10 Cloverfield Lane
for thematic material including frightening sequences of threat with some violence, and brief language.
Reviewed by: Pamela Karpelenia
CONTRIBUTOR
| Moral Rating: | Very Offensive |
| Moviemaking Quality: |
|
| Primary Audience: | Adults Older Teens |
| Genre: | Sci-Fi Action Mystery Horror Thriller Sequel IMAX |
| Length: | 1 hr. 45 min. |
| Year of Release: | 2016 |
| USA Release: |
March 11, 2016 (wide—3,391 theaters) DVD: June 14, 2016 |
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survival
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| Featuring |
Mary Elizabeth Winstead … Michelle Bradley Cooper … voice of Ben, Michelle’s boyfriend John Goodman … Howard Stambler John Gallagher Jr. … Emmet Mat Vairo … Jeremy Cindy Hogan … Neighbor Jamie Clay … State Trooper 42 |
| Director |
Dan Trachtenberg |
| Producer |
Paramount Pictures Bad Robot See all » |
| Distributor |
 Paramount Pictures Corporation, a subsidiary of ViacomCBS |
Films in this franchise:
• Cloverfield (2008)
• 10 Cloverfield Lane (2016)
• The Cloverfield Paradox (2018)
It was the trailer for “10 Cloverfield Lane,” that first piqued my interest. It was very vague, but eye-catching. I was unaware of the intense thrill ride that I was in for.
“10 Cloverfield Lane,” opens in an almost muted tone. We see a young woman who is packing up and preparing to leave her fiancee in his absence. We then see her driving, and she soon receives a phone call from her recent ex. We learn her name is Michelle (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) and her ex Ben (voiced by Bradley Cooper). He pleads with her to come back, but Michelle remains silent and hangs up. While traveling down a seemingly empty highway. Michelle is run off the road and seriously injured in a car accident.
She awakens in a locked room, chained to the wall, an IV in her arm. We hear footsteps and the unlocking of the door, and we meet Howard (John Goodman). He tells Michelle he saved her life, and that the world has been attacked, the air is not breathable, but she is safe unground in his doomsday survival bunker. Michelle quickly becomes suspicious, and with the help of a fellow inhabitant Emmett (John Gallagher Jr.) they become determined to figure out the truth.
Let’s start with the acting, spot on! John Goodman gives us a masterful performance. It’s a very small cast, which is ideal for such an imitate and unique script. The film is intense, but tastefully throws in light and awkward comedy. The direction is superb. The story is told in such a way that you simply cannot look away.
Now, onto the objectionable content, there is quite a bit of it. Most is the violence characters are shown—bloody, burned, beaten, bruised and deformed by acid and a man shot in the head. There are swear words throughout the film, while not gratuitous, they are poignant. As for nudity, a character is shown in her underwear and a tank top.
To avoid giving too much away, onto the spiritual aspects. The story deals with being prepared and being safe. In the crazy world we’re living in currently, fear can drive a lot of decisions. But in Christ, we have no fear. That means, whatever happens in this sinful world, we can stand on the Promises of Christ and weather any storm that may come our way. Jesus promised a place for us beyond this world, and Eternity for those who believe and trust in Jesus Christ and repent of their sins. Hold you to that promise isn’t easy Earthly life. He does promise of everlasting life.
I thoroughly enjoyed this film; it kept me on the edge of my seat. I jumped, and it was very intense and thrilling and satisfying in its conclusion. Please be aware of the objectionable content and decide for yourself, using discernment, whether this film is worth your viewing. It is masterfully done and definitely a movie that will stand out through the years.
Violence: Heavy to Extreme / Profanity: Heavy—“Good Lord” (1), OMG (1), “God” (1), “Oh G*d” (1), “Swear to G*d” (1), “d*mn” (1), “h*ll” (1), f-word (1), s-word (1) / Sex/Nudity: Mild
See list of Relevant Issues—questions-and-answers.
If you paid attention, it is at the very end of the film that you get the whole point of it. She discloses something personal to the character Emmett, when tensions grow high, Emmett acts on what she told him, and, in the end, she has a chance to make her own decision on how to stay the same or change. To me, that’s the whole point of the film. I know I’m vague, but I personally don’t like spoilers in reviews, so I’m not giving anything away.
I liked it, I liked the suspense and drama and while others say the violence is high, either I am, sadly, desensitized or in comparison to many other movies, find the violence to be much less and this story relies more on suspense. There is violence but “Hunger Games,” “London Has Fallen” and many others have far more.
Moral rating: Offensive / Moviemaking quality: 4
Moral rating: Offensive / Moviemaking quality: 4
I decided to rate it as neutral because I can’t really recommend it, but I also didn’t think it was awful. It was very scary, and not just the aliens—the movie wasn’t even primarily about them. There’s also one scene in particular that, although not much was shown, I found to be deeply disturbing. I recommend that viewers beware and ask yourself if it’s really something you want to put into your mind. I know that for myself, I just hope I don’t have nightmares tonight because I’m still thinking about it and feeling troubled.
Moral rating: Offensive / Moviemaking quality: 3½
If you like extreme levels of noises and banging, you will love this film, it’s constant. My view is the sound effects are very overdone. My theory on this method of phony manufacturing of “thrills” is because young movie goers can’t pay attention to, nor keep track of, even mild levels of twists in a good plot. I’m thinking of “Marathon Man.” for example, the movie starts out with seemingly unrelated incidents and leaves the viewer to remember them and sew them together. There are many better films that did not need 120 decibels of effect when doors closed.
John Goodman was the right age to play the weirdo but my gosh, he overdoes it in too many places to try to fake the viewer out. There’s a fair bit of gore, you can decide whether it’s too much or not, but I turned away at a few places.
As you may know from the trailer, there is supposed to be a monster somewhere in this film, but if you want to skip the “thriller” part of the movie, wait until 5 minutes before the end, since that’s the extent of it. In that sense, it was not a science fiction movie, it is properly billed as a thriller and a mystery and, in my opinion, bordering on horror. I stayed only because I wanted to be able to warn those who are on the fence and thought “Cloverfield” in 2008 was a waste of Dave’s money.
From a Christian viewpoint, I would not go see a movie like this if warned prior due to the mayhem and murder in it. Those who tend to subscribe to relativism won’t have as much of an issue. Trading in one’s desire to meditate on godly characteristics for 2 hours of entertainment which are decidedly questionable would require that thicker skin.
I’m glad my wife decided not to come, she would have hated it. As the catch phrase about the movie says, monsters come in many forms but this one was upsetting.
Moral rating: Very Offensive / Moviemaking quality: 3
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My Ratings: Moral rating: Average / Moviemaking quality: 4