With monsters, magic, aliens and super heroes crowding the theaters this summer, Super 8 will stand alone in giving us a needed taste of where the summer blockbuster began. While it’s no secret that director J.J. Abrams (Star Trek, Mission Impossible 3) was working on a Steven Spielberg-esque movie, even the less fanatical viewers should be pleasantly surprised by a sense of nostalgia for storytelling that feels all too familiar. It’s a deliberate, but spectacular throwback from top to bottom.

Its charismatic group of young heroes are key witnesses to a spectacular train crash and government cover up. As they investigate the mystery while finishing their amateur film, strange events and sightings are causing chaos and confusion. People are disappearing, lights are flickering, cars and washing machines are being scrapped for parts and thrown into the air. All reasonable concerns in a perfectly ordinary 1979 Ohio community. Juicy government secrets are revealed at a pretty steady rate to keep you going. All of which build to a predictable, but much appreciated and deserved finale.

Everything from photography style to the theme music is inspired by classics such as, E.T., and Close Encounters. Withholding a clear look at the creature until the last half hour has almost become a rule since Jaws.

The ensemble of kids resemble a compact version of the Goonies. The squad was well cast. Not really acting, but simply behaving as kids do, throwing food and making fun of each other. Being a film crew gave each of them their own distinct personality and specialty.

The innocent romance between the main character, Joe Lamb (Joel Courtney) and Alice Dainard (Elle Fanning), is well handled, and gives the gang proper motivation to go back into a war zone.

The adults are there to keep the story serious. They stay where they should most of the time and usually represent obstacles for the children. Joe is forbidden by his father from seeing Alice, and the military serves its purpose by strong arming everyone in sight.

The special effects sequences, especially the train crash, are extremely well choreographed, but less than top quality. Not distracting, but perfectly loud and suspenseful. They progress the story with a pronounced amount of danger for the group of kids. Dodging explosions, falling train cars and tanks can’t be easy.

Both written and directed by Abrams, his mark on the movie’s mystery and action is obvious. The marketing was viral, sporadic, and revealed almost nothing about the movie, along with the title. The action served the story well when the kids were in danger of being crushed.

It’s a good summer movie, and wouldn’t work as well if released at any other time. In Super 8, moviegoers should have everything they need. A mysterious event, a cruel military, and a group of curious to uncover the truth.

It’s an appropriate movie for anyone at least as old as the children in it. Spielberg fan, or not. Abrams fan, or not. However, people die, so it’s not E.T. There’s no ocean, so it’s not Jaws. The creature is actually cool, so it’s not Close Encounters. And there’s no Fratelli gang, so it’s not The Goonies. Abrams creates his own story, and he does it well. It’s a knock off, yes. But it’s an original knock off.