Thursday, December 1, 2011

#1106: Super 8

11:32 PM / Blu-ray / Comments8 Comments

BD

(BD, Paramount, Region ABC, USA)

 
8 Comments

1. Matthew McKinnon said:

I will be very... very... interested to hear your opinion on this.

(Posted on Friday, December 2, 2011 at 12:05 PM)

2. Paku said:

Saw it once in theatres and once on Blu, and personally I loved it. It is not perfect, it is not entirely original, and has a bit too much noticeable CGI at the end, but too me it felt like a really well-done, proper, classic movie, like I haven't seen in quite a while.

No choreographed fights, CGI robots, superheroes, low-brow humor or constant need to be modern and cool, just a really exciting, suspenseful adventure. The kids are great, it looks fantastic and it feels very cinematic, human and emotional without Disney-level sappiness and shoving political correctness down your throat.

Plus it has a couple of beautiful, recurring themes in the score, and I kind of miss that. Often scores are competent but once the movie is over you forget what type of music it had. I know that for me, memorable and recognizable themes are one of the most effective ways to create an emotional connection even after the film is over.

(Posted on Saturday, December 3, 2011 at 4:21 PM)

3. Matthew McKinnon said:

Hmmm. My opinion was somewhat different. I look forward to some debate on this.

(Posted on Saturday, December 3, 2011 at 7:37 PM)

4. Kentai said:

I haven't seen the film myself, but the description a friend of mine gave me having just watched it had me in stitches:

"Watching SUPER 8 is kind of like you're sitting next to a guy who's jabbing you with his elbow saying Hey! Hey, remember The Goonies? Wasn't The Goonies awesome? Isn't this EXACTLY like The Goonies? Yeah, I do remember The Goonies. Yeah, it's awesome. But this? F**k this. This is not The Goonies - not even close."

Still, I'm sure I'll give it a look... eventually.

(Posted on Sunday, December 4, 2011 at 1:03 AM)

5. David M said:

I have the opportunity to watch this pan-and-scanned (remember that?) on the plane on the 12 hour flight. Hmm. Think I will wait!

(Posted on Sunday, December 4, 2011 at 3:27 AM)

6. Author Profile Page Michael said:

Wait, pan and scanned movies still exist?

I watched it the other night, really enjoyed it. Yeah, totally derivative of late 70s/early 80s Spielberg, but incredibly well put together and, like Paku said, willing to treat the audience with respect. As for the lack of political correctness, I take it you're referring to the scene where Joe slaps an unconscious Elle Fanning to bring her round? ;)

(Posted on Sunday, December 4, 2011 at 1:59 PM)

7. Matthew McKinnon said:

Yes, they do have pan & scan, for 'planes. I had to do a pan & scan of a film I edited once, and it was quite fun - always wanted to see how to deal with the challenge of cropping a 2.35:1 frame. And when you have to fit the picture into a little screen on the back of a chair, with the picture quality of a bootleg DVD, it's not such a great loss.

'Super 8' was a colossal failure for me. I'm of the exact target audience age-group [I was 11 for ET and it's burned into my psyche - man-tears are still shed on the rare occasion I can summon up the courage to watch it], but I ended up hating this.
The kids are OK, but I never warmed to them. The FX are good, particularly the train-crash, though the monster was too predictable 'Cloverfield' to make much of an impact.
The photography is great [I have a newfound respect for Larry Fong, who I'd previously thought was a so-so green-screen photographer - but the work here with real people and places is lovely]. But it just seemed to take forever to get anywhere, rambled aimlessly for the middle act, and lost me utterly at the point when - SPOILER AHEAD

we were supposed to be terrified of the monster which had just abducted and eaten townsfolk [right in front of us!], and then feel for it as if it were ET when we find out is just wants to go home.

I just couldn't make that emotional leap. I mean, come on. This thing is super-intelligent, and knows we're also fairly intelligent [if brutal], and it thinks it's OK to eat us? And we go along with that?
Then the ending which was less Spielberg, and more like a third-rate Amblin ['Batteries Not Included'?]. No. Not nearly good enough.

Maybe it's because I never got 'Goonies'. It just never connected. I went to see it, of course, but I went on a date, and I had other things on my mind.

(Posted on Sunday, December 4, 2011 at 6:11 PM)

8. Paku said:

I didn't have the slapping scene in mind regarding the PC, though that would be part of it.

But if Disney had gotten their hands on it, you just know it would have been rated PG, one kid would have been black, one kid would have been Asian, one kid would be in crutches or a wheelchair, and there would be a loyal dog in a bow tie acting as boom operator (OK a little unfair towards Disney, but you get the point.)

(Posted on Sunday, December 4, 2011 at 11:24 PM)

 
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