DVD review: Cloverfield
Shortly before the giant monster film Cloverfield (reviewed here) was released on DVD, producer J.J. Abrams told Reuters,
“The thing about this movie — probably more than any I think — is that it is better on DVD than in the theater. Because the movie is like a videotape. It lives on your TV. In many ways, it is supposed to be viewed on a (TV) monitor.”
In this case, a Hollywood producer isn’t just blowing smoke. In some ways, Cloverfield actually is better on DVD than in a movie theater. Abrams makes the point that, since the movie unfolds as camcorder footage recovered after a calamitous monster attack, people would be watching it on TV monitors if it were “real.”
DVD viewing also alleviates the the biggest problem many audiences had with Cloverfield: the “shaky-cam” effect. Since the whole film is presented from the POV of a handheld camera, the image frequently jiggles, jolts and lurches — and on a big screen, some moviegoers suffered from symptoms of motion sickness. It’s a lot easier to handle on a television. I also found the image resolution to be much crisper on DVD than when I saw it at the theater, although I’m not sure if that represents the superior clarity of the disc, or a flaw in the projection when I saw it. Plus, you get to freeze-frame those terrifying, tantalizing half-glimpses of the monster.
The Cloverfield DVD also lets you test certain rumors and theories. (Spoilers ahead.)
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