Review of War Of The Worlds (Special Edition) (Two Discs)

Introduction

The remake really bothers me. I don`t know if it is a sign of trouble in paradise, a symptom of a lack of originality, a general malaise, or a desire to invest in the `sure thing`, but when Hollywood announces yet another visit to a familiar property, I always approach it with a negative outlook, expecting the worst. It`s not as if it is a new thing, Hollywood has been remaking movies from almost the first day a camera rolled in Tinseltown, but when movies that are pretty damned good in the first place are lined up for a CGI makeover, I begin to lament. The latest films rumoured for the treatment are the original Robocop and Predator. What`s wrong with the originals in the first place? The War Of The Worlds is another of those films that has me scratching my head in confusion. Since H.G. Wells` novel first thrilled readers with his classic tale of alien invasion, it`s a theme that has inspired many a B movie and television series. Wells` iconic novel has itself seen more than one adaptation, The Orson Welles radio broadcast, the Jeff Wayne album, and the 1953 George Pal film, which itself span off a short lived television series in the eighties. When I think of The War Of The Worlds, it is the 50s film that remains at the forefront of my mind, having had a powerful effect on me when I first saw it as a child. The hovering Manta rays and the scream of the energy weapon will forever be associated with Wells` story in my mind, which is why I find myself wondering what prompted the remake, or rather new adaptation of the original book. On the other hand, there is the presence of Steven Spielberg at the helm. Just as Peter Jackson is helming the new version of King Kong, the presence of a director of Spielberg`s stature automatically lends the project a certain weight. The question is, does Spielberg manage to make this a unique and worthy adaptation of the original novel, presenting something new to audiences, or is it just another superfluous remake? With negative preconceptions firmly in place, here goes.

Ray Ferrier is a down to earth dockworker living in New Jersey, watching his life head rapidly to nowhere in particular. When his ex-wife shows up with the kids for him to look after while she visits her parents in Boston, it seems like a few days of dysfunctional family antics. All that changes however, when a strange storm forms over the city, and lightning begins striking in particular places. Soon, gargantuan alien tripods are climbing out of the ground, and energy beams are disintegrating all and sundry. Ray`s only concern is to protect his family, and he bundles daughter Rachel and son Robbie into the only car left working, and heads off to Boston in an attempt to reunite the family. Meanwhile civilisation falls apart as aliens take over the world.

Video

I didn`t see War Of The Worlds theatrically, but I`m assuming that the 1.85:1 anamorphic transfer does the film justice. It should do, with Disc 1 devoted solely to the film and its soundtracks to maximise the bitrate. The image is certainly consistent throughout, clear and sharp with no artefacts that I could notice. The effects are suitably impressive, with pixel perfect CGI goodness applied to the arrival of the aliens and the havoc they wreak. This is one film where the real and the digital world meld seamlessly, and at no point was I even tempted to point out, "that`s an effects shot".

Spielberg states in the extras that he wished to achieve a hyperrealism, and he certainly has done so, with aliens looking as real as they have ever done so on screen. But that has come at a price. Just like Minority Report, that realism means that the film has gone through the wringer on its journey to the screen. This film has that pseudo-documentary look that leaches all the colour out of the image, adds a bit of camera shake and a little overexposure, so that some scenes look deliberately blurred, or faces so brightly exposed that they halo. Hyperreality is all well and good, but I do miss a little clarity in the films that I watch.

Audio

Viewers are spoilt for choice with DD 5.1 and DTS English soundtracks. You can expect some serious surround sound goodness in this film, with the destruction and mayhem making themselves felt around the soundstage. You know that you are in for another Spielberg thrill ride when the eerie lightning begins to strike. Add to that a gripping John Williams track, delivered with understated efficiency. The tripods have their own character in this film, with a hooting bellow that sends chills down the spines of the protagonists, and signals another explosion of eye candy. The dialogue is clear throughout, and there are subtitles in 7 languages, plus an addition English HOH track.

Features

Both discs have simple, almost static menus with animated transitions, coupled with John Williams` themes. But the extras are confined to Disc 2 alone; still no commentary from Steven Spielberg.

If you like featurettes then you are in heaven with disc 2, because that is all it contains. There are enough featurettes to outlast the movie`s running time though.

Revisiting the Invasion (7:40)
Steven Spielberg talks about revisiting the War Of The Worlds property after 50 years, with clips from the original movie. He states that with the world in the aftermath of 9/11 it`s possible to reinterpret the story as opposed to the original Red Menace allegory from the first film. There`s added input from Tom Cruise, as well as screenwriter David Koepp, who discusses writing a script sans cliché.

The H. G. Wells Legacy (6:40)
The descendants of the novelist talk about the man, his life and his work. They also meet Steven Spielberg on set, and are especially thrilled to see the tripods of the original novel finally make it on screen.

