I've been raving about Super 8 for days on Twitter, but 140 characters are just not enough to express how much I truly love this film. I'll resume my fangirl fawning here!
It's so easy for a film like Super 8 to be forgotten amidst all the summer blockbusters. It's not based on a comic book, it's not a sequel and it doesn't feature any A-list star:
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| (from left) Kyle Chandler, Joel Courtney, Elle Fanning and Ron Eldard |
Yeah, those four are the main characters, and I guess only film nerds like me would know that the guy on the left is from Friday Night Lights, the girl is Dakota Fanning's sister and guy on the left was Julianna Margulies' love interest on E.R. Not exactly household names. But who needs A-listers when your director is J.J. Abrams (the genius who created Alias and Lost) and your executive producer is Steven Spielberg (who needs no introduction)?
I wanted to do full review of Super 8, but I can't discuss the merits of the film without spoiling the plot for those who haven't seen it yet. Instead, here are the reasons why I liked this film a lot (and if you can relate, then you'll probably love it much as I do):
1 - Super 8 reminded me of the 80's Spielberg classics, particularly E.T. and Close Encounters of the Third Kind (both of which I have seen a gazillion times). The way the scenes were shot, the ending, and the sympathetic characters are so Spielberg-ian that I was not suprised to learn the similarities were completely intentional. Heck, even the posters are similar:
Some would say that it's a rip-off, I prefer to call it a homage.
2 - There's a movie within a movie! A recurring storyline involves the kids making their own zombie movie (using Super 8 film, of course). When you watch Super 8 you think this storyline is just there to justify the big event at the start of the movie, but then you get to the credits, you'll see that they did actually make their own zombie film! And their film made sense (and was quite cute, actually).
3 - Elle Fanning and Joel Courtney are amazing. The Fanning talent gene is a given, but it's hard to believe this is Courtney's first professional acting job. His Joe and Elle's Alice are the emotional core of this film. And I have to say (SPOILER AHEAD), the fact that they didn't have a kissing scene earns so many points in my book. There were several moments in the film when I silently thought to myself: Please JJ, don't make this movie cheesy.. resist the urge to have a hero-damsel in distress kiss! And there was none! Hooray!
4 - It's not just Elle and Joel who deserves credit actually. All six kids were perfectly cast and all had their moments in the film. (My favorite: When they shot the train goodbye scene. All the boys' reactions to Alice's acting were hilarious!) The kids ensemble elevates this film to a place alongside The Goonies.
Believe me, I have so much more to rave about, but I might get into details/spoiler territory already. One last word for those not yet convinced (or at least curious) to watch Super 8: I gave up ogling Ryan Reynolds' abs just to watch Super 8. And I don't regret that choice at all :)
Yeah, those four are the main characters, and I guess only film nerds like me would know that the guy on the left is from Friday Night Lights, the girl is Dakota Fanning's sister and guy on the left was Julianna Margulies' love interest on E.R. Not exactly household names. But who needs A-listers when your director is J.J. Abrams (the genius who created Alias and Lost) and your executive producer is Steven Spielberg (who needs no introduction)?
I wanted to do full review of Super 8, but I can't discuss the merits of the film without spoiling the plot for those who haven't seen it yet. Instead, here are the reasons why I liked this film a lot (and if you can relate, then you'll probably love it much as I do):
1 - Super 8 reminded me of the 80's Spielberg classics, particularly E.T. and Close Encounters of the Third Kind (both of which I have seen a gazillion times). The way the scenes were shot, the ending, and the sympathetic characters are so Spielberg-ian that I was not suprised to learn the similarities were completely intentional. Heck, even the posters are similar:
Some would say that it's a rip-off, I prefer to call it a homage.
2 - There's a movie within a movie! A recurring storyline involves the kids making their own zombie movie (using Super 8 film, of course). When you watch Super 8 you think this storyline is just there to justify the big event at the start of the movie, but then you get to the credits, you'll see that they did actually make their own zombie film! And their film made sense (and was quite cute, actually).
3 - Elle Fanning and Joel Courtney are amazing. The Fanning talent gene is a given, but it's hard to believe this is Courtney's first professional acting job. His Joe and Elle's Alice are the emotional core of this film. And I have to say (SPOILER AHEAD), the fact that they didn't have a kissing scene earns so many points in my book. There were several moments in the film when I silently thought to myself: Please JJ, don't make this movie cheesy.. resist the urge to have a hero-damsel in distress kiss! And there was none! Hooray!
4 - It's not just Elle and Joel who deserves credit actually. All six kids were perfectly cast and all had their moments in the film. (My favorite: When they shot the train goodbye scene. All the boys' reactions to Alice's acting were hilarious!) The kids ensemble elevates this film to a place alongside The Goonies.
Believe me, I have so much more to rave about, but I might get into details/spoiler territory already. One last word for those not yet convinced (or at least curious) to watch Super 8: I gave up ogling Ryan Reynolds' abs just to watch Super 8. And I don't regret that choice at all :)
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