Sightlines · reception

How 10 Cloverfield Lane was received

2016 · Dan Trachtenberg · 10 Cloverfield Lane on Sightlines

The arc

It got strong reviews on release, and people were surprised that a small bunker thriller had turned up as a Cloverfield sequel. After The Cloverfield Paradox flopped in 2018, it came to be seen as the clear high point of the franchise and the film that made Dan Trachtenberg a director to watch.

What’s debated

Fans keep arguing over whether the last act is the payoff the movie needed or a jarring swerve that undoes a perfect three-person thriller, and over whether it should have carried the Cloverfield name at all.

Its footprint

John Goodman's Howard is the part everyone talks about, often called one of his best performances. The jukebox singalong to "I Think We're Alone Now" is the scene people quote and clip.

Where it stands

It's a modern genre favorite and the Cloverfield film people recommend even to those who skipped the original. It's also a standard example of how to do a lot with one location.

Did you know? It was shot in secret under the fake title "Valencia" and grew out of a spec script called "The Cellar," which Damien Chazelle rewrote before Whiplash made his name. The film was only revealed to the public about two months before it opened.