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Posted on Fri, Jun 10, 2011 : 9:46 a.m.

J.J. Abrams' 'Super 8' movie hails Mackinac Island as 'beautiful' vacation hotspot

By Nathan Bomey

J.J. Abrams is, to put it simply, pure Michigan.

The "Lost" creator and movie director included an ode to the Great Lakes state into his latest film, "Super 8," which opens today.

super-8.png

"Super 8" opened with midnight screenings last night.

Paramount Pictures

The reference was impossible to miss at the midnight show last night at the Quality 16 theater in Scio Township. The movie, set in the 1970s, tells the story of several children who witness a suspicious train accident while filming an amateur thriller with an 8-millimeter video camera.

In a moment early in the film, a boy and a girl — playing a couple — are filming a scene while a train whirls by on nearby tracks.

"What am I supposed to do, go to Michigan with you," the boy yells.

"Mackinac Island is beautiful this time of year!" the girl responds.

The line drew a laugh and a smattering applause from the Ann Arbor area crowd.

There's nothing like a little free advertising for one of Michigan's most famous vacation hot spots, where fudge and a lack of motorized vehicles foster an old-fashioned feel.

It's not the first time the state has turned up in a production by Abrams, who wrote and directed "Super 8."

In "Lost," which Abrams co-created and initially helped write, the characters stranded on a mysterious island eventually found out that a secretive sect of scientists launched by two University of Michigan doctoral students had previously run myriad experiments on the island and its creatures.

And, for the skeptics out there, the Mackinac Island reference wasn't any sort of quid pro quo. "Super 8" was not filmed in Michigan and, thus, did not benefit from the state's film incentives package.

Contact AnnArbor.com's Nathan Bomey at (734) 623-2587 or nathanbomey@annarbor.com. You can also follow him on Twitter or subscribe to AnnArbor.com's newsletters.

Comments

Kai Petainen

Sat, Dec 3, 2011 : 3:36 a.m.

ha. just watched super 8. googled that line in the movie and this page came up.

SusanR

Sat, Jun 11, 2011 : 5:48 p.m.

I liked this news item. I liked the movie, which I saw yesterday afternoon. It fun and exciting and touching. Note to future viewers: stay in your seats when the credits start to roll.

MjC

Fri, Jun 10, 2011 : 5:18 p.m.

So... is it a good movie?

Randy Parrish

Fri, Jun 10, 2011 : 4:06 p.m.

I hate regular news this is great, keep it up!

buckley

Fri, Jun 10, 2011 : 3:43 p.m.

@ xmo Must be a REALLY slow day for you to comment on this article.

Christine Jefferies

Fri, Jun 10, 2011 : 3:24 p.m.

I'm glad annarbor.com chooses to write interesting stories without a tragic twist. Honestly the public needs more good to go along with all the negative.

xmo

Fri, Jun 10, 2011 : 2:49 p.m.

This must be a REALLY slow news day to write about stuff like this!

Steve

Sat, Jun 11, 2011 : 2:54 p.m.

This is precisely why I read AnnArbor.com: for the local-local stuff, which is always "slow" in the big picture. If anyone else agrees, please vote this up.

pvitaly

Fri, Jun 10, 2011 : 2:40 p.m.

There were also references to Ann Arbor on LOST.