War Of The Worlds  (2005)

If you can get over Tom Cruise being cast as a working class dockworker with a 16 year old then you might be able to turn a blind eye to what, upon reflection, is a poor effort from Speilberg. Shunted forward to fill the schedules of him and Cruise, whilst Indiana Jones 4 and MI:3 were delayed, it was shot in 72 days with ten weeks pre-production work and it shows. Take out the CGI and I don't really believe this film has anything to other over the likes of The Day After Tomorrow or possibly even Armageddon. Speilberg said that this is the most realistic film that he's ever shot, yet it has gaping holes running through it. Given that Speilberg hasn't produced a really good film since Schindler's List I think his Abraham Lincoln biopic may be his last shot at a good film because on his blockbusters I think he's lost it and they were his strength. There's so much that could be ripped apart in this film and I'm aware that I may be over-critical but the more I think about it the more that this film sucks, and I'm not putting an extra bonus point on just for the CGI.

I have seen a lot of films, but this one was ‘the’ biggest disappointment to me! The H.G.Wells classic has been turned into a farce. When you watch the film you are constantly asking yourself questions; which the film never answers and the director seems to think is OK. Another problem is that the character profiles are not properly rounded, which means they behave erratically and against type.. The screaming daughter is a classic example of contradictions. (utterly hysterical at start and calmer when things are mental). My penultimate comment is the number of oddities; TOO MANY.. Son walks out of destroyed house with 747 in bits at yet he is calm and unperturbed! Finally I must comment about the number of plot holes; I would go so far as to say, “what plot”.. The reason I say that is that most of the film relies very heavily on peoples existing knowledge of the book War of the Worlds.. {read the book and you will have more enjoyment} [I begrudgingly scored the film 3 Stars, ONLY because of the special effects – As I write I think I should of scored it 2!)

This was such a dissapointment, I wasn't expecting high art but even as a big money film, this was almost too poor for words. A nonsensce script that was full of holes, Video cameras and car headlights working in a electrical blackout, a totally unmotivated parting of two main characters (to illistrate a laboured point about Cruise's parenting skills) leading to an unexplained introduction to Tim Robbins character which in turn leads to a truly unsubtle justification for Guanatamo Bay to mention just a few. The real shame of it is that the two moments of genuine tension are ruined because the rest of the story telling is so cheap the film doesn't earn it. Almost unmitigatted rubbish from a Director who must know that this is substandard. The ending is so stupid and unearned that people were laughing when I watched it, I would have joined them had I not been rueing the fact that I had improved the Box Office by one. Do not bother with this film!

Within film anything is possible. You can make cars fly through the air, the dead come back to life and aliens take over the universe. No problem. And you can make the audience believe all this, provided you set out your own rules and play by them throughout. You'd have thought Steven Spielberg would know this, but sadly not. The plot of WotW hinges heavily on the incapacitation of all machinery: Cars, electronics, even Tom Cruise's Omega watch, (which we could assume is automatic rather than battery driven). So why, minutes later, do we see some guy running down the street using a gatdam *video camera* to record the attack on his town? And not only this, Spielberg rubs our noses in it by giving us a full-frame shot of the camera's screen after it's dropped to the floor, it's operator having been zapped by the monsters. It was this that initially caused me to cast a cynical eye over the integrity of the plot, but it wasn't a one-off. I found myself being slowly worn down by the general contempt that Spielberg seems to have for the audience. As for the ending, it may have been faithful to the original story, but it made the whole humans-v-aliens struggle, (and therefore the raison d'etre of the whole film,) utterly pointless.

Firstly, this isn't as bad a film as many disappointed reviewers are making out. However this is not a great film either. Tom Cruise just isn't believable as a divorced, dysfunctional(father of 2 kids), dock worker. He's too young/too clean. If Spielberg want's me to suspend belief and accept the alien invasion scenario and ignore some of the gaping holes in the plot (Alien E.M.P's knock out all the electrics/batteries yet some guy has a working camcorder?), then the least he can do is cast actors that fit the roles and he hasn't, so 1 mark off for laziness Steve. We're never really shown the full apocalyptic horror of the alien attack and some cities appear unscathed, which left me feeling that the human race wasn't really on the brink of extinction after all. Then the aliens die quite quickly and everything is hunky dorey. Schmaltzy ending another mark off Stevie. Switch your brain off and you'll find this film to be quite good. Start thinking about any plot holes etc. and you'll hate this.

This is a reasonable reworking of an excellent book and film. Its darker and more interesting than most hollywood summer blockbusters, but the pathetic last 5 minutes of the film bring it straight back into the 'forgettable rubbish' category. Its a shame because it could have been much more. Overall, a worthwhile watch but be prepared to throw stuff at your television in the last few minutes. You're better off with the original.

From now on I am not going to make a special effort to watch and pay to see Hollywood 'blockbusters' like this. They always promise so much with very clever marketing. I have finally learned my lesson and it has taken a long time! Quite simply, this is not really a film. It is just a high production short story stretched-out to over two hours. Yes it looks good BUT nothing really happens. In the same time as it takes to watch this 'film' you could watch four episodes of the Twilight Zone or Outer Limits and get as much enjoyment. Judge for yourself until you learn not to fall for the Hollywood hype.

It's not very often I see a film and am bored from start to finish. I'm a big fan of Cruise but I think his last couple of films have been poor choices. A lot of film reviews harped on about Dakota (the little girl) and how great an actress she was.... I must be missing something as I found her quite false. The 16 year old son (I forget his name he was so boring) was played pretty badly. The whole casting seemed wrong, the film was wrong, I just can't think of anything good about it. I expected this to become a classic film.... I no longer have such expectations!

What is this movie about? Running, giant robots stomping about, little girl screaming like a banshee. This is the worst movie that Spielberg has come up with. There is no story, nothing is believable about the whole movie. A total waste of time!!!!!

Speilberg and Cruise can normally pull off a good yarn between director and actor but this is short ( not just a dig at Cruise !) on any appealing moments . Sorry but Morgan Freeman just does not have the vocal depth of Richard Burton in the voice overs both at the start ( and not soon enough end) and finale of this dross . Too long , too many cliches . Looks like it was filmed by somebody from You've been framed on a cheap camcorder . Terrible story : Plane crashes on top of house where our hero ( Cruise and family are hiding ) is , but the house still stands and their car is unmarked while all around is devasted .Please !!! Hollywood at it's most dire . Avoid . 0/10

I was so looking forward to this film but what a let-down it was. With Spielberg as Director and Tom Cruise and Tim Robbins amongst the cast I believed the hype and certainly expected the film to be a credit to the writer, H.G. Wells.

From a promising start the film degenerated into a typical American syrupy mush. This was an all-American 'Mom's apple pie and cream' production that was corny in the extreme. The narrator tried unsuccessfully to imitate the tones of Richard Burton and served only to annoy.

Far better to listen to the Jeff Wayne musical version and let your imagination do the rest. Either that, or I believe the Orson Welles production is worth a look.

In all, the only thing preventing me from giving this film the lowest possible rating is the special effects.

This could have been a very good film if not for one, crucial thing. Tom Cruise.
He is dreadfull!
Robert Mitchum's acting was once described as pointing your clothes in the right direction and reading the words but this is much more true of Cruise here.


He is simply not believable as this estranged father figure and makes no visible effort to try to be.


The special effects are awesome - and despite the silly complaints from other reviewers, the absence of explaination is, for me, one of the key succeses of the film. Compare to a real event like Hurricane Katrina if you want to put this in context. When something enormous and catastrophic happens, the first things to go are our communications ot the outside world and the panic induced by not knowing drives disasters onwards.

I found the film geniuinely frightening and tense, the relentless drive of the robots in their task is well paced and never lets you relax. However, the suddeness of the denouement is a fault - a bit more time spent on the downfall would enhance the film no end. What would have most enhanced it though, are any one of a number of more senior actors, who could have given the father figure role some real depth of character.

A slightly wasted opportunity - if the casting were better this could have been a blinder.

This movie could have been something great; Spielberg, Cruise, the budget! but unfortunately this is not the case, the movie has more holes in it than a sieve and the aliens look something between ET and the Telly Tubbies I was serously disappointed as I love these kind of movies but I'm afraid the acting from Cruise and script just couldn't deliver.

Special effects were great, but the story and the acting were not.

Even Dakota Fanning wasn't that convincing. All Miranda Otto had to do was look luminous and motherly. Tim Robbins gave the best turn but wasn't on screen for long. And Tom Cruise and his on-screen son (name escapes me) were dull to watch and not terribly believable. Frankly if the aliens had got the lot of them I couldn't have cared less.

