The biggest obstacle facing "Super 8" may be expectations.
Based on the pedigree - it's directed by J.J. Abrams, who rebooted "Star Trek" so smashingly, and produced by Steven Spielberg, whose early movies it recalls - it's hard not to anticipate greatness. With its combo of kids, adventure and science fiction, "Super 8" echoes previous Spielberg classics "E.T." and "Close Encounters of the Third Kind." And the teasing ad campaign has been whipping moviegoers into a summer-classic-anticipating frenzy for months. Without all of that buzz, "Super 8" might seem like a nice bit of escapism, but that context can't be avoided. As a result, "Super 8" is a little disappointing.
The setup is a winner. In 1979, a group of kids - including Joe (Joel Courtney), whose mom recently died, and Alice (Elle Fanning), who also has troubles - are making a horror movie, much like Abrams and Spielberg did when they were kids. Using a Super 8 camera, they accidentally photograph an accident in which something appears to escape from the wreckage of an Air Force train. Soon, peculiar things start happening in their small Ohio town, and the Air Force is trying to prevent Joe's police-officer dad (Kyle Chandler) from ferreting out the truth.
So, there's a monster, a conspiracy, a sweet little love story (Alice and Joe) and a bunch of plucky kids trying to get to the bottom of a mystery. That's all to the good, but unfortunately, some of the kids are not as appealingly real as they would
be in a Spielberg film (loud Riley Griffiths, as the director of the kids' movie, is way too much), and Abrams can't find the sense of wonder that makes Spielberg's best work so magical.Maybe it's because "Super 8" feels assembled from parts of so many other movies, but it takes an oddly matter-of-fact approach to some events that should seem astonishing. And while the romance is a nice break from the action, there's not enough room to breathe in the rest of "Super 8," with Chandler's dad among several characters who have been given short shrift.
There's too much worth seeing in the nimble, funny "Super 8" to keep focusing on the bad, though. Courtney is a terrific lead, and Fanning is starting to seem like she many be an even more gifted actress than her aged sister, Dakota. Their characters have a connection that gives the film an emotional thread and makes sure that, if it's not super, it's at least good.
Movie critic Chris Hewitt can be reached at 651-228-5552.
"SUPER 8"
Directed by: J.J. Abrams
Starring: Joel Courtney, Elle Fanning, Kyle Chandler
Rated: PG-13, for language and violence
Should you go? Sure, but keep your expectations reasonable. The friend who saw it with me said it perfectly: "It's 'Arachnophobia,' not 'Close Encounters.' " ***
Based on the pedigree - it's directed by J.J. Abrams, who rebooted "Star Trek" so smashingly, and produced by Steven Spielberg, whose early movies it recalls - it's hard not to anticipate greatness. With its combo of kids, adventure and science fiction, "Super 8" echoes previous Spielberg classics "E.T." and "Close Encounters of the Third Kind." And the teasing ad campaign has been whipping moviegoers into a summer-classic-anticipating frenzy for months. Without all of that buzz, "Super 8" might seem like a nice bit of escapism, but that context can't be avoided. As a result, "Super 8" is a little disappointing.
The setup is a winner. In 1979, a group of kids - including Joe (Joel Courtney), whose mom recently died, and Alice (Elle Fanning), who also has troubles - are making a horror movie, much like Abrams and Spielberg did when they were kids. Using a Super 8 camera, they accidentally photograph an accident in which something appears to escape from the wreckage of an Air Force train. Soon, peculiar things start happening in their small Ohio town, and the Air Force is trying to prevent Joe's police-officer dad (Kyle Chandler) from ferreting out the truth.
So, there's a monster, a conspiracy, a sweet little love story (Alice and Joe) and a bunch of plucky kids trying to get to the bottom of a mystery. That's all to the good, but unfortunately, some of the kids are not as appealingly real as they would
be in a Spielberg film (loud Riley Griffiths, as the director of the kids' movie, is way too much), and Abrams can't find the sense of wonder that makes Spielberg's best work so magical.Maybe it's because "Super 8" feels assembled from parts of so many other movies, but it takes an oddly matter-of-fact approach to some events that should seem astonishing. And while the romance is a nice break from the action, there's not enough room to breathe in the rest of "Super 8," with Chandler's dad among several characters who have been given short shrift.
Movie critic Chris Hewitt can be reached at 651-228-5552.
"SUPER 8"
Directed by: J.J. Abrams
Starring: Joel Courtney, Elle Fanning, Kyle Chandler
Rated: PG-13, for language and violence
Should you go? Sure, but keep your expectations reasonable. The friend who saw it with me said it perfectly: "It's 'Arachnophobia,' not 'Close Encounters.' " ***
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