Goonies in the 21st century

Rating: 6/10 (30 December 2014)

"Super 8" is a science fiction film written and directed by J.J. Abrams between his two Star Trek turns. Soon we will see him direct the next Star Wars movie and in his effort here from 2011, he works mostly with a cast of child actors. For Joel Courtney, it is the very first performance in a film and for that he did a pretty decent job. Elle Fanning, however, is a true professional with a long filmography despite her young age and it shows. She plays her part very well too. Even if "Super 8" was missing at the big awards shows, it was one of the movies from 2011 with the most awards and nominations.
I personally preferred the first half of the film. The second half was not terrible by any means, but getting to know the main characters was just more interesting then the second half which was packed with violence and action. The train crash scene early on was pretty exciting too. Also I did not like the second half that much as everything about the creature did not entirely convince me, for example how only a couple words from the protagonist turned it from an evil eater of human flesh (with a hate against humanity that rose over many many years) back to completely normal again, so it would leave the planet Earth. Apart from that, the accident from the woman early on and everything that followed afterward including the bonding between the widower and the one allegedly responsible for it did not really do too much for me. It added something, but the core for me was pretty much the story between Fanning's and Courtney's characters. Riley Griffiths played his role well too and stays in the mind. The other kids were fairly forgettable I thought. The only actor playing adult characters I knew was Kyle Chandler in this film. I usually like him, but here he did not do that much really for me. I felt his character was just too stereotypical and generic and somehow adds no uniqueness and charm.
Abrams here reunites with some of his crew from previous projects, including the aforementioned Star Trek movie, but also his television work on "Lost". One of these would be the Academy Award winning score producer Michael Giacchino. And Steven Spielberg is on board as well. All in all, I would not say that this film is as superb as the title suggests, but it is a solid watch and I'd recommend it particularly to those who love science fiction films. Those will also appreciate some of the cult and humorous moments like the sheriff (twice) and the clerk being attacked early on.