More and more frequently, people are turning to various cable and satellite services for brand new movies, instead of heading out to stores to buy DVDs. But, fortunately, this does not mean we have to wait any longer for new releases. In fact, in many cases, services and TV packages like those you can find at directstartv.com can actually bring new movies to our home screens more quickly than anything else. This means that many of this past summers biggest films are already available to watch in your living rooms. For example, consider a film like Super 8, which was deemed an instant classic by many critics, this critic personally disagrees, but hey, it’s worth looking into!
Super 8 was described by some as Stephen Spielberg’s Baby. Implying that the incredibly accomplished producer put a lot of personal stake in the film, in an effort to make it one of the more memorable products in his extensive catalogue. Indeed, the film was also called a modern E.T. by many critics and fans, further attaching it to the genius level of production we have come to expect from Mr. Spielberg. In fact, the film was so attached to the Hollywood stars name, that it seems to have led to a bit of unbalanced reviewing, and perhaps a bit too much generosity from many critics.
The film starts off with a bang, and its first 30 minutes are not only entertaining, but unique and immensely intriguing. Essentially, the beginning follows a group of kids filming a video together, when they are interrupted, and nearly killed, by a monstrous train crash. Within a day, their small town is completely overrun with government officials looking to contain the contents of the trains cargo‚ however, one of the young boys who was at the site of the crash has taken a small piece of this cargo as a souvenir. The town becomes shrouded in controlled chaos, and intrigue builds as strange activity keeps occurring and people begin to disappear.
Unfortunately, from this point on the film spirals downward into a disappointing mire of old, tried, and entirely unoriginal revelations and conclusions. Without spoiling the ending, it is gradually revealed that a large, threatening alien is on the loose in the town, and that it is attempting (through various means) to reconstruct a ship that will lead it back home. This plot while displayed in a relatively appealing fashion, has been done before, and completely crushes the illusion of originality created by the first half of the film. It is not entirely a waste of time, but this film, one would suspect, would not have been nearly as highly reviewed had it not been so attached to Spielberg’s name. One thing to note? Spielberg did not even direct this film, he merely produced it!
