10 Cloverfield Lane (2016)
This is a tricky movie to review because it tries to do three different things, and it does two of them well. It's a movie that gets so much better as it goes, you hate the manipulative first twenty minutes more and more.
The problem is worse because I don't want to give away the plot. There are a few key twists that are part of what makes the movie special. The last section, which I can't outline a bit, is by far the best part, and it isn't given time to develop. Oddly, the last part is also preposterous, and the main character survives against all logic, and the first sections of the film strive for true fictional accuracy.
So, ultimately, the point of the film is to surprise and surprise. What really bothered me was the way the first section, where the leading woman is help captive (you learn this right away), tries to mislead us in a sensational way that doesn't make sense with the main central part of the film.
John Goodman, the big name here, plays a survivalist who is portrayed as a good guy with a mixed up sense of justice (and some personal loose screws). He's pretty good, though doesn't command the role quite the way he does some others in his career. The shelter he's created is elaborate, and the crisis outside the shelter is kept ambiguous— and doubtful—which is a great bit of suspense.
The final section almost seems to suggest a sequel—one that would be utterly different than this film. Watch for it (if it happens) because it should be fun.
This is a tricky movie to review because it tries to do three different things, and it does two of them well. It's a movie that gets so much better as it goes, you hate the manipulative first twenty minutes more and more.
The problem is worse because I don't want to give away the plot. There are a few key twists that are part of what makes the movie special. The last section, which I can't outline a bit, is by far the best part, and it isn't given time to develop. Oddly, the last part is also preposterous, and the main character survives against all logic, and the first sections of the film strive for true fictional accuracy.
So, ultimately, the point of the film is to surprise and surprise. What really bothered me was the way the first section, where the leading woman is help captive (you learn this right away), tries to mislead us in a sensational way that doesn't make sense with the main central part of the film.
John Goodman, the big name here, plays a survivalist who is portrayed as a good guy with a mixed up sense of justice (and some personal loose screws). He's pretty good, though doesn't command the role quite the way he does some others in his career. The shelter he's created is elaborate, and the crisis outside the shelter is kept ambiguous— and doubtful—which is a great bit of suspense.
The final section almost seems to suggest a sequel—one that would be utterly different than this film. Watch for it (if it happens) because it should be fun.