Curse

EchoSex · Jul 04, 2005, 10:38 PM // 22:38

War Of The World. The original movie was an instant classic as a story of aliens who came to eradicate us from the face of the planet but were later defeated by the world's smallist organisms: germs and viruses. It was filled with cheesy effects, novel ideas, and alot of screaming. But yet this film is held lovingly by many sci-fi geeks and film colectors alike. So what happens when you take a director known for remakes and give him time and money to remake a classic? Ussualy disaster.. And unfortintly, thats what happend with WOTW (War Of The Worlds).

First thing first: This movie is like a P Diddy song - It takes parts from other songs and puts them together to form one big horrible song. War Of The Worlds did the same by taking parts from other movies and putting them together. To keep me from ranting, I'm just going to list them simply:

1. The red stuff ending up everywhere - Dreamcatcher, both book and movie.

2. The tubes sucking the blood out of the humans - Starship Troopers with the brain bugs.

3. The alien's looks - Total rip off from the creatures of Independance Day (EXACTLY the same)

4. The ships - COMPLETE rip off of the Striders from Half-Life 2

5. The scene in where Tim Robbins is killed and the girl covers her ears and sings to block out the noise - Straight from "Face Off" during the shoot out where the kids listens to "Somewhere Over The Rainbow."

6. The force fields being deactived - Independance Day

7. The bodies being completely decentrigated up by the lasers - Both Mars Attacks! and Half-Life 2 (Remember the strider's attack and the supression beam from the combine stronghold?)

8. The machines being blown up from the inside from grenades inserted under the belly - Star Wars: The Empire Strikes back, when Luke sticks the explosive on the belly of the ATAT. (Sorry if I'm wrong Star Wars fans, it could've been an ATST, I just don't remember the differance :/)

9. The bodies floating in the river - Hard Rain.

Starting to get my drift? But it wasn't just these quirks copied from other movies (and a game) that drove the film downward, it was also the inconsistancy of the whole thing. During the first part of the movie, it was acknowlaged that all batteries are completely burnt out by a thunderstorm (cell phones, watches, cars..), and yet people are seen filming the ships and taking pictures, and then a car is repaired by replacing the transmission when it was the battery which was not working...

Another scene of this was unexplained incidences such as the force fields suddenly just turning off, and the death of Tim Robbins which is not explained (How was he killed?). Your also left questioning how in the world the son of the main charictor survived and how we did not find these space ships under the ground when they've been there since before civilization.

In the end, it can be seem this film was rushed out the door to make some quick cash since Steve Spielberg has been sitting on his hands recently. Come on, Steven. We know your better than that!

So I'm sorry to say that War Of The Worlds is NOT what it could've been, and is probally not the movie you want to see this summer. As the way it goes, remakes either get two thumbs up or two thumbs down, so I'm going to follow the pattern and give War Of The Wrolds a two thumbs down. Sorry fellow sci-fi geeks - it wasn't lived up to what it could have been.

Traps · Jul 04, 2005, 11:26 PM // 23:26

Ok well....the movie was great
i liked the ending

If your going to say that WOtW's is a copy of other movies then start making a list about every movie on the face of this planet!

cruse did a good job, and yes THERE WAS ALOT of screaming. Omfg i wanted to slap that bitch.AHHHHHHHHHHHHH STFU!! *SLAP* but that only me...

good movie 8/10

PieXags · Jul 05, 2005, 12:05 AM // 00:05

So they took some of the coolest ideas from other movies/games and made one big movie out of it?

Sounds like a good idea to me.

Also keep in mind that there've been so many ideas already in movies we don't KNOW that they stole them, hell I've thought of designs and cool shit before on my own only to later find out someone else already thought of it.

EchoSex · Jul 05, 2005, 01:28 AM // 01:28

Yeah, I guess you guys are right. Almost of people dont get bugged from that, but it's kinda a thing I have. Like if they portray a weapon far from what it is (Like Ah-nold Swartzinegger movies where he reloads once between 6000 shots lol).

PieXags · Jul 05, 2005, 01:31 AM // 01:31

Nah I know what you mean though, it's great when you see a movie and it's like..."Woah, now that's a brilliant idea."

It is kind of a bummer when you can pick out almost exact replicas of all the shit in the movie, I understand.

I just like to be in direct-opposition to the OP every now and then, you get the idea.

UberRusty · Jul 05, 2005, 04:03 AM // 04:03

Batman Begins has been the best movie I've seen since the new releases. Sin City the best this year, and definitely a classic in my books.

But War of The Worlds? Somehow, even though I haven't seen it AND I know it's supposedly the most expensive movie ever made, will not match up to my expectations. Just like Star Wars 3, I think stunning effects will not make up for a bad plot.

Pevil Lahuta's Pet Moa · Jul 05, 2005, 04:12 AM // 04:12

Ok while some of that stuff is kinda accurate (I was thinkin of the half-life 2 striders cuz thats my fav game), some of it is completly irrational. I doubt that the filmakers had seen half the shit u mentioned, and its not like they weren't the most original ideas in the first place.

Bottom line, Tom sold the shit out of that show with Spielburgs help. That movie brought up strange emotions that a movie hasnt ever brought up in me. Just seeing how helpless we were (like when the ppl in the cars were sinking underwater), and the insanity that self preservation drove ppl to (guy who steals the car). Mankinds downfall has always been our inability to unite and not always be lookin out for #1.

Great movie 8.5/10...

Madjik · Jul 05, 2005, 04:37 AM // 04:37

Honestly? I still liked it

Crix Lionheart · Jul 05, 2005, 05:05 AM // 05:05

To answer some of your complaints of "copying" of used ideas:

1. The red plants that were found everywhere was written by H.G. Wells when he wrote War of the Worlds in 1898. Therefore everything else copied the book.

