Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 15:01 — 14.0MB) | Embed
It’s no secret that we here at Golden Spiral Media have drunk in deeply the waters that flow from from the tunnel of light that is JJ Abrams. Whether it’s LOST, Fringe, Alias, Star Trek, Star Wars, or Super 8, we pretty much love all of his work. Of course, some of us enjoy his work more than others, but we all seem to appreciate it at a high level.
One of his films that seems to divide us and JJ’s fanbase most often (besides the ending of LOST), is his 2008 found-footage style film, Cloverfield. I am in the camp of people that really enjoy it, although I do understand why some do not. I have been yearning for a sequel to Cloverfield since the moment the closing credits rolled, and I was beginning to think it would never come. When a mysterious trailer for an unknown movie project titled 10 Cloverfield Lane showed up on the internet on January 15, my jaw dropped. Would my yearning soon be satisfied? Was 10 Cloverfield Lane the long awaited sequel to Cloverfield?
Well, to be honest, I wasn’t sure. I mean, yes the word cloverfield is in the title and yes it is from JJ Abrams, but there wasn’t a whole lot in the trailer that could definitively link the two movies together. JJ cleared it up when he referred to it as the “spiritual successor” to Cloverfield.
So going into the movie I was excited. I was going to get to see a JJ Abrams produced film without the word Star in the title, and it had been way too long since the last time that happened (because I’m a slacker and haven’t seen Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation). I expected the acting to be good, the action to be good, and the storytelling to be good. I hoped that I’d get to see an alien at some point.
I won’t reveal whether or not there was appearance of any aliens (spoilers, sweetie), but I can tell you that the acting, action, and story exceeded my expectations. John Goodman, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, and John Gallagher, all brought their A game and gave exceptional performances. The story is told through the perspective of Winstead’s character, and we find ourselves trying to find out what’s going on and who to trust as she is trying to figure those same things out.
The movie contains several unforeseen twists, and does an excellent job of building a riveting, edge-of-your-seat experience. Fortunately, the trailer did not give too much away and there were several moments in the movie where I was left mouth agape by what had just happened.
Check out the short spoiler free podcast that Clint and I recorded in the car ride home from the theater, and get yourself to the theater to see 10 Cloverfield Lane.
Darrell’s rating: 9.5 pairs of handcuffs
Clint’s rating: 7.5 barrels of perchloric acid