The Chances Were 168 Million to One, but Still They Came

Rating: 8/10 (19 July 2005)

You've waited a lifetime for something and when it materializes the result is an invariable ho-hum lack of decisiveness. Did you like it? Was the thing worth waiting for? There are no easy answers to these questions, just as there's no easy answer as to how come a civilization capable of mounting interstellar invasions succumbs to mere bacteria.
Spielberg's WOTW says it's based on HG Wells' watershed story, but in actuality suffers from a case of schizophrenia. The motion picture before us can't decide if it's faithful to the novel, the 1953 Byron Haskin/George Pal rendition, or even Jeff Wayne's supremely enjoyable musical version of 1978. Maybe they were trying to homage all of these sources, but the ensuing concoction leaves this WOTW devotee a bit shortchanged and head-scratching.
To their credit we must say the aliens as seen herein do initially impress, clad in superlative reworkings of those infernal tripod fighting machines everybody loves so much (shielded, just like in the previous movie version and TV show as well). There's no ululating battle cry, but an even more bone-jarring bellow that'll stick with you long after you've seen the film. However, this incarnation of the story obviously tailors itself to blockbuster pundits, and not to the benefit of those who've spent lifetimes waiting for Wells to be put on the big screen again. If you expect handling machines, black smoke, artillery battles and even the hinted-at flying aliens, forget it. All you're getting here are huge tripod walkers armed with something that's somewhat like a hit ray device, and the red weed.
And despite Morgan Freeman recapping what sounds like the opening lines from the novel/musical version/1938 radio broadcast, the movie doesn't straight feature Martians. We get a brief reference to the red planet, but that's it. Actually, in keeping with Dawn of the Dead's insistence on never even mentioning the word "zombie", WOTW likewise avoids dabbling with "aliens". They're simply referred to as "they" most of the time.
But there is loyalty to the original story here after all. Ray Ferrier (Cruise) is a working stiff at the docks and serious Mustang fanatic who's into rebuilding engines on his dinner table. Anyway, Ferrier's ex wife drops off their two children at his suburban New Jersey home. This immediately brings to mind the Martians' knack for landing in the burbs, as well as their infamous Grove Mills, NJ failed invasion. The three (ah, another important element: tripods) dysfunctional family members soon find themselves brought together by a world under attack from mysterious invaders preceded by technology-debilitating, EMP-infused lightning storms.
After the invasion begins, the Ferriers make a beeline for Boston, where alleged safety awaits, much like the narrator from Wells' text headed for London. Along the way they encounter other ingredients from the Worlds universe, like the rout of mankind and streams of stumbling refugees, a ferry ride equating the book's steamer escape, crossing a river with tripods all over the place as did the narrator, and of course hiding in a basement with Tim Robbins. He's playing a guy called Ogilvy, who of course was the narrator's friend and astronomer from the novel. Here the character brings together two personas. One's the deranged artilleryman, dreaming of resistance and a brave new world. The other's similar to the curate, obsessed with survival and the invaders' evils. This scene also resurrects the 1953 movie's alien camera probe sequence, as well as introduces the aliens up close. These guys are all right, but too conveniently familiar from previous works like Independence Day, and do not feel anything like Martian imperialists.
But many important pieces are missing. There's no Thunderchild or any such Great Last Hope of Humanity. In fact, since the story focuses exclusively on one family, viewers get almost none of the shocking coverage we went in expecting to get. Only briefly do we witness the military trying to fight against the interlopers, but overall the lack of a true battle scene resonates throughout the movie, leaving a vacuum. This compounds the fact that invaders are only ever shown to use tripods. A bit of a restricted view, but it can be explained away as a consequence of recounting the tale from a personal standpoint. At least aficionados can take heart in this production deciding to incorporate the Martians' blood lust, although here they have a different use for humanity's liquid essence. And to be fair, this WOTW still packs a punch in spite of its limitations. Just don't go in there as an all-out War of the Worlds lifer, as you'll soon be crying blasphemy in light of their horrible choice of a schmaltzy happy ending.
Certainly a version depicting Martians walking all over the Earth in an NC-17 reiteration brimming with all the resident WOTW minutiae would have been better. In terms of acting, they're all pretty believable, even the semi-neurotic daughter figure done by Dakota Fanning and her distinctly one dimensional brother (Justin Chatwin). Cruise himself does well, with a few instances of undue slacker-like behavior.
WOTW isn't a bad flick, nor is it really good. For the bulk of moviegoers, it probably serves its purpose well. A handful of moments in this movie really do make a serious genre addict smile privately in the cinematic darkness. There aren't too many of these pristine revelations, but when that first tripod unleashes its bass-heavy call to arms, or when a small Hudson-side town is decimated to the merriment of air raid sirens, you'll just figure 1898 to 2005 wasn't such a bad way to mark time in waiting.
Problem is, with this one out it's doubtful we'll be getting another big-budget WOTW, but who knows. Plus there's two other projects based on the story out this very moment. And no one could have believed that, let me tell you.
Rating: * * * 1/2