Started great then goes completely in the wrong direction. Still a good film but disappointing. Mainly what was lacking was tension. Too much Cruise and i found the young girl sometimes annoying. Should of been emphasise on the Alien invasion. But its a blockbuster which ticks all the boxes but never really gets going! Feels rushed and unfinished! even the Special Effects seemed abit ropey at times - unless it was just me - where things just appeared on screen from nowhere. Had so much potential to be one of the best film of the year - but won't make my top 10. Still worth catching on the big screen - but prepare to be slightly disappointed with the end product!

Puts American Dads in a bad light, a pretty disfunctional lot by this account.

I don't know what happened to HG Wells' plot but he'd have found this a pretty poor interpretatuion of his work.

Having read the book, I was quite disappointed but not suprised that the action had moved from England to the USA. Lots of action not a lot of story and it ran out of steam way before the end.

I wont write a long review because you will get bored of the film just by me describing it however, if you like listening to people scream at the top of the heads and crying constantly for about 2 hours then this is the film for you. If not then stick to the original, I just cannot describe in words how bad this movie is do not waste a few hours of your life watching this crap just have a lay in or watch paint dry :(

First we had the ridiculous 'Indpendance Day' where we are expected to believe that aliens, zillions of years in advance of us are running a computer system based on Windows 95 (How else was Jeff Goldblum able to infiltrate their computer system with a lap top). I didn't even know Microsoft was exporting to other galaxies. And now another silly alien film which insults our intelligence. Okay, it's Science Fiction, but does it have to be so full of holes? First, those tripod machines were supposed to have been planted on earth before man evolved. For what purpose? Are we supposed to believe that these aliens were psychic? They would have looked pretty stupid if evolution had never happened. Anyway, this would mean those craft were burried here over 2 million years ago. Supposing we stockpiled a few modern day jet fighters with the idea of using them in the future. Two million years later they would be completely obsolete. Are we supposed to belive that this superior, advanced race did not evolve in the proceeding 2.3 million years. Surely they would have developed much more advanced craft with different propulsion systems, weaponry, etc in the intervening years. Would they not have attacked us with this craft, rather than resort to digging up a fleet of obsolete weaponry from 2.3 million years ago? Beats me where they found all these wrinkly old aliens who remembered how to operate them. If they live that long on their planet why the need to come down here in the first place? And if they were clever enough to predict the evolution of the human race why wouldn't they know that our germs would be lethal to them? Don't they have any biological scientists where they come from? So they came here for food, supposedly? What did they eat on their planet? Did the alien hierarchy say 'Okay, chaps we're going to run out of food in a couple of million years time, but don't worry. We'll just pop down to earth and eat some humans, once they've managed to evolve themselves from amoeba. Taste much nicer than space dust' Can't understand why the ending surprised anyone. After all, HG Wells wrote the book in 1894 and I thought everyone knew about Orson Wells' infamous 'panic in the streets' radio broadcast of 1938. And then there was the original film in 1953....... some people need to get out more.

Truly awful. The book is one of my favourites and so well written that every sentence is a joy. Spielberg has taken a lot of the elements of the book, completely missed the point and then filmed them. The list of things wrong with the film are frankly exhausting. As a popcorn movie I suppose its ok but it should never have been called war of the worlds. If nothing else the fact that Spielberg couldnt let the army get comprehensively whacked all the way though tells you everything you need to know. They just had to have that scene at the end where the army starts bringing the martians down. Team America says it all 'America - f*ck yeah!!' tragic.

With cinema prices rising more and more every few months its about time films came out worth paying £6.50 plus to go and see. This 'War of the Worlds' had so much promise a trip to the cinema for a mates bday was definately in order.....after watching the film however we (all 7 of us) felt like we had just wasted 2 hours of our lives and were ready to complain and get our money back for putting us through this utter tripe! How can a combination of Spielburg and Cruise produce such a poor film! I would rather sit through the spice girls movie then see this again and i wish i could give it less then 1 star! if like me you were expecting something like Independance Day but EVEN MORE DRAMATIC with cities around the world crumbling at the might of this superior alien race then do yourself a favour and watch Independance Day again, DO NOT SEE THIS! BUT dont get me wrong, if you are in love with tom cruise then you will love the fact he's ALWAYS on screen and you wont mind the fact that the war only really effects him and his home town! now for the plus side of the film.... Good effects and realistic too, the rocket launcher at the end was well done. but the action was just way to few and far between and i was really expecting a few strong military type people to be involved and to have more of a resistance but Noooo! sadly its basically how tom and his kids run away again and again until the aliens die off for silly reasons! Ok thats my rant over, just do yourself a favour and DONT SEE THIS FILM!

Unlike most here, I actually liked this film. I found it genuinely disturbing and unsettling. Ignore the fools who are pretending to be clever with the camcorder working after the emp, everybody already knows that was flagged up at the premiere, so stop trying to be intelligent. People don't like Tom Cruise because he's famous for films like Top Gun, they forget he was in Jerry Mcguire, and should have got an oscar for Rain Man. Apart from a daft bit towards the end, this is not gung ho American crap like Independance Day where we kick the aliens butt's, its about how one ordinary man tries to survive an impossible situation. He could be anybody, running scared for his life with no hope of survival, yet he does through pure luck. When those foghorns bellow, a shiver goes down your spine and you feel yourself mumbling 'run run'. I watched this at the cinema, where the full surround sound is deafening and it put the willies up me. Yes the end comes sudden, but thats how the HG Wells story ends as well. Noone was laughing at the ending to the book! Watch this in the dark, with your surround turned up and suspend your disbelief and I promise you'll enjoy it. As for the 50's version, now there's pure rubbish'they've got some kind of protective blister'..pap.

Both my wife and I really enjoy a good disaster movie and this was not disappointing. War of the Worlds is based loosely on the once very popular series that describes a alien invasion and what could end up being the end of mankind as we know it. The action was gripping, many scenes extremely tense and the plot unravelled at a well measured pace keeping us hooked throughout, even Tom Cruise was good if slightly bettered by talented youngster Dakota Fanning. The ending was a bit of a let down, it just seemed to end almost like the budget had run out but it did not spoil our evening. We would thoroughly recommend this movie to all and although I doubt very much we will buy the DVD for our collection it certainly made for an entertaining Friday night. 4 Stars.

A monumental waste of 2 hours fo my life.

Speaking as a sci-fi fan of over 25 years, i can't quite put in to words how utterly disappointed I was with this film.

It brings NOTHING new to the genre at all. A classic story butchered by the modern mass-media.

Devoid of any real story, the main characters amble through the film witnessing the best that modern special effects can bring to a movie, ultimately, just an excuse to trot a few Hollywood stars out on the big screen.

If you're looking for a real treat avoid this film at all costs.

Awful acting, completely unrealistic, I just burst out laughing and my Stepdad said your meant to be scared and caught up in this, the little girl in it is usually great but this was a bad outing for her, and Tom Cruise is in all the new release it seems this month, I hope the others have better acting from him.

This was just so bad.

You start to wish for the kids and cruise to be killed by the aliens.

Not a patch on the original.

wasted my money at the cinema for this.

