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.