Everything you would expect from a summer blockbuster.

Rating: 8/10 (1 July 2005)

After what seemed like years and years of listening to anti-Tom Cruise press, I walked into my local movie theater yesterday wanting to see War of the Worlds just so I could put this whole fiasco behind me. However, I was pleasantly surprised. Tom Cruise and Steven Spielberg have united to give audiences a film that is probably the most thrilling and entertaining of all the movies in this summer's stellar lineup.
The film's strongest point is it's realistic portrayal of America in a time of severe crisis. Spielberg shows a country full of citizens in full blown survival mode, where morality and decency seem to no longer exist, and as an audience member you find yourself sadly realizing that the horrors on the screen are probably what would happen. This alone makes it much different than Hollywood's more recent alien blockbusters. Independence Day wanted you to believe that Americans would quickly unite against a common enemy, and Signs wanted you to think that people would be too shocked to do anything at all, neither of which seem as accurate as War of the Worlds.
Perhaps the film's biggest mistake is it's characters, none of whom come off as appealing or likable. From the beginning, Tom Cruise's character, Ray, is regarded as somewhat of a deadbeat dad, making him instantly unappealing. His son, Robbie, is a rebellious teenager who at first appears to have some legitimate depth as a character, but then quickly descends into a world of clichés. Dakota Fanning once again delivers a spectacular performance as Ray's daughter Rachel. It's just too bad her character had to be so annoying. The screenwriters have Dakota spend so much time yelling and whining that eventually you stop caring when her character is in danger, because her death might be a little bit easier on your ears. Tim Robbins drops in as one of the few supporting characters in the film, an older man hiding out from the aliens in his basement. From the second Robbins appears on screen, you know what his character's purpose is, but the movie does a good job of keeping him from becoming a walking stereotype.
Despite it's character troubles, War of the Worlds delivers where summer blockbuster's are supposed to - in entertainment. It's an exciting movie from start to finish. If you like alien movies, you will especially love War of the Worlds. Better then Indepence Day, and almost as good as Signs, it will go down as one of the all time invasion classics. War of the Worlds is so engaging and realistic, I can't imagine anyone disliking the film.