Super 8, the newest film from the mind of LOST creator J.J. Abrams and Sci-Fi mastermind Steven Spielberg, is now available for you to own in a special Blu-ray/DVD combo pack!
So, what is Super 8 and why do you need to watch it? Imagine E.T. The Extraterrestrial and Cloverfield, mash them together with a dash or two of awesome special effects. This movie is a solid win for Paramount Studios and Amblin Entertainment (who also made E.T.), as it allowed audiences to experience a great take on the science fiction genre, with the pleasant addition of a genuine, feel good story and believable cast of characters from an 80’s movie.
What made this story feel so classic? It is a very human story, despite the alien elements. The story revolves around a group of kids who are trying to make a zombie movie using a Super 8 camera. Joe (Joel Courtney), and Charles (Riley Griffiths), befriend a girl named Alice (Elle Fanning), who they hope will play the female lead in their movie. Alice agrees, so they set off with a few of their friends to film the various pieces of their story. While attempting to get a specific shot of a ptrain passing by, the kids witness a horrific accident as the train derails right before their eyes. They realize that their school teacher, Dr. Woodward, had actually driven onto the train tracks and caused the accident! Woodward tells the kids that they are not allowed to reveal what happened at the tracks that night, or else their families would be killed! The kids scramble to escape the area before they are discovered by the military, who are trying to recover what was lost in the crash. We learn that US Air Force Colonel Nelec (Noah Emmerich), is leading the cleanup of the crash, and is not happy with what he finds at the site. Kids being kids, they also happened to grab one of the mysterious white cubes that were littered around the crash, but you know, its ok, because they are kids. No one will find out. Oh wait… The cube is actually a piece of alien technology? We will get back to that later. So, the kids return home and try to figure out what happened at the track. Upon getting to review the Super 8 footage, they realize that not only did the camera record the entire accident, but it also recorded something else…A mysterious creature (that looked EXACTLY like the same creature from Cloverfield, but smaller) had escaped from the train and is, apparently, now loose! Can the creature be stopped before it can cause further damage and destruction? And what are the white cubes?
While the story sounds like it mainly revolves around the alien, the focus is actually towards the kids and the other citizens of the town, the alien acting more as a catalyst to the story. The most interesting moments come from the interactions between Joe and his police officer father, Jack (Kyle Chandler), both still dealing with the accidental death of Joe’s mother, in a factory accident several years earlier. Alice’s father Louis (Ron Elard) was partially responsible for the accident, and thus the two families are at odds. But as we all know, when you tell kids that they can’t do something (for instance: see one another), they will do the complete opposite. This is a story of childhood friends, first loves, families coming together…and aliens. Courtney and Fanning are fantastic together and are truly impressive child actors. It is very easy to connect with each of the kids.
In terms of visuals, Super 8 knocks it out of the park with some great CGI. The build up to the train crash and the aftermath were very impressive in terms of staging and cinematography, and getting to experience the events through the use of this old technology made the story even more intriguing. As far as the alien itself, while the creature was very well animated, the design itself was extremely reminiscent to the design from another J.J. Abrams project: Cloverfield. The Super 8 alien looked almost entirely IDENTICAL with the exception of it being smaller. While both movies did use the same animation studio for their creatures, it really isn’t much of an excuse in terms of creativity. The alien wasn’t anything new and exciting, and I felt that they missed a great opportunity to create an iconic creature for this film. Another interesting note is that in addition to his role as Cooper, Bruce Greenwood (Star Trek, Batman: Under the Red Hood) did all of the motion capture for the alien.
Special Features:
Blu-ray Disc:
- Commentary by writer/director J.J. Abrams, producer Bryan Burk and cinematographer Larry Fong
Behind-the-Scenes Featurettes Include:
- The Dream Behind Super 8
- The Search for New Faces
- Meet Joel Courtney
- Rediscovering Steel Town- Set in a small town in Ohio, the filmmakers went to great lengths to create a small Steel Town in the 1970’s. Check out this featurette for some more details on the process of creating this specific environment for Super 8.
- The Visitor Lives
- Scoring Super 8- This film featured a fantastic sound track created by Michael Guacchino (LOST). Fans of Lost will recognize his talents and is a must see for anyone interested in the musical scoring process.
- Do You Believe in Magic?
- The 8mm Revolution
- Deconstructing the Train Crash- The pivotal moment of the film is broken down by the creative team. How did they design this elaborate crash? This behind the scenes look goes into the thought process for making an extremely realistic disaster!
- Deleted Scenes
- 1080p video
- English 7.1 Dolby True HD Audio
DVD Disc:
- Feature Film
- Digital Copy
Overall:
Super 8 is a movie that will be remembered. It is a fantastic story that can be enjoyed by the whole family (including mom who never wants to watch anything with aliens). Abrams and Spielberg have created a new film that feels like it was shot in the 80’s in terms of story and quality, achieving memorable feel good movie that can be appreciated by all.
ComicsOnline gives Super 8 – 4.5 out of 5 movies about making movies with zombies and aliens.
Get your copy of Super 8 at Amazon.
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