By Dave Montalbano
Two movies playing at our local cinemas are the commercially-hyped Super 8 and the critically-acclaimed Woody Allen movie Midnight in Paris. Both movies fulfill their dedicated audiences’ expectations.
Super 8, in part, is about some middle school students who produce a zombie film in small town Ohio, circa 1979, the year most Class of ’81 graduates earned their driver’s licenses. Production Assistant and model-maker Joe Lamb (Joel Courtney) is the troubled son of Deputy Jackson Lamb (Kyle Chandler), who is a recent widower. Deputy Lamb blames white trash Louis Dainard (Ron Eldard), whose daughter, Alice (Elle Fanning), is the leading lady of the boy’s Super 8 zombie opus.
To writer/director J.J. Abram’s credit, he has captured the joy of creative teamwork as the young people produce their movie inspired by George Romero. Discussion about plot, characters and audience empathy will make English teachers and film columnists hopeful towards the future of filmmaking. During the post-credit sequence, patient ticket buyers are rewarded with the punchline of the student’s masterpiece.
But, Super 8 splits between the teenagers’ movie making, Area 51 and a shadowy monster. The action sequences overall are well-directed with an important message about understanding and cooperation. Sadly, verisimilitude is lost when teenagers dodge train wrecks, tanks and explosions with nary a scratch.
Super 8 seems like an homage to producer Steven Spielberg’s earlier motion pictures like E.T: The Extra Terrestrial and Close Encounters of the Third Kind. In turn, Spielberg was inspired by films like Earth Vs. The
Saucers and The Day the Earth Stood Still. There is no denying that Super 8 will have a positive influence on today’s young people.
Woody Allen wears his intellectual and artistic influences on his sleeve in Midnight in Paris, a witty romantic comedy about a rich couple who visit France before their wedding. On a midnight stroll in the streets of Paris, Gil (Owen Wilson) encounters Ernest Hemingway. Heming-way invites Gil to a party that includes Gertrude Stein (Kathy Bates) and Salvador Dali (Adrien Brody) – three idols who died a few generations ago.
With gorgeous cinematography capturing the hues and colors of Monet, Midnight in Paris shares much in common with Super 8. Both films pay homage to nostalgia, while imploring their respective audiences to enjoy the manna of the day.
