By Andy Kozlowski

Contributing Reporter

 

It’s nighttime in New York City. 

Hipsters mingle at an apartment surprise party, waiting for their friend Rob (Michael Stahl-David) to arrive so they can wish him well on his move to Tokyo.

But Rob’s heart is broken when Beth (Odette Yustman), the girl he loves, shows up with another guy because Rob kept putting his job first.   

Then, as is typical of horror films with hot people, a giant monster swings by to kill everyone. 

Perhaps drawn by the cologne and pheromones, the beastie begins demolishing downtown Manhattan, mere blocks away from the party. 

A deafening roar is heard, followed by explosions, and soon the Statue of Liberty’s severed head is tumbling down the street. 

The Big Apple is under attack. How original. 

Only it is original.

“Cloverfield” produced by “Lost” creator J.J. Abrams and director Matt Reeves, takes the giant monster movie and shows it from the perspective of the people running in the streets screaming, “Godzilla!” 

Borrowing a page from “The Blair Witch Project,” the whole movie is footage shot on a handheld camera by Rob’s buddy, Hud (T.J. Miller). 

Only in this case you see the monster and see it often. 

The result is a dark and dangerous thrill ride with you-are-there intensity.

Remember the bloodcurdling experience of watching news on 9/11? Nobody will admit it, but that’s the perverse appeal of this film. 

It’s not making light of that tragic day but it’s channeling the same sense of chaos and confusion, of vulnerability in a world flipped upside-down.

The story follows Rob and his friends as they go against the flow of fleeing citizens and delve into the heart of the city in an attempt to save Beth, who is stranded at an apartment. 

Along the way they’ll witness military engagements with the monster and struggle to survive attacks by the beast and its body lice, spidery creatures that fall to the ground to hunt and kill.

A landmark creature feature that’s epic yet intimate at the same time, “Cloverfield” is a rush worth experiencing.