I've been wanting to see this film for quite a while. Infact, i've been wanting to see a film of this genre for quite a while! When Independance Day came out, I was hoping it would scare the pants off of me. It didn't. Mars Attacks, although fun, wasn't quite what i was looking for. Then the rumours came out that Spielberg & Cruise were looking to do War of the Worlds. This news was exciting to me, as a serious film about Martians invading/attacking earth hadn't been really been made. For a good few years the rumours would surface and then disappear, but finally last year... it all came true. If you don't know the story of War of the Worlds, then where have you been!? The original H G Wells novel is a classic piece of literature (and is free on the web to download as its over 100 years old now! Read it here... http://www.fourmilab.ch/etexts/www/warworlds/warw. html).The 1938 Radio Play, read by Orson Welles, is a historical piece of Radio that sent America into a state of panic that the Martians were invading (Read it here... http://members.aol.com/jeff1070/script.html).Holly wood then tackled the film in 1953, this version wasn't very faithful to the original novel, but scared its audience nonetheless. Then back in 1973, Jeff Wayne released The War of the Worlds musical... which scarred a generation. Now... Spielberg and Cruise take on the task to add to the Legacy. I won't go into the comparrisons regarding this Vision and the original novel on which its based... but i will say, that although its set in modern day america, and the novel is set in 1800's London, the similarities are many. Which was refreshing. The film starts with Cruise acting the useless/careless father to his teenage son and young daughter. He is seperated from his wife, and the kids have come to stay for the weekend. They dislike him, and he doesn't seem to care too much. Then BANG, the tripods emerge from the ground and start killing all in sight. That's the story in a rather small nutshell! But thankfully, Spielberg has an amazing way with family sequences and its this family conflict/bond that helps hold the film together. The performances are all top notch, even from Tim Robbins, which i was surprised at as i had heard bad things about him. Cruise, always plays Cruise... you either love him or hate him... I love him to be honest, i think he's one of the most talented actors in Hollywood. He puts everything into his role, and pulls out another classic Cruise role. The other great performance is his daughter, played by Dakota Fanning. She is definately one to watch. Even the extra's in the film put in good performances. The special effects are jaw dropping, from the Tripods, to the Red Weed, to the destruction the ensues across the country. The sequence that i found truely jaw dropping and frightening was a sequence involving a Tripod tipping over a Ship. The cinematography is really very creative and exciting... especially one sequence where the camera does a 360 degrees shot, revolving around a moving car, with the camera moving in and out of the car... spectacular. What amazed me most about this film, was how intense it was. Some of the sequences involving the Tripods and the mass slaughter of humans was reminiscent of the opening sequence to Saving Private Ryan... I kid you not! These machines mean business, and it really is frightening to watch. I actually felt quite sick about half way through, probably due to the imagery and the fact that i was all tensed up sitting on the edge of my seat! Speaking to some of my friends after watching the film, they felt the same way. There is a slow sequence in the middle of the film, which is where Tim Robbins character appears. I've read reviews saying that it was a bad thing for this slow bit... personally, i was glad of it! I needed this moment to catch my breath, and find my seat again. It was also during this sequence that the most upsetting moment happens. This is a noisy film, and to me, the sounds effects were just as much the star of the show as the special effects were. Infact, the most terrifying moments in the film are in almost complete darkness with only the sound of the Tripods for company. The bass really kicks, and the surround sound is used to full effect! What i didn't like about this film, well... i really wanted something closer to the original novel. A small gripe, but i really wanted to see Spielberg do it (another production of War of the Worlds is currently being done by a company called Pendragon Pictures, which is set in the 1800s... time will tell if its any good!). The score by John Williams was also a little dissappointing. Williams has scored pretty much every Spielberg film going, and is an amazing composer... yet his attempt at B-Movie style music was just not up to scratch. The final thing that stopped this film getting top marks... was the ending. To start with, the films conclusion is a little too quick, it could have done with an extra 15-20 mins. But worst of all is a short sequence in the final moments of the film, that if i had my way, i'd cut out altogether. Anyway... to summarise... this film is scary, terrifying, exhilerating, funny, and heart pounding. I was left on the edge of my seat, with white knuckles, wanting more...

The acting and scenary was ok.

But the story line was completely idiot! Hollywood should fire the script wrtter!

This film isn't as bad as everyone keeps making it out to be. Throughout the first 2 hours i was gripped to my seat, dying to find out what would happen next. Admittedly, there were a few holes (such as a video camera that worked in a blackout) but looking past this i found war of the worlds a thrilling saturday night movie. The only bad thing i really have to say about it is the ending. Up until this point the whole film has avoided all other cliches you often see in this particular genre, but the ending is definitely what i would call a cliche! If your looking for Saturday night fun, this is the perfect film

We waited over two months for this one to come through. In anticipation of a classic, we even ordered pizza and sat down in front of the 'large screen' with copious quantities of wine and beer... ready for some serious entertainment. Well, we're still waiting? Cruise lost the plot, the director didn't read the book, and the audience left and went to the pub. If it hadn't of been for the special effects this movie should have hit the floor of the 'cutting room' - and stayed there. Spielberg's worst to date, avoid it unless you want to entertain a group of under 5 year olds, and even then, make sure the pizza is good!

Poor movies, the plot was very poor and the ending was even more disappointing.. your better off watching tv for 2 hours.

I am your big fans, but this movie is completely rubbish. Boring, annoying, and sleepy. What could be worse compared to the title 'WAR OF THE WORLDS'?

Typical US steal of a book set in England.

Some good effects is about all that can be said for it.

The rest is a "look at me.

I'm Tom Cruise" film with as many tear jerking moments as they can squeeze in.

I don't understand what the complaints are for. I am an avid sci-fi fan, and this film had me on the edge of my seat on several occassions.

Why?....Why does Cruise do it to himself. He's actually a pretty decnt actor (see Magnolia, Last Samurai) but for some reason he's atracted to being the lead in awful movies. This is complete pap of the highest standards, I've never seen a film with larger plot holes...ever. Avoid like the plague.

Superb special effects and fantastic acting. Tom Cruise excels in his role in this Sci Fi classic. The only dissapointment is the rushed ending. Worth a watch and great to watch in the cinema with the amazing sound!!!

All action but no epic. The film depends on us caring about the relationship between Cruise and his children. If this doesn't happen then its hard to give a toss about what happens to them. For those of you who have seen Man on Fire then you will understand that Dakota Fanning was probably not the one letting the side down. It is also relatively important that we care about the world under attack, this is tough if the only other character in the film is a deranged Tim Robbins. Overloaded with sentimentality and unsupported by believable characters.

Having read the book and lived with Jeff Waynes and the 1950's versions for too long, it was great to see the book brought to life in a modern setting. I thought Tom Cruise played a fantastic role as the father of two living among the aliens. If you have children then you will relate to the story and the true fear that Tom and his family go through, if you do not have children then there is probably not a great deal of story to relate to and thus you may find the story lacking the big bang block buster that you were expecting. Great Film (I was scared !)

ok here are my plus and minus comments about a film i was really looking forward to watching! plus points are... the special effects are great as you would expect from a film these days, the tripods look (and sound) amazing.. so large and menacing and look better walking around than the 'floaters' of the original, the actress who plays the young girl is brilliant and does a great acting job.. hope to see more of her in the future, the flow of the story is good keeping your interest the whole time even for the quieter bits, pleased to see they have retained the alien camera bit from the original although now it looks a lot more real and menacing, you also get to see the aliens this time and they look great too and the DTS soundtrack is awesome with a home theatre system.. felt like my living room was caving in! on the minus side.. Tom Cruise just doesnt fit the lead man part for me.. just too clean cut and too famous and reminds me of Top Gun the whole time, the gaping hole in the plot where a guy has a working camcorder although the tripods have just knocked out all the electrical power, the gory scenes where the tripods have spewed out all their human waste all over the place.. found it revolting and could have done without it, the rushed ending.. suddenly from a dramatic fall from a tripod its all over and not enough screen time given to the tripods in action! still very entertaining though and watched it again the following day! well worth a watch!

This is a truly awful film: five minutes of excitement, then 90 minutes of Tom Cruise and a freaky child rummaging through cellars. The original is far better, even though you can see the strings. It made me wish I was abducted by aliens. Then shot.

Purists of this genre would, I have no doubt, have things to say with reference to Steven Spielbergs take on this H.G Wells classic. I suspect there are more people who have heard the excellent Jeff Waynes musical version than have actually given the book more than a slight glance.

Never the less, I liked this film. Spielberg wastes no time getting to the actual invasion and I felt the effects and pace were adequate for the chopped up story. Mr Cruise was his usual earnest self (I kept wanting to whistle the mission impossible theme), but was believable.

The supporting cast were fine in a screeching, panicked kind of way. All said, a good fun adventure.

I have to say I am very disappointed in this film. Far too long and far too contained on Tom Cruise. The actors did not gel and there was no humour at all. Nul points Too much was centred on the CGI I felt, and little on actual characters. The initial attack was terrible, you hardly saw anything of the tripod aoart from a leg here and a leg there. You saw nothing of the army fighting back or trying until later. I did not get the scenes in the woods with the insane man digging a tunnel! Like - whatever. I never want to see this film again - the aliens can have it and welcome!!

I've just come back from the cinema from watching this and I must admit its enjoyable. I hate these people who go to the cinema just to pick holes in the film, its a film! its escapism! The point about cruises car being untouched well, look around there's other cars untouched as well! I just got the feeling at the start, 'oh dear its independance day again', but this is better, no macho Will Smith Bull! No laughable presidential speeches! Just humans being very human. The ending spoiled it for me somewhat, I think it would've hit deeper if the ending wasn't as uplifing as it was, thats why I give it just 3 stars.

