Making a Stop at the Super 8

Seeing this movie last night made me feel 15 all over again.  Stephen Spielberg almost found that magic he had in the 80’s with JJ Abrams….. almost.  Don’t let me take anything away from the film, I loved it, 9 out of 10 in first watching.  I was only left confused in the final closing moments as to why the resolution took an hour and 40 minutes longer then it really needed.

In the 80’s Spielberg created these epic “Kid Adventures” with the Goonies, Gremlins, ET, and Back to the Future where it was a teen in the lead role taking on a heroes role and burden on a mission to save the town/friends.  When I say he almost reclaimed the magic there is a fair amount of JJ Abrams sprinkled into the story.  JJ is a wonderful storyteller with a knack for creating mystery around a far from benign creature that we only catch glimpses of as it passes just out of sight.

I was not surprised by this, I saw the preview, but in front of my at the theater was a family with a maybe 13 and 9-year-old who really should not have been there in the first place.  The film has some fairly intense moments that had me questioning the PG-13 rating as the Spielberg name might confuse too many parents to bring kids along.

The cast was reminiscent of many 80’s films with the hero, who I could not help but see Elliott (Henry Thomas) in him all film, the fat kid who is the but of jokes, the nerdy kid who freaks out and cries at the drop of a pin, the hooligan, and the female love interest who falls for the hero.  It had all of the ingredients sprinkled just right to make a classic.

I won’t say much as I don’t want to spoil any of the fun, I suggest just seeing the trailer and going from there.

Not seeing this film would be a disservice to yourself.