Super 8

Abrams carried this baby in his head for a really long time and his care is evident throughout picture. In story terms, this is a typical King movie (J.J. is a big fan) with some references to Spielberg’s most famous sci-fi. Excellent casting of the kid parts, gallons of emotion, perfect music by Giacchino, suspense, entertainment and a feeling that once upon a time everything was somehow better and slower moving. (23/10/2011)

The spirit of the late seventies / early eighties and a bunch of kids setting out for adventure. And it’s good, really good. The kid actors can actually act, suspenseful at times and it simply works as it should, until an unbelievably over the top ending where the eighties feel crumbles in Abrams’ hands because the movie turns into a modern blockbuster à la Cloverfield and not what it was emulating up until then (and making reference to) in other words E.T., The Goonies, Stand By Me and It. Paradoxically, in spite of the finale, it applies here that “all’s well that ends well" thanks to the outstanding zombie credits with a typical Abrams punchline concerning the title. In any case, I am content, but not as enthusiastic as I was about Son of Rambow. That movie managed what Super 8 did. Only better, less flashily and overall more pleasantly and sincerely. Well, although... We can find this during the closing credits of Super 8 too, I’m telling you. (15/09/2011)

The first half was definitely a lot stronger, because by the second half I was having trouble keeping my attention at times. In fact, I started to get slightly lost in the fight scenes and I wasn’t really feeling any suspense. I'm definitely not disappointed though. You can smell good old Spielberg and it maintains its grandeur. The child cast in particular was excellent. Elle Fanning has grown up and is already a great actress. A weaker 4 stars. (09/12/2011)

This film is so simple that it’s not even nice. Yes, Abrams knows how to ignite the protagonists, himself, and even the viewer. Yes, it is a sincere film that won't offend anyone. But everything is a cliché worn a hundred times over that often leaves you astonished, unfortunately not in a completely positive sense. It is perhaps a slightly unconventional film about aliens (from the perspective of the predominantly child main characters), but that doesn't make it valuable. But it can’t be denied that Abrams knows how to direct actors, the chemistry between the main characters is excellent. There's no need to dissect the visuals, that is already clear, but having the feeling that for 112 minutes I am essentially watching a children's film, that probably wasn't the intention (family entertainment). A quite hesitant film. The trailer was probably about 200 percent better. (07/01/2012)

Both Abrams and Spielberg used 8mm cameras to preserve their first forays into filmmaking for future generations. It’s up to you whether you appreciate or condemn the fact that Super 8 raises questions as to which of them actually directed the film. The sci-fi plot isn’t entirely meaningless, but it essentially serves as a MacGuffin (symbolically entering the story together with a train) that aids the development of the characters and the relationships between them. The increasingly tense situations accelerate the process of growing up, which happens in relation to the protagonist’s parents. Joe has to accept the death of one of them and the authority of the other, who comes to understand that he can leave some responsibility to his son (and thus also let up on his excessive strictness). As in early Spielberg films with adolescents, basically ordinary characters become heroes when coming face to face with an extraordinary adventure. Super 8 also references films such as The Sugarland Express, Close Encounters of the Third Kind and E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial by situating the plot in a small American town and through its interest in a family whose cohesiveness is a crucial condition for a happy ending. Abrams managed to seamlessly combine a 1970s family drama with action for the 21st century, though he doesn’t show the same skill in directing the dialogue scenes as he does in the dynamic action sequences, when it doesn’t matter at all that a bunch of kids are running away from an unknown danger. More than other films, Super 8 will please those who love movies, and not necessarily only Spielberg’s films. It humorously draws attention to the make-believe of film, especially during the good forty-minute introduction, an enchanting tribute to all amateur filmmakers (it’s just fake blood). But most of the scenes are pervaded by an amusing nostalgia, including making light of certain “rules” in earlier films of the same type (“Since when is this guy the boss?”). It’s Joe, the film’s protagonist, who is in charge of the special effects and masks in the micro-crew. He passes off reality as more attractive, offering what life itself doesn’t provide. Which, as we well know, is what movies do. Of course, it’s not a bad thing to be reminded of this from time to time by the people who make the movies. 80% (11/09/2011)