A mixed bag of tricks

Rating: 4/10 (23 August 2006)

In the first fifteen minutes there was genuine terror and suspense. The activity in the sky, the ear-shattering thunder that isn't quite normal, the wind and the electronic gadgets all going haywire. I settled into my chair and waited for the explanation to unfold. But nothing really came through.
We have a father and his children on the road as the world goes to war with a faceless fiend. The story didn't seem clear. We had bits and pieces of what was happening but not the whole big picture. Perhaps that was the intent. Like the main character (a Mr. Yahoo if ever there was one) perhaps we were meant to be in the dark too.
If that is the case, then everything that is thrown at the characters is in turn thrown at us. Perhaps that is why some of the things Mr. Yahoo did made no sense. The small scene at the farm with Mr. Robbins and Mr. Yahoo really bothered me. Mr. Yahoo's ultimate action was a pox upon mankind. A telegraphed message implying that humanity was lost and returned to a more animalistic version of man. I didn't like that. I wanted them to bond.I guess, I wanted an honest story of man vs. alien -- not man against man. Again this might have been exactly what Mr. Spielberg wanted us to feel.
Like the anti-hero, the movie had no narrative. We simply followed Mr. Yahoo as he met others who were as clueless as himself. Frightening moments were dumped in our laps but all of them seem to be out of traditional story-telling context. It was like a road picture with horrific visions, death and torture along the way until he was able to hand over his kids to his ex-wife.
Certain elements were not given worthy explanations --period! The red weeds, falling bodies, blood-sucking tentacles and this complete social breakdown of humanity, communication etc. Furthermore, seeing the little creatures bouncing around the neighborhood felt wrong. In fact, when they appeared it pulled me out of the movie. From the farm scene to the end I was disconnected with the piece and ultimately unsatisfied with its odd storybook ending. So what? Boston remained untouched? Mr. Yahoo's son made it there by himself? The ex-wife and her family were all dressed up like they were going to church? They seemed relaxed and unaffected by the mass-turmoil. Huh?
Was Mr. Spielberg telling us we as a people suck and have no redeeming qualities in the face of the destruction of our own civilization? I hope not.