Super 8

Well acted for an action movie. The kids are all really interesting and likeable. Elle Fanning actually really gets to show off her acting chops in a couple of scenes I can think of. Really enjoyed Abrams' directing so at the very least I'm personally very partial to his style. This isn't a beginning to end mindless action flick so for some there may be gaps between the action that may seem a bit long if that's solely what they went to the movie for. The story itself is simple enough, yet intelligent and logical. I like that thrown into my action movies, personally. However, when there is action it looks pretty spectacular and feels like a just reward for your patience in allowing for some character development and a piecing together of events leading up to the climax. It was a toss up between 8 or 9 for me because I give extra weight to my score for any action movie that makes an attempt to avoid being completely stupid just because there are lots of wonderful bells and whistles to distract us from the fact it's not exactly Shakespeare.