Rating of
3/4
No Spielberg masterpiece, but still entertaining
mitchellyoung - wrote on 07/11/11
The first 2/3rds of this movie is awesome, a nostalgic throwback coming of age tale that is reminiscent of equal parts ET and Stand by Me. JJ Abrams is obviously drawing comparisons to Spielberg and with the first portion of the film, he succeeds. The subtle humor blends well with some genuinely heartfelt scenes and the dedication of the group of kids to creating the perfect low budget zombie movie will also thrill cinephiles. However, in the last third, the film loses focus, as the battle between the alien and military takes more of a forefront and the kids take a backseat in the film. In the hands of a lesser director, the decision to make the alien an almost sympathetic and misunderstood character (after he's killed several townsfolk and military, I know) would be ludicrous, but JJ almost pulls it off with his earnest direction. Still, the magic of the first half of the film isn't recaptured and that is what keeps this movie from being a great film instead of just a pretty good one.