2. The tubes sucking out the blood of the humans was also written in the book, it is just Spielberg trying to stay true to the original novel.

As for the shields suddenly deactivating on the alien machines, this was due to the aliens being too sick with Earthly germs to keep them activated.

Also, the death of Tim Robbins should be obvious from watching the movie; Tom Cruise killed him, while Dakota Fanning was singing that song.

As for the other, minor coincidences and inconsistencies; well its a movie, I didn't notice them.

9/10 here

d4nowar · Jul 05, 2005, 06:26 AM // 06:26

The entire movie was pretty good except for the suprise at the end. I honestly don't think that could have happened AT ALL.

Also, the part where the main character put the shard in his pocket is completely pointless. It wasn't brought back up at all. I was left thinking after that scene that something would happen. No, nothing did.

8/10 from me, but that is probably because I haven't seen a movie in ages, and anything is good.

Spartan2 · Jul 05, 2005, 06:53 AM // 06:53

As with the OP, I just didn't like it. Since I read the book, as with all movies I've read the book before seeing, I turn off my brain and try to enjoy; this wasn't the case. I can understand screaming because you are going to possibly die, but come on, why couldn't the little girl just go into mute shock the whole time instead of screaming her head off? I also couldn't get past Tom Cruise being a phony... don't get me started on it... I will merely digress into OT rantings..

Although I do not remember the aliens using the humans' blood to hasten their terraforming, I will look it up later.

But, above all other tid bits of discomfort, the biggest concern I had was the fact the Spielberg completely changed the way the Martians made it to Earth in the first place. Take away that craptastic lightning, albeit a cool and nifty special effect, I would much rather prefer it being the original cylinder cannister-of-doom like it was in the book. Lastly, where the hell was the seeping, spreading, and creeping, black, toxic gas of insta-death? That being taken out made me very sad.

Dyeeo · Jul 05, 2005, 06:59 AM // 06:59

Quote:

Originally Posted by EchoSex

4. The ships - COMPLETE rip off of the Striders from Half-Life 2

Im pretty sure Half-Life 2 stole from War of the Worlds and 1984

EchoSex · Jul 05, 2005, 07:12 AM // 07:12

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dyeeo

Im pretty sure Half-Life 2 stole from War of the Worlds and 1984

I honestly don't remember seeing any tripods in the old black and white version. They were saucers with parascope lasers as I recall.

Dyeeo · Jul 05, 2005, 07:45 AM // 07:45

Im not talking about the movies. Im talking about the book.

Principa Discordia · Jul 05, 2005, 07:58 AM // 07:58

Even Valve said it was an homage to War Of The Worlds.

EchoSex · Jul 05, 2005, 08:24 AM // 08:24

Quote:

Originally Posted by Principa Discordia

Even Valve said it was an homage to War Of The Worlds.

Well, I'm a doof -.- Guess you can see how one's opinion is altered by what side of the story they hear it from eh? We need more arbiters.

Sekkira · Jul 05, 2005, 10:46 AM // 10:46

1. The red stuff ending up everywhere - Dreamcatcher, both book and movie.

2. The tubes sucking the blood out of the humans - Starship Troopers with the brain bugs.

3. The alien's looks - Total rip off from the creatures of Independance Day (EXACTLY the same)

4. The ships - COMPLETE rip off of the Striders from Half-Life 2

7. The bodies being completely decentrigated up by the lasers - Both Mars Attacks! and Half-Life 2 (Remember the strider's attack and the supression beam from the combine stronghold?)

---

All of the above happened in the book AND the soundtrack, which owned btw. So that ripoff thing made me lol.

8. The machines being blown up from the inside from grenades inserted under the belly - Star Wars: The Empire Strikes back, when Luke sticks the explosive on the belly of the ATAT. (Sorry if I'm wrong Star Wars fans, it could've been an ATST, I just don't remember the differance :/)

Well yeah, not really a ripoff though, but it makes more sense to throw a grenade inside a tank than to try and shoot it up and peirce the armour doesn't it? And I haven't even seen the movie yet @_@

I suppose though it would have to be done differently if to make it modern. Because if you stuck the technology the aliens used in the original book then we would blow them to shit with what we have today. I mean, some artillery men and a warship took down a few of the ships, if they could do that with their military power back then, those aliens wouldn't stand a chance.

Spike · Jul 05, 2005, 02:03 PM // 14:03

Well i must have a different taste in movies to you lot as i did'nt like or enjoy the film much at all and would only give it 3 out of 10. They changed too much. There was basicly NO story, the SFX where week and the best acting was done by a 11 year old.

Inde · Jul 05, 2005, 02:20 PM // 14:20

Quote:

Originally Posted by UberRusty

Batman Begins has been the best movie I've seen since the new releases. Sin City the best this year, and definitely a classic in my books.

But War of The Worlds? Somehow, even though I haven't seen it AND I know it's supposedly the most expensive movie ever made, will not match up to my expectations. Just like Star Wars 3, I think stunning effects will not make up for a bad plot.

You have to see Crash - by far the the best movie this year (with BB at #2 and Sin City at #3).

Also edited the thread title. Should note that next time please.

Keesa · Jul 05, 2005, 04:34 PM // 16:34

I liked everything except the stupid tantrums Fanning kept throwing... wanted to slap her... and the stupid reunion at the end in the Boston neighborhood which was UNTOUCHED???? C'mon, they practically excavate New Jersey but leave Boston remarkably intact?

Not buying it.

Not even talking about the older kid living through a 100-acre total immolation. /puke

The rest of it was awesome and yes, I also had to struggle with emotions previously stirred only by journalists' photos of refugees fleeing wartorn areas... now it was all of America... that was well done.