A fun and enjoyable throwback to old 80's movies with a CGI injection

Rating: 9/10 (31 July 2014)

Do you remember your childhood? Carefree days spent with your friends, sleepovers, using inappropriate language when you really should know better and, in the case of Super 8, fending off an alien invasion with your mates.
Super 8 is J.J Abrams' first attempt at a non-franchise movie. After cutting his teeth with the excellent Mission Impossible 3 and introducing Star Trek to the younger generation, Abrams was given the chance to make a film that was much more personal to him, and it shines through.
The plot deals with a group of young friends who are trying to finish their movie during the summer holidays. Whilst shooting a pivotal scene, the boys (and girl) are witness to one of the most spectacular train crashes ever committed to film, with the remainder of the movie dealing with the mysterious cargo aboard. It would be an unfair spoiler to divulge the rest of the story, suffice it to say that Abrams manages to weave a compelling, but not entirely flawless, monster movie.
At the time of its release, Abrams made no secret of his admiration for Steven Spielberg, even going so far as to bring him on board as producer, and so it comes as no surprise that Super 8 often feels like an homage to classics like E.T and Close Encounters Of The Third Kind. There are a number of Spielbergian traits such as the absent father, the story told from a kid's perspective and the tantalising glimpses of the train's cargo, all contributing to a stellar first half.
Unfortunately, the wheels come off a little once the cargo is revealed. Abrams sacrifices character development for blockbuster thrills and, on more than one occasion, potential pitfalls are sidestepped just a little too easily. In the end, it feels like a hybrid of two very different movies. On the one hand, we have a nostalgic coming of age tale and on the other, an old fashioned monster movie. It doesn't quite manage to merge the two genres into a unique whole, but it does offer some truly outstanding visuals (the train crash being a particular highlight), one or two tear jerking moments and, in the case of the kids, the most enjoyable gang of adolescents since Stand By Me.