Super 8 is super!

Rating: 8/10 (17 July 2012)

It took me a year to see this and I'm glad that I waited till the hype died down and didn't have to listen to others' opinions of it and hear spoilers. But, when the train crash happens in the film, I already felt like I'd seen this before.
But, that's not written how I mean it to sound. This is a great film on multiple levels. J.J Abrams is becoming predictable, but unlike Michael Bay's level of absurdity, Abrams makes his films work with the ridiculousness.
Overall this is just another alien invasion film and has a similar feeling to it as Cloverfield. But, instead of an adult subplot that nearly dominated that film, this film has a surprising ensemble cast of kids. It has a feel of The Goonies mixed with Cloverfield.
Joel Courtney and Riley Griffiths proved that no experience doesn't mean that you can't be captivated by an unknown actor in this debut performance. My one gripe for them is Riley's overused "mint" line during the film.
However, perhaps the most amazing accomplishment is the acting performance of Elle Fanning. I'd seen her sister, Dakota, in many films before and thought she was decent, but I was blown away by Elle. Not just her acting, but her elegant beauty similar to Bonnie Wright and her innocence because of her age gives off this great next door girl vibe and makes the film much more spectacular.
Combined with the astonishing acting by everyone involved -- including Noah Emmerich -- the special effects and sound effects make this movie complete gold cinema in my eyes. It's just got the feel of a instant classic and due to the homages to '70s films, it feels like an old '70s Super 8 film.
I can't say anything bad about the film because quite honestly, I didn't see anything bad in the film. Steven Spielberg helped J.J Abrams craft a truly remarkable alien invasion movie that can't be forgotten in a couple years. Years -- perhaps decades -- to come, this movie will be a cult classic.