10 Cloverfield Lane
"NO! NO! No, no! No! Don't open that door! You're going to get all of us killed!" -Howard
10 Cloverfield Lane is directed by Dan Trachtenberg (first big time movie!), produced by J.J. Abrams, and stars Mary Elizabeth Winstead as Michelle, John Goodman as Howard, and John Gallagher Jr. as Emmett.
This is basically the whole acting ensemble. Damn, they did a good job!
To her bewilderment, Michelle gets rear ended by something while driving away from her boyfriend and wakes up in a doomsday bunker chained to the wall of a room. A man with a perplexing personality by the name of Howard saved her, but for some reason he tells her that she is not allowed to go outside because the end of the world happened. With fellow "inmate" (or whatever you want to call them) Emmett confirming the case, Michelle ends up staying in the bunker for an unknown amount of time. The sometimes unsettling nature of Howard catches up to Michelle and she tries to break out. Michelle then discovers what the deal is with the outside world and it's not pretty.
What do you see, Michelle? Is M. Night Shyamalan out there?!?! No? Thank God.
The 2008 found footage film Cloverfield has always been a convoluted film to get straight answers from. That's one of the reasons why it's one of my favorite movies of all time. 10 Cloverfield Lane, while not a direct sequel or a prequel to Cloverfield, is a perfect companion to it's predecessor. In terms of mystery, it may be a tad inferior to its predecessor. In terms of story, 10 Cloverfield Lane is at, I feel, a higher-caliber in many ways due to the claustrophobic living environment with only three people to focus on, the ongoing psychological turns that it takes, and even the down to Earth build up leading to the final reveal.
Down Clovey! I know you want to be in it, but this isn't your movie! Go to your cage!
J.J. Abrams, producer of 10 Cloverfield Lane, has said time and time again that this is more like a cousin of the original Cloverfield. He and other producers are trying to make this into a sort of "part anthology, part something else". I'm saying this basically to let you know that you shouldn't go into the theater thinking that 10 Cloverfield Lane is a direct sequel to Cloverfield. For that matter, I would suggest going into it not knowing anything besides what the moments in the trailer tell you. It's a mystery so keep it that way. I guarantee that you'll enjoy it more than outsmarting the movie and saying "I knew it! The theory I read about on the internet totally proved that!". Well, something along the lines of that. Let 10 Cloverfield Lane guide you through the story's path and watch as it throws curve balls at you throughout so that you'll stay on edge. It's a great psychological thriller that makes you think twice about what is the truth, what isn't, and who you can trust...with a dash of The Twilight Zone.
Wait, why wouldn't you able to trust someone who chains you to a pipe on a wall in a doomsday bunker? I really don't get it. Seems perfectly natural to do that...Unless he/she feeds you only peanut butter with no beverage on the side! No!!!
10 Cloverfield Lane takes place in Howard's doomsday bunker for the majority of the 2 hour running time. With this restricted environment, the intended focus is pretty much set on the cast and the interaction between each other. Boy, does the chemistry of these three actors work! First, Mary Elizabeth Winstead is not a typical mystery/thriller type of protagonist. She isn't dim-witted to the point where you say, "Don't go there, idiot!", "Really? You're going to choose to do it that way?", or anything in between to show your displeasure of seeing a fool run around aimlessly. Mary's character, Michelle, is actually a pretty clever individual. Makeshift objects are heavily used in 10 Cloverfield Lane and Michelle uses all of them to her full advantage. John Gallagher Jr.'s character, Emmett, is another well-rounded and greatly compassionate character. With these two character, you can easily sympathize with them under each situation they are forced in. However, in terms of memorable, I would comfortably say that John Goodman's Howard is more of the stand out. Howard is an incredibly interesting personality to watch on screen. At one point, he plays around with the jukebox and dances to a song, the next moment, he interrogates and questions Emmett and Michelle about the makeshift objects. He really is a highly complex man to understand, still, he thoroughly deepens the mystery behind 10 Cloverfield Lane.
I hope you have a variety of music in that jukebox, Howard. One can only take so much of "I Think We're Alone Now" by Tommy James and the Shondells until they start developing paranoia.
Props also has to be given to the sound department in the making of 10 Cloverfield Lane. Seeing as the bunker the characters are in is pretty heavy (possibly sound-proof), the sound mixing and sound design of almost everything is flawlessly weaved into each and every scene. Michelle's anxious and heavy breathing complimented the sense of hopelessness that the film was already going for. Even the outside sounds, as relatively loud as it probably was outside of the bunker, created a dark and creepy vibe that had me clinging to my seat. A bunch of different emotions were running through my body causing me to not contemplate what was the truth. This is what sound did to me. Crazy, I know, but that was the effect that it's good sound design and mixing had on me.
Yeah. I can agree with Howard when he says, "Don't go outside."
Without spoiling anything, I would like to point out that the ending of 10 Cloverfield Lane does feel a little shoehorned in. Again, the main story revolves around these three characters and their actions, but we know that there is more to the mystery than trustworthiness of people. There is something else going on in this story. After all, this is a blood relative to the monster mystery film Cloverfield. It's set in the same universe, so we know something or someone is causing the characters to stay in a doomsday bunker. So when the ending does come around, it's just an "alright. well that was interesting" kind of scenario. I was honestly more intrigued by the character developing story than what was happening outside. Nevertheless, I didn't dislike it. After letting the whole film settle, I appreciated which way the filmmakers took the ending more and now I even have more theories and speculations of where the next movie (I'm pretty sure there will be a next one) will go.
It's not what you think it is. It's actually her brother with the world's brightest flashlight trying to make shadow puppets against the back of the house.
After having the ending resonated with me a bit more, I urge you to go see 10 Cloverfield Lane. If you don't know much about the movie, go into it staying that way. I didn't want to give away too much, but I had to mention the excellent performances, the creepy and exhilarating thriller elements, and especially going cold turkey and keeping your knowledge or theories about 10 Cloverfield Lane to a minimum. With Cloverfield being one of my favorite movies of all time, I'm able to recognize that 10 Cloverfield Lane is not a replacement for that spot, but it's definitely a worthy competitor.
4.5/5
PRO
- Performances; John Goodman's in particular
- The total mystery
- Fantastic sound mixing and design
- Ending grows on you, but does feel rushed
10 Cloverfield Lane is rated PG-13 for thematic material including frightening sequences of threat with some violence, and brief language
Click here to watch the trailer
10 Cloverfield Lane is in theaters everywhere now
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