'Super
8' plays better on paper than it does on the screen. That is to say,
if I read the script for this film I'd probably say something along
the lines of: “oh, I see what you're doing here. It's like a
Spielburg-esque tame sci-fi horror film for kids. Yeah, that's cool,
we don't see enough of that any more”. Scripts can't really convey
how a movie is going to feel, though, and this one felt off.
First
off, it was very flashy. Abrams directed, and you can tell, as it
occasionally veers into scenes of mass destruction, explosion, and
lens flairs. A more subdued approach would have worked better I
think, as the rest of the movie is trying to be 'ET', and not so many
huge destructive spectacles are needed for this kind of kiddy sci-fi
adventure. It was very retro, both stylistically and with its plot
elements and whatnot (the group of kids - main one, fat one, nerd
one, girl, the alien monster, the secretive government elements, etc)
but the really obvious way it was done felt a little manipulative.
Not in a sinister kind of a way, just in an over played, pandering
kind of a way.
As
far as plot goes, nothing too new here. That's to be expected with a
throwback like this though, and it kept my attention despite not
being hugely engaging. A highlight was the kids, who I found really relatable thanks in part to the high quality child actors (I
talk about child actors like I talk about venison) and their interest
is making what will surely be an unwatchable short movie (memories).
So
yeah. Very retro. It did its best to bring us back to the 80s, but
tried too hard and felt a bit false - not all the way through, but
often enough for me not to come away in a great mood about the film.
Super 8: 47.6