Spielberg Gives Realism to War of the Worlds

Rating: 10/10 (1 July 2005)

Sometimes I go to a movie expecting that it will be horribly boring and it surprises me. Other times, I go to a movie expecting it to be good and it is extremely disappointing. This movie, however, turned out to be one of those rare occasions when I anticipated that it was going to be good, I was excited to see it, and amazingly enough it still managed to surprise me by how awesome it was.
Spielberg made an extremely intelligent move by limiting the amount of film that we see in the previews. I had no idea what was going to happen at any given time during the movie, which was refreshing and added to the suspense. I won't do the film an injustice by giving anything away in this review, as I believe that seeing this movie from such an unfamiliar viewpoint allowed me to truly be surprised by what I was seeing.
I was literally on the edge of my seat for nearly the entire duration of the film. The first half hour was beyond suspenseful, and I found myself wide-eyed and mouth open for a solid 20 minutes. The effects in this movie were simply astounding, and for once, not overdone (*cough* George Lucas!). Steven Spielberg was brilliant in his execution of the effects, in that they look real as opposed to being blatantly CGI, and the movie does not depend on them for its visual appeal. The acting was well done, and no matter what your opinion on Tom Cruise, one can't deny that he plays his role in this movie quite well. I wouldn't say that any of the roles were necessarily difficult to play, but if the actors hadn't been so competent in their performances then I don't believe I would have been quite so captivated by the film. Every aspect of War of the Worlds combined to draw me in completely, so that it almost seemed like I was watching some horrific documentary. It's my understanding that the famous radio broadcast of this story in 1938 was mistakenly taken by thousands of listeners as a description of real events, causing widespread panic. What I like about this movie was that it seems as though Spielberg wanted to create the same believability of the story, which is perhaps why the special effects are more subtle and the camera angles taken in many instances from the perspective that a news camera would have. Combined with realistic acting that didn't seem forced but jarringly natural, and the film took on the documentary feel that I mentioned earlier.
As I said, I don't want to ruin anything for you, so I can't give any examples of the things that I found to be most powerful in the movie, but there were several moments when I actually verbalized my astonishment. The actions and details on which Spielberg chooses to focus were stunningly powerful in their subtlety, as it's not hard to imagine them actually happening. The actors strengthen these parts with their reactions to the events surrounding them, behaving exactly as one would expect in times of panic and complete hysteria. The lightening storm at the very beginning of the movie (as seen in the previews), is a perfect example of this, as people cannot help but stand outside and watch despite the obvious danger. Events change quickly from merely strange to absolutely sinister, and the characters are forced to face a very ominous future.
I have never read War of the Worlds, but apparently this movie stays very true to the book and its illustrations, including the ending. This conclusion of the story might bother some viewers in its abruptness, but as they say, "if it ain't broke, don't fix it." (*cough cough* George Lucas!) I want to see this film in the theater again. I highly, highly recommend that you see War of the Worlds as well, but given the way this movie looks, sounds and feels, I don't suggest that you wait until it comes out on DVD. The first time you see it should be in the theaters, trust me.
Oh yeah, and much as I like most of your movies, M. Night Shyamalan, take notes buddy. Take notes.