War of the Worlds

IMDB
First time viewed: No
Current Release: No
Watched With: Belinda

I grew up with the 1953 film and I love it dearly. Clearly Spielberg does as well and there are many homages to it in much of his work, especially here. But despite the modern setting and obligatory addition of kids for a father/son relationship that is apparently mandatory now, this film is surprisingly faithful to the original novel, more than the George Pal film in my opinion.

It manages to keep all the major beats of the novel and throws our characters into more of the action rather than just being observers and reporters. But it still keeps everything grounded and shot from an eyewitness account perspective. There's no big cheesy shots of national monuments being destroyed. It's also a very post-9/11 take on the story. A lot of ashy imagery and handheld camera work, and a big downed plane that I recall at the time was greeted with audible gasps from the audience.

Oh man I love Tripods so much, and these guys are the best on-screen renditions so far. Great sound design for them too. Much have been a bitch for ILM to composite into Janusz Kaminski's bloomy highlights. Yeesh.

Love the update on the farmhouse scene. Love the two big single take shots, first when the heat rays start up and second, that crazy car shot. The Ferry scene is great stuff. Love that they finally included the red weed.

But the most horrifying moment for me is always being mobbed in the car. The crowds of displaced people are kind of terrifying. I remember the descriptions from the book and I think they captured it in an even more visceral sense.

I don't care much for Tom Cruise. Or for Justin Chatwin. But the rest is all good.

We went and saw a concert of the musical version straight after. Kitschy nostalgic fun. But the two film adaptations are more my style.