Super 8 Review

"Super 8"
Release Date: June 10th, 2011
Directed by: J.J. Abrams
Screenplay by: J.J. Abrams
Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of sci-fi action and violence, language and some drug use.
Review by: Sean Kayden

One of the most highly anticipated movies of the year is Super 8. It’s the clandestine project from the ubiquitous J.J. Abrams. Every venture this guy seems to pursue ends up top-secret. These days, it’s become the norm with any and all J.J. Abrams’ productions. However, the very problem with that is how expectations may get the best of you. I feel as if J.J. Abrams is somewhat of an enigma. On one side of the coin, you have a terrific visionary director. This is a man who can inject new life into anything that seems old and rusted. For example, his 2009 reboot of Star Trek. He was able to resurrect a dying franchise from a script that was as thin as Lara Flynn Boyle and take audiences on an absolute thrill ride. Remember, every coin has two sides though. The other side is J.J. Abrams the screenwriter. In addition to directing Super 8, Abrams is sole credited writer on it. His writing and logic behind storytelling seems contrived and for a lack of a better word, ‘mainstream’. It’s as if he’s trying to please every one of all ages, but it becomes increasingly problematic when the tone of the movie is all over the place. Unfortunately, the case is no different here. Super 8 strives in some areas and will excite many moviegoers (although possibly under their own pretenses). Overall, what is bestowed to the audience is a film that is overwhelmingly unsatisfying.

Super 8 is about a group of middle school friends who are shooting their own movie. They witness a terrible train accident, but it’s the bizarre events that occur afterward when suspicion emerges. Once the military gets involved, the citizens of the small town raise concern, but few answers are provided to them. Same goes for the viewer as well. We’re left with many questions, but most of them are rarely answered. Joe Lamb (Joel Courtney) is essentially the protagonist of this story. He’s a young boy whose mother had just passed away due to an accident at work. The relationship with his father is strained. His father, portrayed by Kyle Chandler, is the deputy of the town and increasingly becomes more and more distant toward his son. Maybe it’s because he’s trying to get to the bottom of what is going on in his town. With his head in the clouds, he puts his responsibilities as a father on the back burner and only becomes remotely concerned about his son toward the end of the movie. However, Joe finds comfort in making movies with his friends. He also forms a strong fondness to Alice Dainard (Elle Fanning). She too has a stressed relationship with her own father. Therefore, Joe and Alice have communal catharsis. I can work with this because it creates emotional depth. Without giving away anything, we also find something else about Alice’s dad that connects the kids to each other even more so. So while the audience tries to sympathize for Joe, you can’t ignore the fact that he’s actually coping with everything quite well. He’s not obsessed with the death of his mother. He’s more intrigued with movie making and the girl he’s smitten by. As far as a plausible resolution with Joe and his father, the audience will be pleased for Joe. Problem is, leading up to that moment in the film feels utterly manufactured because the audience knows this is bound to happen. However, there is no real emotional or genuine build up for it. What you’re going to experience is something taken from another movie, which will replace the illogical way on how it’s presented to you in Super 8. Don’t be fooled by the impeccably beautiful shots and blissful score that masquerades the faulty storytelling.

There is particular bedroom scene with Alice and Joe in act two that is wholly emotional and heartfelt, but that sentiment one will get is interrupted almost immediately. Actually, any time a specific scene is trying to tug on the strings of your heart and emotions, it quickly shifts to another scene or inexplicably changes in tone. That’s a huge problem for me. Super 8 could have worked much better as a coming-of-age tale, but it replaces the awe, excitement and wonderment of innocence and adventure for mild suspense and an uninteresting “alien”. No, I did not give away the big secret of the movie. Frankly, Super 8 has no secrets. It was advertised and setup that way for the average movie attendee to feel that a special payoff was in store for them. The only secret here is that the film tries extremely hard to recapture the magic of vintage Spielberg films. Sadly, it merely succeeds on this objective a few times throughout the course of the film.

Up until this point, it seems apparent that I’m bashing Super 8. I honestly have somewhat of a soft spot in my heart for this movie. Surprising, huh? Actually, it’s for what this movie could have possibly been. What upsets me the most is that Super 8 had the potential, pedigree, and key ingredients to truly achieve greatness. The direction is top-notch, the acting is supreme, especially from the talents of Joel Courtney and Elle Fanning and often times the viewer is quite interested in what is about to unravel on screen. However, I feel that the “secret” of what is going on is more intriguing for the characters within the movie than it truly is for the individuals watching it from the outside. Make no mistake, J.J. Abrams is an ultra talented director, who knows how to market his movies. While his heart may have been in the right place, the fundamental problem with the movie is how your left emotionally empty by the end. Instead of being completely enthralled by something spectacular, you’re instead left to think how the movie made such insignificant impact on you. Think of it like this, a J.J. Abrams movie is like a beautifully wrapped gift you’re about to open. You’re dying of anticipation and you imagine to yourself how there’s no possible way you could ever be let down. After you carefully take off all the bows and ribbons, you open the box to find out the gift you’ve just received isn’t entirely what you hoped for. You’re still remotely satisfied by the provider’s grand intentions, yet disappointment inevitably sinks in. The only thing you can wish for is that your next present will deliver on the promise from its supplier.

Grade: 3 out of 5.

Published on June 18, 2011 by Mountain Views News