'Cloverfield': Roundtable day five

Pass the Slusho! on the left hand side!
Normally I’d be totally on-board with “Earth-JJ,” but I don’t know if I can go with it if it includes Cloverfield. Unless (as I think I mentioned to you and Andy before) the monster wreaking havoc on New York is the same one responsible for the demise of the statue previously attached to the giant four-toed foot on the outskirts of the Others’ side of Lost island which comes to knock the head off the Statue of Liberty because it just really, really hates tall monuments because they make it feel short.  Kind of like Tom Cruise not letting Nicole Kidman wear heels when they were in public.
Randomness aside, I think the “Earth-JJ” theory has some definite possibilities. Though, the way I look at it Cloverfield may exist in a realm outside his other works. Like Firefly is on a different plane than Buffy and Angel (at least in my mind, if not any one else’s). I could totally see Sark running about with the Others, possibly looking for the Rimbaldi Artifact hiding in one of the hatches more than I can imagine Scott Speedman being at Rob’s ill-fated going away party.
As for the alternate-reality game elements, I’m not against them. I enjoy them when they’re done right. It’s a great way to get people immersed and excited about a movie or show and so far Abrams’ camp has been spot on with it. But that’s the genius with storytellers like J.J. – they can take something and create a world that you can’t help but get involved in, no matter the medium.
Andy brings up an interesting point about epic monster movies. The best ones usually have an enduring message, more often than not at the root of said monster’s rampage. But what about movies that don’t rely on that to get the job done? What if the ecological issue that appears to be at the heart of the destruction, while important, is really just a red herring for a good, old-fashioned, rip-roaring smash and bash? I mean, there’s a lot of hype surrounding this but what if, when all is said and done, it’s not so much about the monster tearing up the city but more about some people trying to survive and reunite while pieces of buildings and whatever made that poor girl go POP! conspire against them? Would that ruin the movie?
While I’m speculating as much as a lot of people are out there, I’m doing my best to keep my expectations as low as possible. If that approach could get me through Lost In Space without gnawing my arm off like a coyote in a bear trap, it can get me through anything.