Right…..er……. Lets try to be optimistic here, let’s try and put aside all the negative points and try to see beyond the mistakes, gaffs and this films overriding tendency to treat its awaiting audience that they are morons of the highest calibre. I’ll disregard the fact that Mr Spielberg decided to ignore the classic original text this film is loosely based on, including altering the time period and its key location in favour of what is clearly something deemed far more digestible to the pop corn munchers of the world. I’ll try to avoid the awful dialogue and numerous gaffs such as the much noticed camcorder incident, and concentrate on what we do have here. The Cruise missile delivers another one of his trademark lacklustre performances, insuring that the audience has little or no sympathy for his plight what so ever, in fact I question whether his character was designed to engage the spectators, not on an emotional level, but from the prospect that with a bit of luck he’ll be killed really really soon. O.k., this film has had a little bit of a bashing here, but let’s look at some of the highlights. 1. Martian science clearly doesn’t move on, they bury their war machines under the ground and then promptly bugger off back to their crib and return where taking over the Planet would be much more of a challenge. 2. Martians clearly despite all their supposed high technology are not only deaf dumb and stupid, THEY ARE HIDING BEHIND THE MIRROR YA DAFT B*TARDS, they have no thermal imaging equipment, clearly a dreadful oversight when planning to overthrow a dominant species. 3. Martian shields are impenetrable to absolutely anything except some chap from Risky Business with a fire axe. Right, I know I’m getting a wee bit sidetracked here, but you’ve got to admit the ending is absolutely a wondrous experience and is in no way patronising to the viewer in any shape or from what so ever, after all 90% of the planet gets put through a mincer so why shouldn’t his ex-wife, his folks in law and his son all be part of the surviving 10%, and all look like they are just about to attend a Grattan photoshot. If Cruise had owned a dog, probably called Scamps or Champ or some such, you bet that it also would have come lolloping round the corner in the final reel in slow motion with out so much as a dose of worms….. Anyway, I digress, about the good bits……… I’m sure there are some…..somewhere……..er……anytime now….. This flick tries badly to be a blockbuster, it fails. It tries half way to become a B movie, it fails. The only thing I can recommend about this cinematic house brick is that you invent a time machine and remove it from your selection yesterday just to be sure. Otherwise it’s great.

I approached this film with a certain amount of trepidation. As a fan of the original HG Wells story, I was dreading what the Spielberg/Cruise combo were going to do to this british literary classic! I have to admit though that my fears were very pleasently not realised! Whilst it doesn't follow the original story it does do a very respectable job of bringing the classic bang up to date. Outstanding performances from Tom Cruise and Dakota Fanning and the expected breathtaking effects make this a movie not to be missed. Tom Cruise's character is well crafted and he is very believable as a protective father caught up in the middle of the conflict and Dakota Fanning is just simply superb. I first saw her in 'Man on Fire', she impressed me in that and this performance is just amazing for one so young. Very very enjoyable and for once Hollywood haven't ruined a perfectly good story! Put this on your list today!

Well first of all you have one of the best actors on film, then you have one of th best directors on film, so why is this film so naff? - Well it wouldnt be if I didnt love the original so much - and the vinyl version with Burton's narration. Basically they have took a clasic jazzed it up with superb effect and made a right mess of a classic. Compare this to the remake of Planet of the apes and the Heston classic and you have an idea of this new film. Whats next on the cock-up list? Jaws?

Already seen this at the cinema and enjoyed it there, at home on a good surround system still has the capacity to grip. The opening sequences are truly awesome and the rest of the film stays largely with the original fHG Wells story, even with the rapid and sudden demise of the invaders, so that ending is not dodgy. Its the insistence to give a happy ending that spoils it and the truly stupid son of Tom Cruise. Yet again Dakota Fanning is brilliant and Tim Robbins is spooky. One good tip - do a search for Dakota Fanning films and you won't go far wrong eg Man on Fire, Hide and Seek. Overall a good watch but cringeworthy ending

An incredibly BAD film so please do not waste your time on it. Ok its an american film so the original story has gone almost totally in favour of special effects and a celeb 'actor'. The acting is bad, and most of the time the actors are just shouting to try and convey shock and fear. THIS IS A VERY BAD FILM - EVEN THE CRASH BANG EFFECTS ARE RUBBISH. USELESS IN EVERY WAY - use it as a drinks mat if you are given it as a gift.

Without doubt this is the worst film i have ever seen. All American movies have the worst endings which most often spoil the film. They have to be happy supposedly to leave you feeling upbeat - it doesn't work does it. This one is so pathetic it's beyond laughable. Don't waste your time on it or you'll regret it like me. Absolutely DIRE....

Spielberg pulled out all the stops for 'War of the Worlds' - and it shows. The real star of the film is the CGI effects; they truly astonish. What's great is that Spielberg has stuck to the plot of the novel fairly rigidly, however, I can't help feeling that setting the movie in present day America is a cop out and panders to the audience, rather than challenging them with a Victorian period piece set in England. Several scenes are genuinely scary - if the intention was to create fear and menace in the mind of the viewer then Spielberg succeeds. There are some nice touches to this film that lift it up above similar fare such as the atrocious 'Independence Day' and the insipid 'Armageddon'. Memorable moments are the alien death ray, the aliens' arrival, the floaters in the river, the runaway train and the ferry. The muted colour tones add to the grittiness and this also works well with the CGI. Sadly, by the time Tim Robbins arrives, the movie runs out of steam, and even as we head toward the ending (a complete cop out), Spielberg seems to be unable to pick up the pace. An accusation levelled against WotW is its inability to make us care for, (or about), the characters. At no point did I feel I was rooting for any of them and the Hollywood schmaltzy sentimentality only made this worse. (If you want an example of a film that portrays characters in a brutal situation that you really do care about emotionally, rent 'Lilya 4-Ever'). The basement scene is too reminiscent of a well-known scene in 'The Abyss' and when the aliens are finally revealed they are an almost carbon copy of the aliens in 'Independence Day' - leaving this viewer feeling somewhat cheated. Tom Cruise plays his ubiquitous everyman admirably but it is a part we have seen so often before. Tim Robbins is great as the cellar-dwelling lunatic but Miranda Otto is sadly under used as the mother and ex-wife. Dakota Fanning, (who plays the little girl), is remarkably good in her role and could be one to watch as a star of the future. Someday a director will make a faithful, loyal adaptation of the classic novel set in Victorian times. If it is that version you are after, you will have to wait. (A movie version of the Jeff Wayne musical would also be great). But for what it is, this is a somewhat flawed, valiant attempt at a post 9/11, horror/sci-fi, alien invasion blockbuster that should have the desired effect on the viewer. Imperialism allegory and Iraq War critique? Possibly. I was to have awarded 3 stars but bumped it up to 4 for the jaw-dropping special effects.

CGI was good... but then thats what we expect of Spielberg, however Tom Cruise just didnt hack it as the divorced working class father of 2. Dakota Fanning and Justin Chatwin were far more believeable and I found Tim Robbins just too weird and creepy to know what angle he was trying to portray. Soundtrack was hard to understand too... due to so much background noise. Expecially at the end when Cruise is saying something to the soldier about the birds over the invaders machine... I played this bit 4 or 5 times in an attempt to hear it then finally gave up... was going to run it with subtitles but in the end couldnt be bothered. OK to watch for a boring wet Tuesday night but for star billing on a Saturday night in??? Nope.

This was a truly, truly horrible film. I can, with all honesty, say that I could've watched the two 30-second Morgan Freeman voiceovers (by far the best part of this film!) and not needed to bother with the other 2 mind-numbing hours. Possibly the worst film Spielberg or Cruise have ever released in their collectively stellar careers, this film has a wafer thin plot that does absolutely no justice to a fantastic book. Leaving aside the fact that Speilberg chose to re-write the ending of one of the most famous books ever written for some wishy-washy Hollywood schmaltzy ending, the story itself follows Tom Cruise through his usual close encounters with death without ever really touching in-depth on the integral factors of terror and widespread devastation of HG Wells’ original. It is a poor attempt at what could have been a fantastic film, and to call this a “blockbuster” would be an exaggeration of the highest order. Mr Spielberg clearly has lost all touch with the concept of audience immersion, opting to believe that anyone that comes to see his films will swallow any trash he chooses to force on us. To sum up: Mr's Cruise & Spielberg, I want my two hours back!

How anyone could give this a positive review is beyond my understanding. The script is so contrived it's laughable. What happened to the Spielberg who made Duel, Close Encounters, ET? What you have here is his Jurassic Park style. This is a very bad film by any standards. It gets one star for the special effects. Disappointing.

Why do so many filmmakers think that a surfeit of computer graphics can excuse a risible and, frankly, boring plot? H G Wells is spinning in his grave.

What a load of rubbish... I did try to write a better review but i just cant be bothered. Hollywood Trash!

Oh Dear - now I wish I hadnt seen this aweful remake of one of my all time favourite films Even though the original strayed from the book somewhat (the book was set in London, England) the martians were the stars with that erie noise they made, and they were shown in several scenes wreaking havoc across the globe. The new version (YUK) the star was Cruise (well supposed to be) - where were the martians ?? The only but that stayed true to the original was the martian machine 'tenticle' probing into the house - cue loud screams from the imoressive Dakota Fanning - As others have said the thought of a pre-pubescent looking Cruise having a 16 year old as laughable - the lad looked older then him !, and it was all so AMERICAN !! A big let down. I wish I hadnt seen it, any real WOW fans dont bother. If you are a Tom Cruise fan you will probably like it. Totally miscast - far too few Martian scenes - ending far too quick and unbelieveable.. Do you get the picture ? dont get the film

i saw this at the theatres, on a sat nite...and wanted to kick myself in the rear..the only saving grace was dakota fanning..dont waste your time!!!

