What a great summer movie! It reminds me so much of ET, but stands on its own as well for all that it brings. JJ Abrams, this film's director, has become a favorite of mine because he loves making movies. His movies have that sense to them. He is in love with movie making, and he loves making movies for the audience. I was a big fan of his version of "Star Trek", and this movie is another entertaining entry from him.
When I first saw ET when I was 7, the thing I loved about it was that the kids in the movie had enormous power. How did those kids on bikes elude the entire police department? "Super 8" is at its best when it evokes that same sense. When the kids making their super 8 movie and when it concentrates on the elements of being their age, the movie shines. The kids are old enough to start to be aware of the opposite sex, but young enough to be clumsy and full of wonder. The movie stumbles a bit with a somewhat run of the mill sci-fi plot, but the scenes of the kids and the human interest story more than carry the day.
The plot is relatively simple. Joe has lost his mother. He is reeling from the loss. Months later, his friend Charles includes him in the making of his zombie movie. Joe's dad is a local deputy who doesn't know how to relate to his son. The movie crew heads to the train station to film a climactic scene. As the scene is being shot, an actual train goes by, and a car runs onto the tracks and derails the train. As the young film crew seeks cover, the super 8 camera still runs, and it picks something up on film that is truly remarkable.
The movie is also at its best when the mystery regarding what is on the train still remains. Once that mystery is revealed, the film becomes more pedestrian. However, it still is great because the characters have given us buy in, and we care about them and love seeing their ups and downs. These are the scenes that remind me of classic Spielberg films. Steven Spielberg produced this film, and JJ Abrams seems to be a worthy protege for his kind of filmmaking. Here, we have an engaging story delightfully realized and told. We also have a movie with a heart. We care very much about how Joe and his father will get along, and we also care about what will happen between Joe and the girl. I am so happy that Abrams is making movies like this. We need some solid escapist entertainment at times, and Abrams is serving it up so well. The closing credits only solidify what we already knew-JJ Abrams makes wonderfully entertaining movies.
