MovieChat Forums > War of the Worlds (2005) Discussion > Does it seem like they went out of their...

Does it seem like they went out of their way to make a bad movie here?


I admit, some of this movie was interesting and engrossing, until it starts to come together in what is a pretty blah and kind of silly plot.

Hollywood can put together some pretty amazing visuals and effects. It really started in 1968 with 2001 when Stanley Kubrick opened whole new universes of movie fantasy with what was really a science fiction movie that was made deliberately impossible to understand.

Out of that movie came this whole subsection of cinema that was more about the effects and especially effect that appealed to the viewers subconscious mind that could formulate a feeling and a story about that, ignoring what was in the movie plot for the most part.

Some of them were absurdly silly like Barbarella, some of them were coldly real like Alien, but mostly all, with the possible exceptions of 2001, really were empty movies that did not require writing of acting skill, just off-camera nerd model-making and special effects conceptual talent.

War of the Worlds since the time of the Gene Barry movie, was a good story. Even though it could be easily described and was a simple kind of story, it was a good one. Rather than develop something deeper and more interesting here they just made something faster and more confusing, not necessarily better or more meaningful or memorable.

reply

This is the problem with remaking a 10 rated original, it is hard to top.

If this movie had no relationship to the original War of the Worlds, it is a interesting family "Everyman" drama.

But is does, so people naturally compare the two.






reply

It wasn't an oscar contender for sure but I enjoyed it :) The only thing that really ruined it for me were the kids. I hated them both and Dakota Fanning was just the worst! I kept hoping he would leave them both behind, lol.

Take care! :)

reply

You enjoyed it, but the kids ruined it? You have fully embraced cognitive dissonance to the maximum extent allowed by law ... congratulations! ;-)

reply

Lol, hey I was tired and on only 3 hours of sleep after a 16 hour work day! :-P

I just meant that I enjoyed it and would have enjoyed it more if the kids were not in it :)

reply

I get it, and I agree with you. They put kids in these movies to get parents to take their kids and spend more money. They pander to the kids too to make them subconsciously love the movie world so when they grow up and have money of their own they will spend it on movies that validated their existence! Cheers PP

reply

I agree with you! I actually took my daughter to see this, she was 10 at the time. It scared her terribly and I felt so bad for not having researched it more.

Take care! :)

reply

It's horrible on so many levels. Typical Spielberg schmaltz.

reply

It wasn't a bad movie at all. In fact it's highly underrated imo. It was not a confusing movie as well.

reply