'Outside the box' movie-making. Magnificent! Atmospheric, human, and artful. A classic movie for future ages.

Rating: 10/10 (30 June 2005)

Viewing this movie from the ordinary 'modern' audience perspective that enjoyed 'E.T.' or 'Independence Day' might have lead some to have been disappointed. Being able to switch your head around, though, and see this through new eyes will assure you a magnificent movie experience! Being true to the original Vicotorian-era H.G. Wells novel, and taking huge and courageous leaps of artistic risks that pay off handsomely for all of us, director Steven Spielberg has created an immense and awe-inspiring movie. He has clearly made a movie from 'outside the box'. Not everyone may appreciate this at first, perhaps, but eventually this will be seen as a breakthrough classic.
I've seen dozens of critic's remarks about this film prior to seeing it today, its opening day in Wales. Some appeared to like it because 'stuff blowed up real good', while others moaned that it was 'too dark', not at all sunny and cheerful, and it wasn't 'E.T.'. Still others criticized the movie because the Martian invasion wasn't 'practical' (which is wasn't), and the tactical and strategic behaviors of the Martian invaders were not logical (which they weren't). Well--- yeah. They are all correct--- the Martian killing machines were definitely Victorian. The sounds they made could well have been London-ish mechanical war sounds from the 1890s or so, if the English had built giant robots and invaded the rest of the planet at that time. Rather than being frustrated at the illogical details, or the evident lack of sound thinking on the Martians' part, I found all of that extremely atmospheric. It was frightening, thrilling, entertaining, and delightful.
Spielberg took a chance, and went in a direction he hadn't gone before. This is definitely 'outside the box' film making. Bravo! May all the critics who so often complain and moan about lack of originality in modern movies and Hollywood please try to reward an originator in this instance. I gave 'War of the Worlds' a well-deserved 10 out of 10.
P.S. Watch for the quickie cameo-homage appearance of Gene Barry and Ann Robinson, toward the end of the movie. They were the stars of the original film, the 1953 version of 'War of the Worlds'. An appropriate, classy, and fun move for Spielberg!