Super 8

Okay, normally I'm not an alien kinda girl.  Not a fan of aliens in movies.  What can I say, it just does nothing for me. It's probably because the story is always the same.  The alien wants to go home and the selfish people on Earth won't let that happen.  It's the same story in E.T., Paul, District 9 and now Super 8.

*For all the, now offended, District 9 fans out there, let me clarify:  I loved that movie because they made the situation realistic, the actual aliens looked realistic, and they even tried to show us what it would be like if we turned in to the much hated aliens ourselves.  However, that base story line remains the same; the aliens want to go home.  But they did something many film producers, writers and directors can't do.  They managed to make an old story completely new, completely fresh and original.  The makers of District 9 created art with that film.  For Super 8, that was not the case. *

Super 8 follows the lives of 6 kids as they are trying to shoot a zombie movie, but witness an accident at the train station instead.  Next thing we know, people go missing, animals run for their lives and the government military takes control.  Something is the cause for all of this and the 6 kids make it their job to find out what. The actors involved in this film are Joel Courtney, Kyle Chandler, Elle Fanning, Riley Griffiths, Ryan Lee, Gabriel Basso and Zach  Mills.    

 Now, looking at the film as a whole, it's a good film.  Good, not amazing.  The reason I say this is because, even though it was well done, it also felt like it brought movies back at least a decade, especially with the ending they gave it.  I would say about 3/4 of the film was really good and then the last quarter made it lose its sparkle.

So, how do I explain this properly - my major issue?  I guess I would put the blame on Spielberg.  He wanted so badly to create the epicness that was E.T. in its time.  He wanted it so bad that I think he forgot that films have moved on from what they used to be, and have evolved into something with more substance and realism to them.  I feel like shouting at him a little bit because its like he's never left his little box of how to make films.  He sticks to what he knows and refuses to open his mind to new and exciting things.  He wants to create something shocking and awing, but he doesn't want know how to make it real.  And that's why this film isn't strong enough to make an impact.  It's nothing new and it's not relatable.  The films that make impacts are films with raw emotion and he just didn't deliver that in this film.  At least not emotion that hits you to the core.  Like I said, it was the last 1/4 where the lines became cheesy and predictable, as well as the events in the conclusion.
 
More specifically, the acting was well done, the kids were impressive.  The graphics were well done too.  The comedic relief was placed well in the film.  Honestly, I don't find that there is much to comment on because it was all fairly solid.       

What I will give this film is that it comes off nostalgic.  Because Spielberg's work has almost a signature to it, it reminds you so much of E.T. and how far that film went.  You smile to yourself and think, Oh that Spielberg.  And then you move forward to never look back.

I give this film 8.3/10.  It's a good film, but like I said, not amazing.

X Men: First Class

(Warning: there may be some spoilers below; they’re minor, but if you’re a stickler for these sort of things, you might want to tread lightly)

X Men: First Class is about the beloved characters (Professor Xavier, Mystique, Magneto, Cyclops' older generation, and Jean's mother) before they became the X Men.  They work together to stop a major threat, mutant Sebastian Shaw, who believes that in order to feel accepted in the world, they have to dominate it. Some actors involved in the film are Michael Fassbender, James McAvoy, Jennifer Lawrence and Kevin Bacon.  

People have been asking, does this film revamp what was the dwindling X-Men trilogy? 

My answer: Yes, I believe it does.

To be fair, this film is not a continuation of the last, rather, an introduction to how it all began.  They managed to no only make concrete connections between the films, but also they maintained the ability to surprise you so that it’s not so predictable.  I recommend brushing up on your X-Men characters to fully enjoy this film, only because if you haven’t seen any of the previous ones for a while, you might forget some details that make it worth watching.  I loved the few special character appearances, no matter how short-lived they were, such as Hugh Jackman as Wolverine or Rabecca Romijn as Mystique. For me it was extremely entertaining.     

All the acting was well done; playful at times, ironic, and stimulating.  I have to give props for using one of George Bush’s famous lines – “If your not with us, by definition, that means your against us”.  Really, truly funny, I have to say.  In addition to historical quotes, the history involved in the film was fairly accurate, which pleased me.  I always find it impressive when you see the effort put in to making a film historically correct.   

The graphics were also well done as well as the sounds effects. 

The only critique I think I would give would be to make some of the transitions from scene to scene more interesting.  The reason I say this is because for, I would say a good third of the film, your following one of the main characters as he moves around the world, while another main character pretty much stays put. All they did was put text at the bottom of the screen to let you know where each character was when they switched from one to the other.  This made it seem kind of boring, to be completely honest. All I’m saying is to make more interesting cuts, so it feels less like – he’s here one minute and then were back, and then he’s here the next minute and then were back.  Oh now he’s here, oh and look, we’re back. We get it!  It was sort of tedious I guess and that’s why it stood out to me.   

Other than that, I recommend the movie for a solid performance, some comedic relief and a nostalgic 2 hours with some of Marvel’s memorable characters.

I give this film 8.2/10 for making a solid effort at keeping what was great from X-Men and not letting it get lost in chaos of film making.