I have laboured through many a bad movie, but this had me reaching for next chapter more than ANY other.

The one star is for the special effects, which were to be honest pretty good. From the start I found this unbelievable and that was before the Martians arrived. Tom Cruise didn't seem at ease playing the estranged father of two children (one teenage boy and one girl about nine). When the Martians arrived, the special effects kicked in and they were pretty good but the whole story was soul-less. Lots of chasing, narrow escapes (many of them unbelievable) and lots of people dying. However, it was the ending that really disappointed. I know it is the original HG Wells ending but it all seemed a little daft nowadays: an ancient race with all this planning lying in wait for millenia only to forget to test for bacteria: hell they do that in Star Trek straightaway! But that wasn't the worst part: despite most of the Earth seemingly being destroyed, Boston is mirculously spared with Tom's ex-wife's house fully in-tact and even grandparents surviving - it was so twee, you almost wanted to be sick. Predictable, unexciting and boring, despite pretty good special effects. Wouldn't waste your time on it.

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Bitterly disappointed to have been led astray by the film critics on this. Perhaps they were nostalgic about when they were kids lapping up the then-incredible Close Encounters and ET? I feel that Spielberg's skill and techniques just haven't moved on since then. The style of direction is really irritating. So many panned close-ups over obviously staged set pieces, it made me want to scream! Very clumsy compared with todays' more engrossing staging and directing styles. I felt I was firmly stuck to the rails on a theme park ride and with blinkers on to boot! The characters were all flat and obnoxious and Spielberg's sentimentality came through sickly sweet as usual.

Not sure why they remade this film. It was OK but added nothing new to the original. It was not that clear what happened at the end - it just fizzled out with a damp plop!

Characters unconvincing, story disjointed - a big let down and expected much better. On the plus side some of the action scenes were exciting and well shot.

The film has that 'half way there' feeling about it. Could have been good, but wasn't thought out properly. It's full of irritating contradictions, uninspired acting and possibly the flattest ending you'll see in an 'Action Epic'.

typical tom cruise movie, all white teeth. Not a patch on the original soundtracks but action packed watchable movie

Great graphics, but did expect a lot more from such a big budget film. Tom Cruise was just about ok and it wasn't Stephen Spielberg best... Not as good as the hype could have been much much better.

Given the combination of Spielberg & Cruise you would expect great things from this movie. Sadly the only thing going for it are the effects (hence 2 stars). Why do so many big budget movies seem to have forgotten to spend any money on a sensible plot? Given that the story was already written no-one had to work too hard but we are left with characters acting unbelievably caught on camera. Does anyone seriously believe that people act this stupidly even given the stress of an alien invasion. Poor.

You now why if you have seen this film why it only took about six weeks to film.It was a very bad sub to the original.It only brought people in by the name of the star. (Tom Cruise).One of the worst films he has made, but quite likely the most he has been paid.

To sum up this film i would have to say GREAT EFFECTS story quite good all in all a movie for the guys.Take no offence girls but my girlfriend thought it was a bit far fetched i did have to remind her it was about aliens taking over the world ! only bit i would say that let this film down was the end a bit of an and what next ??

The kids in this version simply ruined what in truth wasn't a half bad film, if you can swithch off from them then you may enjoy it....The special effects were 'out of this world'...Overall the film didn't have the 'WOW' Factor inspite of all the hype !!!!

I really enjoyed the original version but this new one was very weak! It went on and on and not much really happened. I would not recommend it.

I was alittle disappointed with this film, had great expectations before. I wouldnt recommend this film.

Good effects particularly the early scenes, but not as good as the earlier film (for those old enough to remember it)

Still have the original on record. Not as much wolaaaaa! in this. Kept wanting them to burst into song.

I've not read the book or seen the original film, but I know the basic premise. Although it's important to follow the original material faithfully to give some respect to Wells, it's also important to make this compatible with today's viewer. In this version there's too much emphasis on Ray being a bad father, Robbie being a teenager who constantly makes bizarre decisions and Rachel saying what, why, where, when for two hours. Maybe if more time and money had been spent on the actual War Of The Worlds rather than someone's inadequate home-life, this would have been more enjoyable. I've rated it highly because it was great to watch, the sound was incredible and I didn't have to think too much while watching it. I'm satisfied because that's what I was expecting. It's hardly a classic and the majority is eye-candy. The less-than-rewarding ending was a big disappointment. It might have well have been 'then I woke up and it had all been a dream' - that's how it was delivered. The aliens got ill - the end. Don't expect anything deep from this film. It's a good chance to switch off for two hours, but I'd suggest either reading the book or watching the original. I regret not doing this before taking in this film.

Absolute rubbish!! Cruise is awful and Fanning is so annoying that i kept wishing that the aliens would get her. Continuety errors abound, the ending could have been better explained by my seven year old, and the direction was terrible. I just did not care what happened to the characters and spent more time laughing at the movie! Don't bother unless you are REALLY curious!

I can't stand Tom but the special effects were quite impressive, the ending is bad though if you don't know the story already you probably will wonder what the heck did happen.

Grand set pieces, but Cruise simply doesn't work as a slovenly, disiterested part-time dad. Despite armageddon around him, he finds a clear path to drive through every time! I hankered for Jeff Wayne's orchestrated soundtrack at key moments. Overall, it's a standard, half-hearted, Hollywood cash-in on a story that was always going to tempt those familiar with it. Worth a watch for all that.

It's hard to believe that the guy who could make Jaws and Schindler's List could be satisfied with this banal epic. I think Dakota Fanning is a fantastic young actress and her talents were completely wasted. This movie is no more than a collection of badly cobbled together special effects. As some other reviewers has said, it seems that Spielberg has lost respect for his viewers.

never saw the original but enjoyed this one. Watched several times on sky as well. Well acted (for a change) by tom cruise (not a fan really) and kids enjoyed as well

I saw this in the cinema, expecting to hate it, but i was very pleasantly surprised!! Tom Cruise convincly played his character to perfection, and the story had me gripped to the end. the only reason I won't give it 5 stars is that it was a bit slow to start, but other than that, fantastic!

Definitely recommended. The pace does drop on occasions, but not enough to mark the film down too much. Am also very glad the budget wasn't completely blown on over-CGI'ing the whole thing. A remake of the classic Wells novel was well overdue, and has been done well here. Is a pity Jeff Wayne's music wasn't incorporated somewhere, but you can't have everything I suppose!

So much better then the first, which was way back........... The 'alians', were well thought up, with the way they moved/talked, was very realistic, shows us what it could/would be like if.........

Instead of focussing on human conflict, aliens or technology that might appeal to sci-fi fans, Spielberg instead elected to bring the story of an absent father's emotional neglect of his children to the forefront of this adaptation whilst using the destruction of earth as a backdrop to his redemption. And does it work? No, to be honest. Cruise is unconvincing as a dock-yard worker left in charge of his children as the alien invasion kicks off and, during the film's many family confrontation scenes, is comprehensively out-acted by Fanning. She may be only a quarter of his age and lack Cruise's cinematic experience but she delivers a vibrant, compelling performance in every frame while he is left sorely wanting. Once Cruise gets the chance to run around and get shot at during the all-too-few action scenes while destruction reigns around him he plays to his strengths but once again, he demonstrates a distinct one-sidedness to his acting talents. Given that the film spends so much of its time tediously dissecting his character’s lack of parenting skills, surely an actor with greater emotional depth and range to match that of Fanning would have been a better choice. Jeff Bridges springs to mind. Anyway, that aside, this being a popcorn-pushing big-budget Hollywood film there are special effects aplenty, which during the early part of the film are truly draw-dropping. Obviously, CGI is responsible for a lot (if not all) of them but here, they are very well done indeed. But once again, it's obvious that most of the film budget went to the computer geeks with very little left over for the script writers. The plot, such as it is, is paper-thin with witless, well-worn clichéd dialogue, hung on only the bare minimum of elements carried over from H.G. Wells' brilliantly imagined radio play. It's also difficult to decide exactly who the target audience might be. There's not enough action, sci-fi or intelligence to make this film appealing to anyone interested in a particular genre and the tedious inter-action set pieces wreck the pacing for and do little to feast the eyes or ears. However, if your idea of a good night in is to watch the action bits whilst gorging yourself on popcorn and pop off to the kitchen to make a cup of tea in between, then this might well fit the bill.

A good remake of the remake of the remake, only with better fx, and the usual gung-ho ending... A half decent family watch...