Steven Spielberg and the Original War Of The Worlds (8:00)
The stars of the original film, Gene Barry and Ann Robinson have cameos in the new film, and here they speak about their roles in the original film. Some of the crew also speak about how the original film influenced their careers.

Characters: The Family Unit (13:20)
A little bit of mutual backslapping is justified for Spielberg and Cruise, but we also learn how the rest of the characters were cast, as well as added input from the costume designer on how their looks were achieved and evolved through the film.

Previsualisation (7:45)
In which George Lucas introduces Steven Spielberg to a whole new means of making movies. That is making the movie in a computer before making the movie on film. Spielberg adapts the technique to use it only for effects shots, and conveniently filches the Episode III effects crew in the process.

There are 4 production diaries in total beginning with…

East Coast - Beginning (22:30)
The film was originally pencilled for 2007, but when Tom Cruise and Steven Spielberg`s schedules unexpectedly cleared up, the film was rushed into production with a hectic shooting schedule. That meant getting the background plates for the FX shots out of the way first, and this featurette looks at the earliest days of the process and shooting the awesome arrival of the first tripod.

East Coast - Exile (19: 40)
More of the effects shots being prepped, most notably the Ferry Boat sequence, using the National Guard for verisimilitude.

West Coast - Destruction (27:30)
The majority of location work done, it`s time to decamp to California to begin work on stage sets, as well as enlisting the army for the battle sequences. Meanwhile work on completing the effects shot s continues apace.

West Coast - War (22:20)
Winding up the shoot.

Designing The Enemy: Tripods and Aliens (14:00)
The artists talk about going back to the original novel to get inspiration for the designs of the tripods and the aliens that pilot them.

Scoring War Of The Worlds (12:00)
There is a mention of the sound design here, but this featurette is truly devoted to John Williams, who for the first time on a Spielberg picture had to start composing the music without having seen the completed film. I`m stunned that as far as I know, only Superman: The Movie has an isolated John Williams score, they should come as standard on all movies he writes music for.

"We Are Not Alone" (3:15)
It`s time for some more back slapping as we come to the end of the featurettes. There is also an attempt to put the film in some sort of context.

Conclusion

I felt mildly affronted when I heard this film was in production, my affection for the 1953 George Pal version meant that I approached this film in less than a favourable mood. But despite my worst intentions, I really enjoyed Spielberg`s War Of The Worlds, mostly because he didn`t ape what had come before; rather he genuinely did something interesting with the alien invasion staple. War Of The Worlds is a thrilling two hours, that by focusing on the trials and travails of average Joe American, and by pushing the effects and eye-candy to the background, make this a suspenseful and exciting edge of the seat ride in the best Spielberg tradition.

That isn`t to say that the film is perfect, far from it in fact. There are plot holes in abundance, beginning with the absurdity that the tripods have been buried for aeons, waiting for their extra-terrestrial pilots to arrive. It begs the question why no tripods have been disturbed by human activity in the interim, after all humans have been digging into the crust for thousands of years; the deepest mines stretch miles below the surface, yet a tripod waits underneath a busy intersection, never having been noticed whenever there were roadworks. Then there is the curious EMP that the aliens` arrival causes, knocking out a city`s power supply, killing all cars dead in the streets, yet leaving a camcorder working. Another laughable moment is when the Ferrier family make their escape along a crowded highway full of stalled cars, stalled in such a way as to leave a path for them to weave through.

The 9/11 thing is beginning to grate with me. After September 11th, it was proclaimed that the action epic was dead. No longer would we see buildings destroyed in the name of entertainment, no longer would cities be razed so we could get our fix of eye-candy. That was a short-lived proclamation though, and Hollywood was quickly back in the business of blowing things up. But as a salve to Western audiences, it made a point to acknowledge the terrorist atrocities; almost as if by doing so they were forgiven for the celluloid carnage they were about to present. It was noticeable in the first Spiderman film, when the action paused long enough for the humble New Yorker to get a few licks in. Spielberg has referenced the terrorist attacks heavily, with Ray`s escape from the initial machine attack a particularly macabre one, as he gets coated with the debris that is left over when the machines begin incinerating the populace. It`s somewhat reminiscent of the shell-shocked people who, coated in concrete dust walked out from the WTC. Similarly there is a scene where people desperate for news of their loved ones begin posting pictures in the hope that someone has seen them. I don`t have too much of a problem with this, it`s pretty true to life and honest, giving the film an added level of realism. What I object to is the current need for people to be seen fighting back, more importantly fighting back and winning. It`s an attempt to re-exert control in a world that has denied people control, has shown their lives to be random and open to chance or whim. The novel, and the original film most certainly showed that however much you fight back, these were implacable foes, invulnerable to the highest in human technology. The message of the story was that we were insignificant and meaningless on the large scale of things, and that were it not for the existence of a life-form even more insignificant, humanity would be wiped out. The new War Of The Worlds ultimately has that same message, but it is diminished by the scenes where people are shown fighting the aliens, and even winning a small-scale victory.

