The Movie "Cloverfield" Has Spawned Its Own Illness

If the advertisements and trailers didn't make it clear that the videography of the movie "Cloverfield" was shaky and in a "first-person hand-held" camera style, then you weren't paying attention. Can this style of film-making give you nausea? I've had emails from people who said that watching the movie made them feel ill, but until reading WebMD's newsletter today I didn't know there was a "Cloverfield Illness."

I visited a local theater last Saturday to see a different movie. Taped to the theater doors were hand-made posters warning that "Cloverfield" had caused dizziness and nausea among movie-goers, and stated that the theater would not be responsible if viewers became ill. If anything, the warning seemed to increase the line for the creature feature.

The videography of "Cloverfield" has been compared to that of "The Blair Witch Project;" both films are trying to create the illusion that ordinary people who happened to be carrying video cameras were filming frightening occurrences while running away, creating jerky and erratic movements and awkward camera angles. These effects have caused some viewers to feel dizziness, headaches, sweating, and nausea to the point of vomiting, in some cases.

So just what is the Cloverfield Illness? Quite simply, it's motion sickness. Motion sickness is caused by conflicting messages to the brain from the eyes, the inner ear, and from other parts of the body. You can get it in a car if you are, for example, reading a book; the book is still, causing your eyes to send a message that the body is holding still; but the inner ear feels the movement of the car, and nausea and headache can result. Others get motion sickness in boats, while the body is holding still, but the boat is rocking or rising and plunging with the waves.

In a theater, moviegoers are typically sitting still in their seats. But the camera work of films such as "Cloverfield" make the eyes give the brain the message that the body is moving. That conflict creates the motion sickness, even though there is no actual motion. So what can you do about it?