This was one for the hubby; and, based on his comments after he watched it, I didnt bother. He felt it was 'alright' but as he is a staunch fan of the original, that is about as strong a comment as he'll give me. I can safely say I dont feel I have missed out on anything!

This is one of the best disaster films i have ever seen!i loved the original but tis blows it away..not only because of the special effects you have now,and the nasty little aliens you see scampering around near the end,but the sence of dread you feel when the storms first turn up is overpowering. Cruise and the young girl dakota Fanning were simply brillaint and i think this film just shows how helpless we really would be if ever there was an alien invasion like this one! Superb!

Well i went into the cinema with high hopes after the excellent trailer and was a bit disappointed to say the least. Although it has several good scences. (the first arrival of the aliens through the ground, the one take around the SUV)The rest is fairly mediocre with enough holes to make a cheese!! My particular fav is the one where they stay overnight at Toms exs place and the house and neighbourhood are destroyed. They wake up and the only thing untouched is their car!! Not even a scratch on itThere is a typical Speibergian uplifting ending (in the only neighbourhood that has electricity and has not been razed to the ground) On the up side some the effects are impressive and there are some mildly scary scences. All in all it reminded me of Signs. See Batman Begins instead!!!

Went to the pictures today with my wife and son who both enjoyed the film. I thought it was great as well. Toms acting was very good along with the little girl (Dakota)and the special effects were very good too. All in all I give 5 stars.

I can't believe people are slating this film! It is absolutely fantastic... some sequences are truly mind blowing! My heart was racing in the action sequences, it felt like I was running for my life from the tripod! The CGI effects are the best I've yet seen on the big screen. And as for the noise the tripods make.. it sent shivers down my spine. Effects aside, the movie puts you right in it - you can relate to the characters, s'pecially Tom Cruise (who is fantastic throughout). You see the viewpoint from them, that being them having no idea to what the hell is going on. There's no patriotic speech from the President to calm your nerves... there's no scientist to reassure you that there's a way of fighting back at em'... it's just you and the main characters - and that's how I want to feel when watchin a movie. I want to put myself in the picture, and the great thing is you can't help but do that in this movie... EASILY the best aliens 'take over the world' movie I've ever seen! If it ever happens, it'll happen like this.

I remember listening to Jeff Wayne's soundtrack to the story when i was knee high to a grasshopper and being scared out of my skin, the original movie, now a classic, is still very watchable and has stood the test of time. I had high expectations of this movie, especially as it had Mr Spielberg's name to it and was expecting a rollercoaster experience with edge of your seat tension and i was not dissapointed. There is not much of a lead in before the tension starts and the sequence where the first machine emerges is truly confusing (What the hell is going on?) scary (Look at the size of that! That noise!) and SCARY (People running for their lives. What a way to be killed!) I'm sure some of the lines were lifted from the original (opening sequence and in the news van after the crash) and it is none the worse for that. Not being an expert in the theory behind an EMP, i couldn't say why some electronic devices worked after but it's a movie! Why can't Tom Cruise play a character that has a 16yr old son? It's a movie! Of course he didn't convince as a Dad, he was supposed to be a crap Dad! Don't pick holes in the plot, the movie is about an alien invasion! The CGI is very well intergrated and not overdone, go see it, this years biggest blockbuster, enjoy!

I've just seen this in the cinema: Compared to the old colour film, this scarier. There are two big differences between this film and the old one: The protagonist is a average man so he doesn't have massive resources available to him and the aliens are absolutely ruthless. In that sense it is a lot more believable. However, based on what we know of the aliens (and their plan), I found the ending unconvincing.

Anybody who wants to whine about the ending, well, if it was good enough for H.G. Wells, the man who wrote the book and invented science fiction in the modern sense, who are we to quibble? For all the waffle about Spielberg's supposed lost touch, I think the run of films he has made since 'Saving Private Ryan' are among his best, precisely because he's been willing to experiment and not rely on the family-friendly stuff. 'War of the Worlds' isn't the best film I've ever seen, but it's genuinely grim, pretty intense, and close to the unremitting spirit of the book. In that sense, it trounces the George Pal version from the 1950s, and almost reaches the dizzy heights of menace conjured by Orson Welles in his infamous radio adaptation. There are few scenes to match 'Armageddon' or 'Independence Day', but they've been done, so Spielberg doesn't bother. Instead, he has a surprisingly selfish and hopeless hero, a pessimistic vision of humanity in a crisis, and a handful of cracking suspense sequences. I would highly recommend it.

Our group ranged in age from 12 to senior citizen and we all enjoyed this film thoroughly. The effects were breathtaking and the bass rumbles could be felt right through the seats so we felt as though we were really there. It takes something to shake we hardened SciFi/Horror enthusiasts, but this film did it. We all groaned at the cheesey ending, which we thought rather let it down (hence 4 stars, not 5) but if you disregard that - excellent edge-of-the-seat family entertainment.

Awesome! Didnt want to even blink. Cruise was great, story line brillant. I want to go and see it again!

Lots of special effects, not much of a story line. The ending was a bit of a let down. I suppose you get used to seeing America save the world, so from that point of view it made a change. My 14 year old son really liked it. All in all not too bad if you like all the special effects.

OK, so in the original story, the aliens just die without any intervention from mankind, and this was always going to be difficult in a modern day blockbuster. We want to see the heros overcome the opposition, not just survive until the end of the film. But even so, the ending does feel somehow tacked on at the point where the budget ran out. Visually, this is very impressive. Lots of large scale destruction and I certainly couldn't tell what was models, what was real and what was CGI. It is also terrifying in places. The first appearance of the aliens is well built up and the plane crash is very well executed. Certainly not a 12a in my opinion. However, beyond the effects, there is not much there. Cruise's role as a parent is always playing second fiddle to the effects, and frankly can't compete. Result - we don't care. Spielberg has also attempted to bring the story into the 21st century and in so doing has left a series of plot holes and unexplained coincidences (why did the plane crash, why did it miss the car, and why was there still an easy route away from the scene?). The whole fabrication about the tripods being there all the time was unneccesary. Overall, a big thrill, but nothing more. Disappointing, because it should have been a classic.

I don't agree with those who give this film one star and certainly don't agree with those who give it five. This is not a great film, but it's still enjoyable. I like Cruise and apart from his terrible jeans, he does the part justice. His family problems were made very believable and added an interesting element to the film. The first half hour easily outstrips the rest and I like the way people were getting zapped by rayguns in a truly oldschool way. The tripods were very cool; a good mix of archaic and futuristic. However the film does lose pace as the plot develops and ends on a bit of an anti-climax. Don't lose any sleep over not seeing it.

Read my heading, believe that I am an honest person who is a good judge of a film and then go to the cinema and watch it - don't wait for the dvd - CINEMA. If you then come out and say you didn't enjoy the film you are not a movie fan. It is a cinematic experience of 100% awe-inspiring, jaw-dropping pleasure.

4 of us went to see this, 2 loved it, other 2 thought it was 'ok'. I suprised myself as I normally dislike alien, sci-fi unbelievable type films, but the special effects in this film were amazing. If you do enjoy this film, also try 'The Day After Tomorrow' as this is very simular.

If you like films that stick close to the original story, then you'll probably like this. Steven Speilberg has followed the original HG Wells storyline pretty closely, there are one or two areas of artistic lisense, but overall its pretty close. Tom Cruise isn't wonderful in the role, but the girl who plays his daughter is perfectly cast - brilliant acting from one so young. The effects are spectacular, as always in a Speilberg film, which when taken altogether should make for a 5 star film. Unfortunately, this was lacking in something for me, it didn't have a certain spark that I expected from all the hype. A good film, but not one I'd rush out to see again.

Forget Tom Cruise and I thought this was a very entertaining film. Lots of action, brilliant special effects. The scene where they wait by the level crossing and a train suddenly speeds by in flames being one of my favourites. Only a couple of things spoiled it for me: Why, Mr. Spielberg, did you have to make Dakota Fanning scream so much? OK, little girl gets scared of big bad aliens, but this was over the top. I'm surprised she didn't lose her voice. For her age, she's a brilliant actress as proved in 'Taken', 'Man On Fire' and 'Hide And Seek'. I was hoping that this long awaited version of WOTW would have been truer to the original novel - ie based in England, not in America. Still, Hollywood has a long tradition of re-writing novels / history. One strong plus point is that it was filmed in 1.85:1 ratio instead of 2.35:1 so those of us with widescreen TVs will get full benefit (no black bars at top and bottom of screen) when it gets released onto DVD. Can't wait.

