A Dissenting Oppinion on Super 8 or Why Super 8 Super Sucked by Holly Waits

I’ll just start off by saying that I don’t get out much anymore.

I dropped my litter nearly nine months ago now. I figured, a few weeks to get used to each
other and then Mini-Me and I would be resuming my formerly active social life, consisting of trips to the
movies, frequent dinners out and daily naps about 3 hours long.

This has not turned out to be the case. Mini-Me doesn’t like to go out for long stretches at a
time, hates the movies and doesn’t nap for longer than two hours. And he is frustratingly stubborn on
all points, unwilling to compromise even a little bit. We are often to be found sitting on our front porch
here in D.C., watching gang-bangers drink out of red solo cups while we sing “Where is Thumbkin?” for
the millionth time.

So when Mr. Holly Waits told me recently that he would spend the day with my Mini-Me so I
could treat myself to a relaxing afternoon at the movies, I practically cart-wheeled with excitement
before remembering I have no coordination. I spent the days in advance scouting movie times, reading
film descriptions online, watching trailers, narrowing down my endless possibilities. Independent
cinema or Regal? Action or art house? Popcorn or Milk Duds? (To that last question, both). I finally
settled on JJ Abrams’s new blockbuster Super 8. I had seen previews and an interview with the director
while watching the finals of American Idol with Mini-Me and remembered being intrigued. I bought my
ticket 48 hours in advance and left the house three hours too early, unable to contain my anticipation.

I have to say, the first hour of the film delivered. Almost immediately as the film began I had
that feeling that one gets when the movie is already really good and is clipping along at a good pace, but
the characters are still reasonably developed. (Think: The Goonies). Right away I was struck by the
chemistry of the five young male actors. They were believable to me as friends who had grown up
together. The dialogue in the beginning among the five is sharp and rings with authenticity. I liked most
of the casting, excluding Elle Fanning (Not a fan of either Fanning). I was even pleasantly surprised to
see Glynn Turman in the movie, who I haven’t thought of since Carcetti whooped his ass in the mayoral
election on The Wire.

But… the movie started to slide downhill for me. I found myself reserving judgment as (SPOILER!
) I watched the town get rounded up in put in an airplane hangar on cots and the alien eat everyone on
the school bus because he was pissed at his inhospitable treatment at the hands of the U.S.
Government. I even kept an open mind when Joe and Chompers end up in the underground cave that
Joe had just happened to see while visiting his dead mother’s grave earlier in the movie. But my jaw
dropped in ridicule as the alien picked up Joe and he explained to him that bad things happen
sometimes but you just have to keep on livin’. The alien considers this, and since it appears to be
reasonable advice, decides not to kill young Joe and instead to finish his spaceship and head on home.

Yes, I was disappointed in the ending. But mostly because I felt the beginning was so promising.

The ending just sort of packaged it all up in a nice little extra-terrestrial, bad-shit-happens-to-the-best-of-
us bow. Throughout the film, the child actors were the real standouts as was the score and, of course,
the effects. Particularly the effects during the train crash sequence. But bottom line? I didn’t think the
end did it justice. Ron Eldard should have stayed on the pond in Mystery, Alaska.

That’s just my two cents and don’t shoot the messenger. As I headed home I felt myself
wondering what Mini-Me was up to rather than reflecting on the film. (A sure sign of disappointment).
All in all, an unworthy first foray back into theaters. Better luck to me next time.

Holly’s grade – 80%

News O’ The Day – Monday, June 13

Hey, thanks for stopping by. As always, here are the best entertainment links from around Al Gore’s baby.

“Fraggle Rock May Still Happen; Scissor Sisters Members Writing New Music For the Project (/Film) – File this under weirdest news for the day, but hey, I’m down with a Fraggle Rock movie just like people called me weird for being down with . . . um, never mind.

