Super 8

Joel Courtney, Elle Fanning, Kyle Chandler, Ron Eldard, Riley Griffins, Ryan Lee

Dir. JJ Abrams
Scr. JJ Abrams

Super 8 is a movie that, simply put, gets it. JJ Abrams gets that you have to make the audience care about your characters. He gets that sweetness and humour can go hand-in-hand with explosions and terror. He gets that kids don’t have to be toxic to a film as long as you just let them be kids. Sure, Super 8 is a throwback to the heyday of 1970s cinema, where the likes of Spielberg and Lucas were making groundbreaking films for the whole family. But it’s not a carbon copy. And while it’s certainly corny and perhaps a little clichéd, it’s also wonderfully compelling, truly frightening and completely endearing. Only the most cynical moviegoer will not be moved and entertained.

It’s the late 1970s in small town USA and a group of pre-teen boys embark on a summer of zombie movie-making hijinks. While filming, the friends witness an odd and truly terrifying train crash – what turns out to be an Air Force train carrying who knows what. Strange happenings and mysterious disappearances become disturbingly commonplace and the kids, along with the Deputy Sheriff, investigate just what was on the train and what secret the Air Force seem to be so intent on keeping. This is, of course, a sci-fi flick. But don’t let that put you off if you’re not that way inclined. There is much more to this story than an angry alien.

This movie would have undoubtedly fallen flat on its face if it wasn’t stacked with some very fine performances. What is surprising is that while there are a couple of very important adult characters, Super 8’s heart and soul is its young cast who truly carry this film. I can’t fault any of the performances, but special mention must go to Joel Courtney (who plays the Deputy’s son Joe Lamb and is the star of the show) and Elle Fanning (Alice). They are simply brilliant – at times, wise beyond their years as kids sometimes are; at other times, we are reminded they are truly vulnerable. There is a humour that is very real to their age – silly but not crude, naïve but not dumb. Without laying it on too thickly, Abrams manages to make us care very deeply for these kids. Beyond just wanting to protect them because they are young. Cleverly, the filmmakers chose not to put a big name actor in any of the adult roles. A Tom Cruise or even a Jeff Bridges would have almost certainly changed the dynamic of this film. And not in a good way. Instead we have Chandler (Joe’s father) and Eldard (Alice’s father), two faces you may recognise but won’t distract. Both give wonderful performances as solo parents struggling with their own inner demons.

The special effects in Super 8, as you might expect in this day and age, are very good indeed. The train crash is one of the loudest and scariest action scenes you are likely to see for a while. But beyond wanting to make sure he has your full attention, Abrams’ goal is surely to make sure you realise this sleepy wee town will never be the same again. The alien, once we get a real good look (which, cleverly, is not for quite some time), is suitably creepy and frightening.

You’re going to read a lot about Super 8 being a cross between ET and Close Encounters of the Third Kind and Stand by Me and The Goonies and whatever else. And while Abrams is clearly playing homage to the films that inspired him, we should not forget there is a generation of kids out there who are looking for their very own ET. Maybe it’s Transformers or Harry Potter. But I certainly hope more than a few of them see Super 8 and leave the cinema with the same sense of wonder that I did.

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Jack Lamb: The Air Force isn't answering a damn question - they're looking for something.