A complete Revamp of the 50's film, Tom Cruise stars in this exillerating film as the man who was never there for his family, as he's plunged into the heart of the invasion he struggles to keep himself and his 2 children alive. This is a film full of suspense from the start and the introduction of the aliens, to the fire ridden train that speeds past them. The CGI is notable and very well done as well a sthe special effects which make the film far better than the original. The aliens and their 'vechicles' are now based more on the book, meaning they aren't big blob-like tanks with neons on the bottom but walking pods. The film carrys you to the end, it has some 'rewatchable' elements. The ending is abrupt like the old film but at least it is explained better this time.

I haven't seen the original unfortunately, so I can't really compare. However, this version is actually quite good...but not as good as it is billed. There is something quite eerie about this film that it kinda reminds me of Dawn of the Dead without the laughs. Tom Cruise and his young family running from aliens, cliched and naff at times that you can well believe its a Spielberg film. I must say the young girl playing Tom Cruise's daughter is very good indeed. I wouldn't say it was a MUST SEE film so wait for the DVD.

On the whole this was another disappointing film (there have been so many recently) With WOTW I had hoped for something better. The holes in the plot were huge the ending lame and the actors miscast. As for the special effects they were OK but nothing we have not seen before.

I went to the cinema to see this movie. Absolutely Fantastic, definately worth watching. Will keep you hooked from beginning to end and have you thinking What if? Brilliant acting from Tom Cruise (as Expected). Can't wait to buy this one a definate must have. *****

War of the world is niether really bad nor really good..lol..well lets just say i expected so much from this movie.Normally if a film is good you come out of the cinema talking about it till you get home,but for me i didn't really care much about it,but it did have some pretty good special effects :o).This film is worth renting but wasn't worth going to the cinema for.

Having seen the film twise on the big screen, I have to say I enjoyed it. The acting was good, even ol' Tom Cruise put up a good performance. But again the acting crown was stolen by little Dakota Fanning,who shines as a young actress. The film could have had a bit more of Jeff Waynes musical versions influence to it in my opinion. In some places you could almost hear, in your mind,his musical score but were disapointed when the action turned about and went the other direction. Saddly if you were expecting any strong simmilarities to the original H.G. Well's or the musical,you may be disapointed. But saying that, a very good film, and in it's own right, a exellent re-make of a classic. Thankfully this is no Independance Day.

Well.. I saw this at the cinema, being a fan of the original book, the 1950`s movie with Gene Barry, but especially Jeff Wayne`s Musical version that used to scare me so much as a child. I was reasonably looking forward to this, they kept pictures of the tripods off the internet and no one really had no idea what to expect. So it looked quite good from the start... how wrong was I!!!?? First thing, the film has got so many holes in the plot its unreal, for starters, everything electrical ceases to function, but there is one man with the one working camcorder ready to film the first tripod so he could be blown away.. hmmm.. also the fact that all cars are dead, but the one Tom Cruise picks just happens to be the one that works.. then all the ones the army are using are working as well as the attack planes. Oh, and there is the precocious kid in there that screams worse than Macualay Culkin in Home Alone! On top of all that, the Yanks have taken a classic British Novel and turned it into Independence Day.. Yeeeha!!! HG would turn in his grave! My advice is to wait until 2007.. Jeff Wayne has commisioned a CGI animated movie based around his soundtrack.. that was creepy enough and as far as I`m concerned its the definitive version of a classic.. so please wait for this, and let Jeff`s version blow your minds!

I was a bit dubious about this film. But was left pleasently surprised. Cruise is really good, and Dakota Fanning is just superb in everything I've seen her in. Its a brilliant update on the original film, and lends a superb new twist to the story.

Unlike most here, I actually liked this film. I found it genuinely disturbing and unsettling. Ignore the fools who are pretending to be clever with the camcorder working after the emp, everybody already knows that was flagged up at the premiere, so stop trying to be intelligent. People don't like Tom Cruise because he's famous for films like Top Gun, they forget he was in Jerry Mcguire, and should have got an oscar for Rain Man. Apart from a daft bit towards the end, this is not gung ho American crap, Independance Day where we kick the aliens butt's, its about how one ordinary man try's to survive an impossible situation. He could be anybody, running scared for his life with no hope of survival, yet he does through pure luck. When those foghorns bellow, a shiver goes down your spine and you feel yourself mumbling 'run run'. I watched this at the cinema, where the full surround sound is deafening and it put the willys up me. Yes the end comes sudden, but thats how the HG Wells story ends as well. Noone was laughing at the ending to the book! Watch this in the dark, with your surround turned up and suspend your disbelief and I promise you'll enjoy it

I think this is diffinatly the best film I've seen in ages. Although it does suffer from 'Hollywood syndrome' badly in a few scenes. For example: When Cruise's son wants to go chase after the tripods (why I don't know), he and Cruise have a moment 'Dad you have to let me go' typical over the top American B.S Dakota Fanning can be equally annoying at times, but other than these few moments this is difinatly one action packed movie That will keep your attention.

I was really surprised how disappointing this movie was. I thought with the director reputation we'll gonna see a brilliant show. however, so many scenes are a copy of indpendence day , wich was directed also by Steven Spielberg.

how did this film become so succesful? my guess is that tom cruise wanted a popular movie so used his 'names in high places' to make it a big deal. im giving it two stars as the music and special effects are entertaining but for a 'huge movie' this is rather awful.

I really enjoyed this film. Maybe Im strange but when you team cruise, speilburg, aliens and CAD you get a film like this. A high terror, blockbuster of a film with dramatic and stunning scenes.. Why is it then some poeple go to see films like this and trash them because they expected something different? Are people really that dim? Its like going to see a fight film like Ong Bak and moaning that the 'acting was bad, as was the story, but the fighting was awesome' ITS A FIGHT FILM FROM THAILAND PEOPLE. The same way, if you go to a comedy, dont be diheartened when ther isnt enough action in it! This film covers all points that it set out to make - its a brilliant and scary insight in to the slim chances humanity has against such an outcome. I mean, to round my point up - I spoke to a mate of mine about this film after I saw it and she said 'it was a bit far fetched' - jeeesssusssss I rest my case...

This film had me gripped from start to finish almost wish they had dragged the ending out more. Dakota is excellent in this. I really enjoyed this film and will be adding it to my dvd collection.

Taking the story out of blighty was his first mistake, and then aiming the camera at cruise was his second, from there it got worse and worse. Not a bad film in it being a film, but in taking on HG Well's story utterly terrible. The special effects were fine and even the story was well scripted, it just was not the WAR OF THE WORLDS. Unfortunatley I was bitterly dissappointed. They did not even have the heat ray ? UGH. This is the reason more and more people are moving to watch foreign / independant movies....Hollywood endings suck

This is my first review I've ever felt compelled to write. Excuse my english: it is not my first language. But THIS movie is by far THE WORST I'VE ever seen! I can't believe Spielberg and Cruise were part of this rubbish!

Dont bother. Tom Cruises excrement eating grin is the only thing shining in this awful pic. Watch paint dry for more entertainment.

O.K...THIS IS QUITE A HARD FILM TO REVIEW AS THERE WAS SO MUCH HYPE, MONEY AND BECAUSE IT'S A RE-MAKE, IT HAD A STANDARD TO COMPARE TO. I HAVE SCANNED THROUGH MOST OF THE REVIEWS, AND ALOT OF THEM GIVE POOR RATINGS, WHICH IS FAIR ENOUGH, BUT DID YOU ACTUALLY WATCH THE FILM WITH AN OPEN MIND, OR WERE YOU JUST EXPECTING ALIENS COMING DOWN FROM SPACE, BLOOD AND GUTS, SEEING WORLD DESTUCTION ON A MASSIVE SCALE, LOOKING AT EVERY COUNTRY IN FLAMES WITH VERY LITTLE LIFE LEFT??? THAT WOULD BE A POINTLESS AND NO BRAIN MOVIE. I'M NOT SAYING THIS FILM IS AN INTELLIGENT MOVIE, IT'S A SI-FI MOVIE, BUT IT LOOKS AT A ONE MANS VIEW ON AN ALIEN INVASION AND HOW ALL HE IS TRYING TO DO IS SURVIVE WITH HIS TWO KIDS. SPECIAL EFFECTS ARE EXCELLENT AS YOU DO FEEL YOU ARE IN SOME SI-FI PIC AND WHEN THE TRIPODS MAKE THEIR APPEARANCE, EACH TIME THEY GO ON A KILLING SPREE, THERE IS A VERY EERIE FEEL TO THE MOVIE, ESPECIALLY WHEN YOU HEAR THAT FOG HORN NOISE THEY MAKE. I REALLY THINK STEVEN SPIELBERG HAS DONE A CLASSY REMAKE, KEEPING IT IN TOUCH WITH THE ORIGINAL YET STAMPING HIS OWN MARK ON THIS UP-TO-DATE VERSION AND I'M NOT A MASSIVE FAN OF TOM CRIUSE, BUT HE PULLS OUT A FANTASTIC PERFORMANCE AS 'RAY' WHO WILL DO ANYTHING, AND I MEAN ANYTHING, DON'T WANT TO RUIN THE FILM, TO KEEP HIS KIDS ALIVE. SO TO ROUND IT ALL UP, RENT IT OUT, TURN THE LIGHTS OFF, GET YOURSELF A LARGE BOWL OF POPCORN AND A LARGE COKE, AND WATCH WHAT I THINK, IS AN EXCELLENT VISION OF ALIEN INVASION IN THE PRESENT DAY.