Should NBC Replace Tracy Morgan on “30 Rock”? (EW) – Now, I in no way condone what Morgan said and think that gay and lesbian men and women should have the exact same rights as the rest of us. That being said, doesn’t NBC pay Tracy Morgan a LOT of money to say and do outrageous things and get people talking? The man was wrong, he apologized, so let’s let it slide. Then again, 30 Rock has slid quite a bit this past year, so maybe some new blood is just what they need. What’s Charlie Sheen doing?

Has Comic Con Lost Its Luster? Some Studios Planning to Skip This Year, But “Cowboys & Aliens” Will Premier at Con (/Film) – I’ve never been to Comic Con or E3 or C2E2 or any of the great entertainment conventions (don’t forget Pornucopia), but here’s some news about Comic Con and how things are shaping up. I have actually been to the convention center for a less exciting convention and it is a pretty cool place and an awesome locale. Mmmmmm, fish tacos.

AMC Renews the Killing (Coming Soon) – Now, the Killing started out hella-strong, but then got someone formulaic halfway through when they introduced a new red herring at the end of every episode. Really fellas? It seems to be picking up steam again though, so it should be interesting to see how things end up. Not sure where you take this in a second season, but we shall see.

8 Photos From “Transformers: Dark of the Moon” (/Film) – 1 guy who could give two shits.

Took Off Mormon!! Church-Owned NBC Affiliate Will Not Air The Playboy Club!! (AICN) – Now wait a cotton-pickin minute. What is a church doing owning an NBC affiliate? Wouldn’t they be better off with Lifetime or WE? Plus, have they seen Amber Heard? Seriously.

NBA Finals Takes Big Bite Out of Box Office (Deadline) – And here is your weekend box office round up. Little disappointed in the performance by Super 8 and I really hoped that X-Men: First Class would rebound with another $50 mill or so. Unfortunately that’s how the summer movie game works. Here’s hoping they stay strong this weekend, even with Green Lantern opening up.

HBO Defends “Game of Thrones” Shocker (EW) – Hey, it’s not that kind of shocker. What do you think this is, Cinemax?

Games: Recap: Out With the Old, in With the New-ish: The A.V. Club’s Post-E3 Games Preview (A.V. Club) – Nice little round-up of this year’s E3. No, I didn’t get to go to this either, dick.

Will More Directors Dabble in Marketing After JJ Abrams Hide-the-Creature Ploy Pays Off? (Deadline) – It’s a valid argument and really it comes down to . . . Rooney Mara’s boobs!

Rick McCallum Talks About the Live Action Star Wars TV Series (AICN) – Honestly, as cool as they want to make this sound, we all still remember the prequels right? And Jar Jar Binks? And the dialogue?

“World War Z” to Shoot in Glasgow This August (/Film) – This is an awesome book and what else would you expect from something that came from Mel Brooks’ balls?  I hope they do the book justice, but I am stockpiling news like it’s my job. No, I don’t get paid for this.

Page 2: Super 8, Harry Potter, X-Men, Trick ‘r Treat, Lost, Toy Story, Transformers 3, George Takei, Rocketeer, Smurfs, Roger Ebert, Conan the Barbarian, The Simpsons, My Idiot Brother (/Film) – Phew. You still with us after that title? Good for you. Anyway, lots of good stuff here, but it’s almost worth it for the first picture alone.

