Cloverfield -

...was a movie for this generation, for sure. Just watching it you see all these reminders of the techno world we now live in – the fact that it is shot entirely from someone’s video camera (which you think one might put down at some point when trying to escape a huge ass monster), to the way that people in the movie rely on cell phones not only in the background, but as ways to further the plot of the movie. Great use of technology – the way technology was used in the movie, and the choice to shoot the whole thing from the “video camera perspective” kind of makes the movie that much more believable when you’re in the theater watching…although I don’t know how seriously it can be taken once you realize the thing attacking New York City is a giant monster (but you know, on LOST Abrams has us all believing that white smoke can kill people, so this isn’t too far of a stretch).


Putting the technical aspects of the movie itself aside, I wanted to comment quickly on the marketing of the film. On MarketingBlurb, there’s a great post about how the way they advertised this movie was pretty cool. Making everything such a tease to the audience, and not really ever giving away too much about plot, characters, etc. made the experience of going to the movies and seeing this film that much more appealing. And note the experience card – the marketers of Cloverfield successfully made people want to go to the movies and experience this. It was an event. It was a monster attacking New York. That’s something that brings audiences in, especially if you keep it under wraps like they did, it makes people want to know what happens in the movie.

The website, www.1-18-08.com , is pretty vague in that it only contains pictures from the day of 1-18-08, when the film is set. They make you wonder what the hell is going to happen in the movie. It’s a great tease. And finally, the poster of the movie, the statue of liberty with her head blasted off, is just one more way to get people talking about this film.

Basically, I think the marketers of Cloverfield revealed the perfect information to pique the public’s interest in the film, and released details that brought people into theaters. I guess it’s not too hard to market this fantastical monster film and get people interested, but if they revealed too much, it would have served to keep people away from the theaters.

Good marketing.