Huge Disappointment

Rating: 5/10 (9 July 2005)

With Spielberg directing, Cruise as the star, and material based on a classic alien invasion novel one would think that War of the Worlds would not only be an entertaining summer blockbuster, but that it would ultimately be a quality, well crafted film. Sadly War of the Worlds is neither.
My problem with the film is not the so called plot holes many are blaming, nor is it Spielberg's choice to tell the story from one man's point of view. In fact I think this decision was both smart and brave, allowing for the telling of a different, more personal, kind of Alien invasion story than previous movies such as Independence Day. However, WotW does not succeed in this endeavor. The acting in the film is fair by Cruise and his cast-mates, but the characters are too simple and clichéd. Spielberg returns his focus to the broken family, a theme that he's used as a backbone to many of his previous films successfully. However, in this movie, none of the character are fully developed, making the central family story in this film rather boring.
I was initially intrigued when Spielberg called this film more of a horror film than an action film. And though the special effects were impressive, in my opinion the tripods and aliens began to look silly after a while. The audience I saw it with seemed to have the same reaction as people actually began to laugh at the tripods.
My final complaint with the film is its obviously rushed ending. It became painfully obvious that Spielberg did not take his time to make a great film, opting instead to value the potential financial success that comes with any blockbuster opening during the July 4th weekend.