Super 8 Review

Oh, to be young and in love and chasing monsters . . . sigh

Opinion on Super 8 has been divided from what I have seen so far. Even Pete and I disagreed somewhat on how much we enjoyed the film and that’s just not natural. We both enjoyed it (Pete’s fantastic review is below of course), but I just plain old loved that goddamned movie. I enjoyed it so much that I openly campaigned for someone to go see it with me again Saturday night, but to no avail. That would have been the first time that I had ever watched the same movie in the same day and while Super 8 is nowhere near my favorite movies of all time, I do think that it was something special. For me, movies of this type are about escapism, pure and simple. That’s what Super 8 is. It is the story of a young boy, coping with the loss of his mother, and how he and his friends deal with the events unfolding around him. The movie was made with a virtual no-name cast and frankly it only helps achieve the goal of forgetting for a while that you are actually watching a movie. Too often nowadays I lose the ability to forget that Tom Cruise or Julia Roberts is playing a role and just see them for the largely ridiculous actors that they have become. In this movie though, JJ Abrams casting of virtual unknowns such as Elle Fanning as Alice and Joel Courtney as the hero, Joe Lamb, are picture perfect. All of the actors succeed in helping you escape for two hours and getting fully involved with the story is something that happened organically for myself in any event. My thought going into Super 8 was that it would be a lackluster E.T. (the movie, not the crappy TV show) at best, but in my estimation it is a very different film. E.T. has always remained a kids’ film for me and something that I have virtually no desire to sit through ever again. Super 8 for me was a movie for the whole family, but one that reminded me what it was like to be a kid. I think the rewatchability factor for Super 8 will be high, even when the surprises cease to have any effect after the first viewing. I think it is a superior movie by one of the most creative minds in Hollywood and I am looking forward to seeing what Abrams comes up with next.

Bob’s grade – 90%

J.J. Abrams’ latest adventure, Super 8, wants very much, and is pretty much engineered to be the feel-good summer blockbuster of an earlier, simpler time. The time before ‘Independence Day’ and ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ and ‘Hangover’ sequels literally exploded off the screen. And much like main character Joe Lamb’s (Joel Courtney) attempts to be noticed by Elle Fanning’s Alice, Abrams has assembled a very Spielbergian movie (the ‘Berg produced this) that seeks to to tap the wonder many of us felt upon seeing 80’s gems like ‘Jaws’, ‘Close Encounters’, ‘Raiders’ and ‘The Goonies’ and earn the approval of Stevie baby himself. And he largely succeeds, although the homage comes across as a little too calculated for me to elevate this to the pantheon of the greatest summer movies.

And make no mistake, this movie evokes some great feelings of movies and personal adventures past. It just so happens to also feature a rampaging monster. The references are almost too many to list here, but a few stood out for me, especially the blue lens flare effect any fan of John Carpenter movies will immediately recognize. And any movie that allows me to recall the fantastic Fat Albert Halloween special featuring Old Man Mudfoot is automatically a winner.

The first half of the film, which explores a group of young friends during the summer of 1979 who are hell-bent on creating the ultimate super-8 zombie movie, is truly a joy to watch. It will easily capture or re-capture the imagination of anyone who grew up plotting and pursuing similar adventures. The kids are naturals and have great chemistry. When the monster is introduced, the in-film movie-making takes an understandable backseat but for me the movie becomes slightly less interesting. To Abrams’ credit, he withholds on the creature for most of the film, opting for the sound ‘less is more’ strategy that helped make movies like ‘Jaws’ and ‘Halloween’ so effective.

‘Super 8’ is a fun and enjoyable film that ultimately falls short of being the summer movie of the year for me. That title is still held by ‘X-Men: First Class’ despite the lackluster box office.

Pete’s grade – 83%

Bobcast Episode 6 – Everything’s Super 8

How sweet is this poster?

In episode 6, Bob and Pete discuss the news of the week and review the newly released Super 8 in a spoiler free fashion. The guys also discuss what’s happening with old friends The Rock and Nicholas Cage, get a good laugh at the expense of the newest Twilight trailer, and try once and for all to figure out how the hell to pronounce Django Unchained.

Don’t forget to check us out on iTunes where you can download or subscribe to the ‘cast (http://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-bobcast/id436702751 ).  Hey, why not do both?

By the by, if you like the podcast, dislike the podcast, or would like to see us talk about something in particular, let us know.  Either comment below or hit us up on Twitter @BobDanger or @PCharbonneau21.  We are always listening, so thank you for doing the same.