While Spielberg continues to make quality films that entertain and excite, I do feel that in recent years he has lost something a little intangible, and I found it quite noticeable here. It may be down to the ubiquity of special effects technology now, but the magic of Spielberg, so evident in Close Encounters, E.T. and The Indiana Jones films is something that is less evident in more recent films, and it is something that is certainly lacking here. War Of The Worlds seems like a well-designed roller coaster, with loops and drops designed to maximise the `wow` factor, and brown as many underpants as possible, but that twinkle of magic, the spontaneity that marked his earlier films is absent here. A minor gripe might be the saccharine happy ending, but it wouldn`t be a Spielberg film without at least some schmaltz.

You`d think with this litany of whinges that I`d be determined to mark this film low on the Reviewer scale of excellence. I would be sorely tempted too, if it wasn`t so infuriatingly enjoyable. You can ignore what I have said previously, as Spielberg delivers a rip-snorter of a film by going back to what he does best, suspense. This is despite the quote on the cover of the DVD, "The Greatest Action Epic Ever". Action has very little to do with this film, instead it`s the observation of character, the building of suspense, the horror of what lurks around the corner, the implication of what is about to happen next that keeps eyes glued to the screen. Spielberg has gone back to his classic Jaws in crafting this film. Just as in that film you rarely saw the fish, here the aliens fade into the background. That isn`t for lack of effects technology, rather the desire to keep the action focussed on Ray Ferrier and his family, to see the invasion through their eyes. So when Ray is driving his family away from the destruction, we see it just as he does, in the rear view mirror. It`s mentioned early on in the featurettes that this was deliberate, a desire to get away from the world-shattering invasions of earlier films, seen from the vantage point of Generals around a map, or Presidents from Air Force One. It isn`t an original approach certainly. M. Night Shyamalan`s alien invasion in Signs was handled entirely through implication, with nary a bug eyed monster gracing the screen. A Spielberg film needs to deliver on the suspense though, these aliens are all too real, but by seeing it through the limited focus of Ray Ferrier`s eyes, the film becomes personal, more honest and realistic.

Spielberg`s fascination with dysfunctional families continues, with the Ferrier family more dysfunctional that most. It consists of one adult and two children. It`s just that initially the most adult of the three is youngest child Rachel, played by Dakota Fanning with a precocity that is worrying. But savvy as she is in the field of parent child relations, that is no preparation for the reality of the alien invasion. From then on, her performance is honest, gripping and almost steals the film. She is strong support for Tom Cruise, who gives a brilliant performance as everyman Ray Ferrier. He`s not altogether at ease with his children, especially rebellious teen Robbie, but when the tripods appear, his mission in life becomes simple, to protect his family. It isn`t a particularly logical plan, he`s not in a position to fight back against the invaders, but if all he can do is protect his children and reunite them with their mother, then he will do that to the best of his ability. It`s during the journey that he and his children take that the story of the invasion discreetly unfolds in the background. Justin Chatwin is unremarkable but steady as teenager Robbie, and if his role is a little clichéd it doesn`t hurt the film any. While the story may be thin, the performances are absolutely standout. The exploration of these characters on screen is mesmerising, and through powerful performances and excellent direction, the film is elevated beyond the mundane into something special. It`s almost worth watching just for the stand off with Tim Robbins` deranged Harlan Ogilvy in the cellar.

Visually the film is stunning, although it`s less the wholesale destruction as it is the quieter moments that remain in the memory. The tripods kill by disintegrating the people, leaving just their clothes behind. The scene where there is a rain of clothes after a tripod has cleaved through a crowd is chilling and effective. All through the film Ray tries to protect his daughter from the destruction that is going on, so when she finally witnesses the effects of the tripods it is a truly suspenseful and unsettling revelation for her.

If you want a great Spielberg blockbuster that you can enjoy without particularly engaging the brain matter, then War Of The Worlds is ideal. Is it a classic? Hardly, as in this age of CGI ubiquity and endless eye-candy filled summertime epics, it didn`t present anything that stayed with me after the end credits had rolled. But I find that when it comes to War Of The Worlds, we are absolutely spoiled for choice. If you want classic sci-fi action there is the 1953 George Pal version, if you want gung-ho action and excitement, with plenty of global landmarks pounded into rubble, you can watch Independence Day, if you want some wit and irony with your alien invasion, there`s Mars Attacks, (if you want alien rectums, you know which scene I speak of, there`s Evolution) but if you want a thrilling and suspenseful character piece, then Spielberg`s War Of The Worlds is just the ticket.

A great transfer (don`t let the hyperrealistic bleached out look put you off), excellent sound and a good selection of featurettes make this a nice little stocking filler. I tried my best, but I`m a convert.