>> War of the Worlds
They're already here. And they've been watching us for a long time. But don't expect Spielberg's usual brand of benevolent, peace loving alien (think E.T. and Close Encounters of the Third Kind); you certainly won't want to put these extraterrestrials in your bicycle basket. These otherworldly monsters have come to wreak havoc on humankind and ultimately destroy planet earth.
Few novels can boast the tremendous and lasting impact of War of the Worlds. H.G. Wells wrote the definitive alien invasion story back in1898 and the classic has undergone a number of adaptations since. Orson Welles' infamous 1938 radio broadcast and George Pal's 1953 movie snatched the action from Victorian England to take it Stateside. Now the extraordinary sci-fi adventure has received the Spielberg-Cruise treatment in this contemporary retelling set - you guessed it - in the States. If you want to see a movie that actually resembles Wells' tale, then look out for the UK version, H.G. Wells' The War of the Worlds, recently released by Pendragon Pictures.
Quibbles about the setting aside, Spielberg's movie will undoubtedly be a dramatic and haunting adaptation of the infamous invasion. The passion is certainly there: Spielberg has wanted to make the movie ever since he read the novel back at college. No expense was spared in utilising the most dazzling special effects; the director promises the $128 million budget will bring us the most gripping and spellbinding version of the movie yet.
We experience the horror of the alien conquest through the eyes of Ray Ferrier (Tom Cruise) and his family. Ray is a working class divorced father who lives in New Jersey. Things aren't going well for him: he's estranged from his family, he suffers from an extreme case of self-centredness and his whole life seems to be falling apart at the seams. Then it's all topped off when aliens arrive in his town, set to destroy him and every other living thing on the planet. Things just go from bad to worse for Ray.
As giant tripod machines stamp across homes and cities, emitting their deadly heat rays, he must jump to the defence of his children. It's a story of survival amidst the worst imaginable circumstances, against an enemy that's hell-bent on devouring human civilisation. Even Ray Mears would struggle to get out of this one.
Spielberg promises a terrifying ultra-realism, a heart tugging emotional struggle and so much tension your palms will be well and truly dripping. Worth a watch indeed.
Beccy Matthews
Director Steven Spielberg
Starring Tom Cruise, Miranda Otto, Dakota Fanning, Tim Robbins, Daniel Franzese