John Gallagher Jr.
Gallagher and Larson give standout performances in that film and likewise his performance in "10 Cloverfield Lane" is also strong.
He and Winstead have considerable chemistry. There is an efficiency to this film and to the performances and Emmett and Michelle become characters of great audience investment after very little screen time.
(Note also that Larson and Winstead starred together in Edgar Wright's "Scott Pilgrim vs the World" should you want to play connect the actors.)
Good performances are absolutely crucial to the success of any movie that relies on psychological tension and character interplay and this film is ALL about that.
Rest assured that it isn't all that it has in store for you - there is a pay-off.
Ten or so years ago M Night Shyamalam was the undisputed king of the sort of flick that this one is.
Not to compare it to any particular film on his CV but there is much of his style here.
With every passing scene the intrigue grows and the viewer must assess and reassess what they have been told.
Who should we believe?
Is the attack real or is this paranoia or worse?
I found myself guessing at answers and endings for most of the running time and yet once the movie revealed all that it had for me I was not disappointed.
One of the writers is Damien Chazelle who penned the great character movie "Whiplash".
Although entirely different genres the same skillfull plotting is evident again.
The Walking Dead's Bear McLeary provides a musical score that emerges only occasionally to underscore the events on screen.
The acting, writing and scoring under the tight direction of Dan Trachtenberg (amazingly his first feature) make this truly compelling viewing.
This is a finely crafted film of the sort that we need more of.
If you watch trailers for movies released in the 1970's the lack of actual footage from the films they advertise is jarring when compared to those shown now.
Their job was to let you know what sort of movie it was.
In this case I will merely inform you that this film is pure class.
Again- this needs to be enjoyed with as little knowledge as possible going in.
Letting a film such as this carefully reveal its secrets to you is a treat to be savoured.
RATING: 80/ 100
CONCLUSION: An effective suspense thriller that kept me glued to the screen for its entire length. Read nothing more about it and just see it.
**** SPOILER FREE ****
Screenplay: Josh Campbell, Matthew Stuecken & Damien Chazelle
Music Score by: Bear McLeary
Cinematography: Jeff Cutter
Edited by: Stefan Grube
Running Time: 104 minutes
Rated: M - Violence
There are no images in this review and there was almost no censors rating or cast list.
Far be it from me to ruin even a single thing about this movie.
The filmmakers behind "10 Cloverfield Lane" don't want you to know anything about it before you see it and that is a rare thing these days.
Trailers usually show you far too much and often completely ruin surprises that you have no business knowing until your butt is in a cinema seat ready to watch the film.
The trailer for "10 Cloverfield Lane" actually seems like it is showing you more than it is and it is.... and it isn't.
For reasons that I cannot go into it is one of the best trailers in recent memory for its ability to give you a sense of what sort of movie this is all while not really telling you anything of substance.
It is of course no surprise that JJ Abrams has a hand in this movie - he is a master at keeping as much back as possible.
In the case of "10 Cloverfield Lane" it is a smart and very necessary move.
What I can say about "10 Cloverfield Lane" is that it is ostensibly a suspense thriller and a very effective one at that.
Mary Elizabeth Winstead's character Michelle is in an accident and finds herself in a bunker with John Goodman's Howard and John Gallagher Jr's Emmett.
They tell her that the bunker was built in preparation for an event and that there has indeed been an attack.
They are not sure if it is chemical or nuclear, human or non-human but Howard figures that they will need to keep themselves locked underground for a year - maybe two.
Howard is one of those ready-for-the-end-of-the-world guys that has been planning for this for years and he has enough food and life support systems in place to allow the three to live for the required time period.
But was their really an attack?
Is Howard what he says he is?
Given that we are required to spend a lot of time in a confined space with very few people it is a relief that "10 Cloverfield Lane" has found such a perfect cast.
Goodman is a master at both subtle and overt menace.
As Howard he presents a man who could be a hero, a nut, a very, very sick guy or none or all of the above.
If you are starting to get the idea that this film is a very open book then you are correct.
Mary Elizabeth Winstead who is a fine actress and one who I hope follows in the footsteps of Brie Larson to finally garner critical acclaim looks tiny next to Goodman.
She completely holds her own and then some.
If you want to know how good Winstead is before seeing this check out "Alex Of Venice" on Netflix - she is very, very good.
She delivers the sort of performance here that should get her more of the recognition that he has deserved for years.
Also available on Netflix is the terrific drama "Short Term 12" starring the aforementioned, now Oscar winner Brie Larson and co-starring John Gallagher Jr.
Gallagher and Larson give standout performances in that film and likewise his performance in "10 Cloverfield Lane" is also strong.
He and Winstead have considerable chemistry. There is an efficiency to this film and to the performances and Emmett and Michelle become characters of great audience investment after very little screen time.
(Note also that Larson and Winstead starred together in Edgar Wright's "Scott Pilgrim vs the World" should you want to play connect the actors.)
Good performances are absolutely crucial to the success of any movie that relies on psychological tension and character interplay and this film is ALL about that.
Rest assured that it isn't all that it has in store for you - there is a pay-off.
Ten or so years ago M Night Shyamalam was the undisputed king of the sort of flick that this one is.
Not to compare it to any particular film on his CV but there is much of his style here.
With every passing scene the intrigue grows and the viewer must assess and reassess what they have been told.
Who should we believe?
Is the attack real or is this paranoia or worse?
I found myself guessing at answers and endings for most of the running time and yet once the movie revealed all that it had for me I was not disappointed.
One of the writers is Damien Chazelle who penned the great character movie "Whiplash".
Although entirely different genres the same skillfull plotting is evident again.
The Walking Dead's Bear McLeary provides a musical score that emerges only occasionally to underscore the events on screen.
The acting, writing and scoring under the tight direction of Dan Trachtenberg (amazingly his first feature) make this truly compelling viewing.
This is a finely crafted film of the sort that we need more of.
If you watch trailers for movies released in the 1970's the lack of actual footage from the films they advertise is jarring when compared to those shown now.
Their job was to let you know what sort of movie it was.
In this case I will merely inform you that this film is pure class.
Again- this needs to be enjoyed with as little knowledge as possible going in.
Letting a film such as this carefully reveal its secrets to you is a treat to be savoured.
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