Super 8 (2011)

During the summer of 1979, a group of friends witness a train crash and investigate subsequent unexplained events in their small town.

Director:

J.J. Abrams

Writer:

J.J. Abrams

Stars:

Elle Fanning, AJ Michalka, Kyle Chandler

11 wins & 68 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Joel Courtney	...	Joe Lamb
Jessica Tuck	...	Mrs. Kaznyk
Joel McKinnon Miller	...	Mr. Kaznyk
Ryan Lee	...	Cary
Zach Mills	...	Preston
Riley Griffiths	...	Charles Kaznyk
Gabriel Basso	...	Martin
Kyle Chandler	...	Deputy Jackson Lamb
Ron Eldard	...	Louis Dainard
AJ Michalka	...	Jen Kaznyk
Andrew Miller	...	Kaznyk Twin
Jakob Miller	...	Kaznyk Twin
Jade Griffiths	...	Benji Kaznyk
Britt Flatmo	...	Peg Kaznyk
Elle Fanning	...	Alice Dainard

Storyline

SPOILER: In the summer of 1979, a group of friends in a small Ohio town witness a catastrophic train crash while making a super 8 movie and soon suspect that it was not an accident. Shortly after, unusual disappearances and inexplicable events begin to take place in town, and the local Deputy tries to uncover the truth - something more terrifying than any of them could have imagined.

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Plot Keywords:

small town | ohio | cop | retro | reference to e.t. the extraterrestrial | 

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Taglines:

It arrives.

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Genres:

Mystery | Sci-Fi | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of sci-fi action and violence, language and some drug use

Details

Official Sites:

Official site [France] Official site [South Korea]

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

10 June 2011 (USA)

Also Known As:

Acadia

Filming Locations:

Agua Dulce, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$50,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$35,451,168, 12 June 2011, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$127,004,179

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$260,095,986

Company Credits

Production Co:

Paramount Pictures,Amblin Entertainment,Bad Robot

Technical Specs

Runtime:

112 min

Sound Mix:

SDDS Datasat Dolby Digital Dolby Surround 7.1

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

One of J.J. Abrams' favorite TV show episodes is Walking Distance of the series The Twilight Zone (1959). The Air Force's code name for the evacuation plan in the film is "Operation Walking Distance", which may pay homage to this episode.

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Goofs

When the boys break into a classroom at the school (at around 1h 14 mins), they break a window from a door and clear out all the glass. Later when the soldiers come in, the same door now has some of the glass still there (at around 1h 17 mins).

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Quotes

[first lines]
Mrs. Kaznyk: I'm so worried for that boy.
Mr. Kaznyk: Joe's gonna be okay.
Mrs. Kaznyk: She was everything to him.
Mr. Kaznyk: Jack's gonna step up. He's a good man.
Mrs. Kaznyk: But he's never had to be a father before. I don't think he understands Joe.

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Crazy Credits

After the end credits finish rolling and the Knack's My Sharona simultaneously finishes playing, a small piece of Michael Giacchino's score begins to play over a black screen and then end over the Paramount logo.

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Connections

References The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974)

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Soundtracks

Don't Bring Me Down
Written by Jeff Lynne
Performed by Electric Light Orchestra
Courtesy of Epic Records
By arrangement with Sony Music Publishing

User Reviews

Mixing Their Trademarks

The concept of "Super 8" is combining the elements of J.J. Abrams and Steven Spielberg. The trailer made you think it's like E.T. plus Cloverfield. Well, it's true. There is nothing new about "Super 8" but it brought us back to the good old classic times, it's funny, it's exciting, and it's amazing.

"Super 8" is another intriguing monster movie by J.J. Abrams. Yes, you really wanna know what it looks like but I'm not gonna tell you. The sad thing is it's not as intriguing as Cloverfield. But It's easy to ignore that problem because there is something better than being another Cloverfield. It feels like you are watching a good old classic movie. Great characters, Good old fashion score, and kids intrigued by the situation.

The story is really about the characters' zombie movie making and the family tragedy while there's a monster attacking their town. The monster is like the background or the subplot of this film. But the movie still got suspense. The movie is indeed beautiful and plenty of heart. The movie is just nostalgic stuff. It's not trying to be new. It just wants to show how J.J. Abrams is inspired by Steven Spielberg's movies.

There are some amazing scenes in this film. Example, the train collision was breathtaking. The movie sure has a lot of humor. It's like a relic to the old family movies. The CGI is good enough. The performances were good. The kids gave a lot of personality to their roles.

"Super 8" is a J.J. Abrams film with Spielberg's trademarks all over it. It's not a blockbuster that has a lot of action and less talking. This movie is made in old fashion style. Yep, this movie is nostalgic if you saw Spielberg's old movies and it's good to see another one like it.

Note: There is something interesting in the credits. You might wanna check it out.