I'm not sure why Cloverfield had such terrible reviews (at least in Singapore. at least in 8 Days. because even if I don't read 8 Days anymore I trust their movie reviews forever) because I thought it was pretty damn awesome. Also pretty fucking depressing. And as somebody who loves alien invasion movies to bits and feel nothing but a morbid glee when I see giant monsters/aliens come blasting through the atmosphere and crushing highways and buildings, that's saying a lot. It was claustrophobic, freaky and got under my skin in a way no alien invasion movie ever had. I'm still mildly traumatised by it.