Ledger and Cloverfield

What a senseless, saddening loss. Heath Ledger passed away today at the age of 28. It's yet to be determined if it was due to suicide or an accidental overdose. His acting career began to shine with films roles in 'Brokeback Mountain' and his upcoming turn as The Joker in 'The Dark Knight'. From the looks of the latter film's trailer, Ledger proves he has what it takes to bring the villanous role to life--well, at least he had it. The success of 'The Dark Knight' would have catapulted him to superstar status. What a shame. Now, we won't know what other great roles he would have had, what career he would have had.

On the other end of the spectrum, if you've not seen 'Cloverfield', please do. This ingenious movie redefines the 'feature creature' genre with its first-person, digital-video-camera take on a NYC attacked by an unimaginable monster. The filmmakers, director Matt Reeves, writer Drew Goddard and producer JJ Abrams really batted it out of the park. They deliver on their little-hyped premise of a monster film told from a fresh perspective. What a pleasant surprise--an under-hyped film with little-known actors that blows your socks off. Go see it!