Review: Super 8

There’s no point in tip-toeing around the issue, so let’s just get straight to the point: Super 8 is the film of summer 2011. Forget robots, superheroes, boy wizards and horrible bosses. JJ Abrams latest work harks back to a time (the late 70s and early 80s, to be precise) when Hollywood was capable of producing movies that displayed heart and innocence, regardless of the budget and special effects involved. It’s a film that oozes nostalgia and, unlike many of today’s blockbusters, is driven by a plot that is wonderfully simple and linear.

It’s the summer of 1979 in Lillian, Ohio and a group of school friends are filming a homemade horror flick on their Super 8 camera. As they sneak out one night to shoot a pivotal scene at the local station, the kids witness a disastrous train crash. Soon after locals go missing, electrical appliances go kaput and the town is swarmed by the US military, which seems hell-bent on retrieving the train’s undisclosed cargo…

It’s not hard figuring out the inspiration behind Super 8. A sleepy Midwestern town. Absent parental figures. A bunch of prepubescent heroes dealing with what may be an extra-terrestrial case… You can almost hear the teenage Abrams solemnly bellowing “When I grow up I wanna be Steven Spielberg!” Detractors will accuse him of ripping off most of The Beard’s early back catalogue, but truth is, if you’re going to mimic someone, you might as well mimic the greats.

Besides, JJ has earned his right to walk in Spielberg’s shoes. With enough cult TV shows (Alias, Lost, Fringe) and high profile movies under his belt (director of Mission: Impossible III and Star Trek, producer on Cloverfield), the man has proven to be not only a big player in the film industry, but one with smarts and savvy to spare. Unlike many of his contemporaries, Abrams understands that shrouding your creature in the shadows and using the CGI sparingly will have far bigger impact on the viewer’s imagination.    

Most importantly, he understands the importance of having relatable characters and the young cast is without doubt Super 8’s greatest asset. Gawky, doe-eyed, potty-mouthed and terrified by puberty as much as they are by what’s creeping around their hometown, these kids are a joy to be around. Imagine if the cast of Stand By Me had stumbled onto a joint production of ET and Close Encounters and you’ll have a rough idea of what to expect. Best of the lot are Elle Fanning (Dakota’s lil’ sister) and Joel Courtney, whose blossoming relationship is the film’s warm, tender core, while the rest of the boys provide brilliant comic relief in some of the more dramatic scenes. Here’s hoping they don’t end up wasting their talent on teen gross-out comedies.

The film’s sole drawback is that when the creature is finally revealed, it doesn’t appear particularly striking. This may due to a mild case of CGItis or probably because when compared to the Cloverfield monster it looks generic and uninspired, but chances are the final product was never going to compare to the image you’ve concocted in your head. And while Abrams may have learnt a few neat tricks from the school of Spielberg, the genuine emotion that permeated throughout Super 8 starts bordering on saccharine in the final minutes. Great film JJ, but go easy on the schmaltz.  

5/5