Cloverfield (2008)

Break out the dramamine, this one's a winner! Mixing elements of Blair Witch Project, Godzilla and the Korean monster masterpiece The Host, Cloverfield provides a terrifying first hand, first person account of a giant monster's decimation of Manhattan, its inhabitants and the military sent in to stop it. Done entirely from the perspective of a survivor toting a camera, the shaky, improvised camera work gives the film an air of frightening authenticity, spontaneity, and intimacy. When an off-camera explosion causes a band of survivors to panic, the cameraman starts swearing and trying to see what's going on while everyone around him screams and flees, the sense of disastrous dread can be utterly chilling. You feel like you're there. The confusion remains intact as well, with the film only giving vague hints to the larger picture in between piles of molasses-thick suspense. What problems the movie has are almost all to do with the character holding the camera—his incessant nagging and naïve questioning can be grating at times, but when it hits the fan he mostly just shuts up and shoots. Also of concern is the way the film seems to make use of a similar kind of terror and hysteria from 9/11, which will likely have some people thinking “too soon.” Still, if you can put the parallels of real-life disaster out of your head, what's on offer is one hell of a wild ride.

9 out of 10.