Super 8

Rating: 8/10 (30 December 2011)

In the first 10 minutes, the film actually spells out everything that's wrong with ATTACK THE BLOCK -- you need to care about the characters. It's presented almost like a mission statement. And these are characters I did care about. That is to say, white people. Heh, I'm joking, of course. No, I mean they're kids with personalities and creativity and relatable problems and aspirations. Yes, the film isn't very original. It wears its influences (GOONIES, CLOSE ENCOUNTERS, E.T., and so forth) proudly on its sleeve and there's probably nothing here you haven't seen before. I mean, good lord, if I never see another "shadowy military conspiracy" plot again it'll be too soon. And for fuck's sake, Abrams, lay off the lens flares. It's incredibly distracting once you start noticing it. But the movie is very entertaining, with pacing that rarely feels too sluggish or too fast, engaging action scenes, a pretty good sense of humor, and some skillfully prepared character moments. The cast of kids is quite likable... even the little pyro who irritated me at first eventually won me over. Technically the film is solid, too (except the overdose of lens flares) and I liked the score. Even if a lot of the film was overly familiar, I had a really good time watching it and would see it again.