"I'm dead set on living."

Rating: 6/10 (13 June 2014)

This is a surprisingly decent remake of the 1953 classic. I suppose it would be more accurate to say that it's another adaptation of H.G. Wells' novel rather than a remake of the older film. Although both movies change a lot of things from the novel, this one actually is the more faithful of the two, for those of you who are passionate about movies adapted from books being as close to the source material as possible. I'm not really one of those. I will only nitpick the changes a movie makes when they are moronic and vastly inferior to the book.
The cast is mixed. Tom Cruise manages to be believable playing a blue collar guy, contrary to what some reviewers have said. Dakota Fanning is hard to dislike but her 'precocious child who talks like an adult' bit is a little on the annoying side. But nowhere near as annoying as Justin Chatwin as Cruise's angry son. We get it, kid. Your dad isn't the greatest. Well, you're a little old to be acting like such a brat so why not grow and shut up already? The special effects are terrific. Steven Spielberg does a good job building the suspense and tension throughout. It is a dark movie, so those going into it expecting a special effects blockbuster with humor, romance, and all that thrown in might be disappointed. But it's still a Spielberg movie so it's not exactly nihilistic. All in all, it's a good film. Not a great one and not as much fun as the George Pal film but still worth your time.