What a great film. Just like the old movie only better. This film is brilliant and very well acted by Tom Cruise. Top marks for this one.

This film could have been so much more. From the original, there was so much more story line to be investigated. The visual effects are spectacular as expected but too short and far between to cause a stir. Disappointed that so much money was spent getting nowhere.

great movie ney more needed said

Hi Guy's, we brought The War of the Worlds over the weekend and watched it Saturday night instead of going up the pub, Personaly I think the pub would have been the better option. I like the Jeff Waney War of the Worlds but with commentry and music, this is nothing like it, its not even close to the H.G. Well film of the 1950's. Should have been a lot better.

I thought this was going to be terrible. But it isnt bad at all and the special effects are great. Don't expect it to change your life but it is entertaining enough.

Is this really the same Steven Spielberg that brought so many classics to us? I can forgive the usual Hollywood Schmaltz which is present in abundance, but this film fails on a more fundamental level. What struck me most was how badly the story flows, it is as if they ran out of time to edit it down, and just tacked the ending on. The ending has to be explained by voice over! Really disappointing, and I didn't expect much in the first place!

I have been waiting for this movie since it was first announce a few years ago and to some extent it didn't dissapoint. Im not the biggest Tom Cruise fan with the exception of Born On The Fourth Of July (whoever says Tom Cruise can't act watch this it's truly a brilliant film) but he scrapes through. The first 15 minutes of the film, when you see the first tripod are truly gripping, had my heart racing. The effects and sound are awesome (if you have a good system). The film keeps moving quite fast and if you know the story it sticks to it fairly well and for the other reviews where they said it ends far too fast and is rubbish, well im sorry but that is how the story goes which was written in 1898 by H G Wells (enough said). I do have a coupole of criticisms which are it focused too heavly on just Tom Cruise's point of view and should have had some other peoples perspectives, and it was too short only lasting about 2 hrs. This was a cinema film and if you haven't got a big screen with good surround sound you arn't going to get the true feel of this film.

Original although dated would have out performed this! Story line concentrated on family issues rather than the aliens! Would not recommend and feel 0 stars would have been a better review.

What a good film for tense behind the sofa scenes buy the movie you will not be disappointed...........

Not wonderful. The special effects and tension in the first half hour are groovy, and there are some shockers (such as the downed plane scene) but as usual these days, Stevie-boy ruins the party with a ridiculous ending and lashings of sentimentality to boot. Worth seeing just to see the tripods tear up the town, but that's it folks.

Adding to what has already been said by the other reviewers - No plot and the worst ending in the history of cinema!

Gripping start, but soon wears off. The story line seems to get lost, especially in the second half. Glad I didn't fork out to see it on large screen!

Admittedly, Tom Cruise does take some getting used to as an impoverished dock-worker, but overall I thought it was generally very entertaining and gripped me. I am a sci-fi lover, and haven't seen the original which may have helped, however, whenever an advert comes on TV for this film, and I hear the noise that the tripods make, it still fills me with a chill - the moment when they first attack is brilliant and terrifying.

A film led (out of necessity I guess) by its special effects. I'm afraid I took against the daughter character right from the beginning and would cheerfully have left her behind rather than put up with her 'traumas'. That couldn't happen in a Speilberg movie though. Remember, to survive stick with the children if Mr S is directing!

what a action packed film really enjoyed this one get it and watch it !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Cant fault the effects or the performances, especially the kids in the film. Maybe it was the hype but I just expected something better. Having said that, a definate must see and a worthy 3 star rating.

What a load of tosh. The only thing that annoys me more than crap US films is reviewers who can't spell. I despair as people compare this film to 'Independance' day and say it 'could of' been a good film if it were not for the fact that it was rubbish. Yes, go ahead and watch it, you will like the cgi. But as for the rest? Waste of time and money and bad spelling.

i love this film when it was first releast and enjoyed the musical cd by jeff wayne but i found this did not follow the main storey very well ,it was more on tom crues than the war of the worlds , even the start was not the same with out richard burtons golden voice ,

Enough said. If I could rate it no stars I would. A complete waste of celluloid. If you want to watch War of the Worlds, stick with the George Pal version - more plot, better acting and less meaningless action sequences. Perhaps one star for the fact that the 'good ole US of A' doesn't save the world for once!

Enough said. If I could rate it no stars I would. A complete waste of celluloid. If you want to watch War of the Worlds, stick with the George Pal version - more plot, better acting and less meaningless action sequences. Perhaps one star for the fact that the 'good ole US of A' doesn't save the world for once!

Very good remake. Full of action. One to sit back, switch off & enjoy. One of Spielberg's classics!

This is a special effects film with Alien Invasion, not an Alien Invasion film with special effects. Excellent acting by all distracts from what is essentially a mediocre plod from one special effect to another, like a firework display - and even then the 'train' and 'ferry' scenes are just so contrived they don't gel at all. There's a typical Spielberg suger-coated cheesy ending which is particularly vomit-inducing, even by his standards, and I'd personally like to know why a super-intelligent alien species which had planned the invasion for thousands of years failed so spectacularly, so quickly. But then, I guess I was supposed to just be in awe of the special effects and not ask questions. OK for kids, but otherwise steer wide clear, unless you just want to watch the CGI.

'Got Bored Quickly'. Tom Cruise's acting is something to behold again, who decided he was good at it? The story is as old as the hills and was made to perfection many years ago and no amount of spec. effects will make one better. Crap from start to finish. Giving it 2 stars because I am in a good mood!

I don't usually like Tom Cruise and didn't have high hopes for this film. But it just totally rocked. You really have to see it.

I have only 3 words for this film...stupid, stupid and stupid

one oif the worst remake i have ever seen. good special effects but thats about it.... were is the story line. THE YANKS SAVE US AGAIN

i'm not usually a sci-fic fan or tom cruise but i found this film to have me hooked all the way through, i enjoyed it......a bit disappointed with the ending, tom saves the day again!

A superb film, I was totally immersed into the movie. I was so gripped by the action I was completely unaware of where I was. Superb effects, edge of the seat viewing. My 11 year old son watched again, (saw it at the cinema first) and rates as one of his fave films. Scary enough for him, but not shocking enough to cause sleepless nights (thank goodness!) Watch this film!

bad acting, poor story line ( yes it is not the same as the book even a little bit), boring

Tom Cruise ego trip with some dreadful acting. Bit like a 6 year olds version of an exciting story.

Ever feel cheated?? this is the film do do that - it is terrible!!!!!!!! Please Please please dont bother.

I watched it all - very bad, very dull.

all i can say is dont waste your time on it if you want to see war of the worlds. This is just a Tom Cruise thing with a different story. why ??

even 1950s sci fi films are better than this junk

what a excellent film loved it from start to finish well worth watching

Only having Tom Cruise in the film justifies watching it.

Tom Cruise is a brilliant actor and Steven Spielberg is one of the greatest directors of the past thirty years. Fact. But in this, neither of them really excels to there full potential. The fact that the shoot for this film was rushed into 72 days really shows, especially towards the end where it feels rushed and unfinished, as if you’d recorded it off the telly and the tape had ran out 20mins from the end. You could say that finishing a film has been Spielberg’s problem over the past few years, but that’s for another day. Saying that, there are some really good moments in this film, including a truly scary and emotional moment with an angry mob, and the effects with the alien tripods are very god, it’s just a shame there aren’t more of them. One thing that really bugged me during this film though, was the kids. Dakota Fanning is good, though slightly irritating at times, but Justin Chatwin’s character was a real pain in the backside. At times his character didn’t make sense, he didn’t bring anything to the plot and at the end I was hoping he’d die in a massive explosion. At the end of it all though, this is still worth a watch, both Cruise and Spielberg have made better films, but it’s still not the worst couple of hours I’ve ever spent.* * The worst couple of hours I’ve ever spent was Cannonball Run. Painfull…

a good action movie with plenty to keep you watching , bit dissappointed that there was no reference to war of the worlds original soundtrack and music though

a good action movie with plenty to keep you watching , bit dissappointed that there was no reference to war of the worlds original soundtrack and music though

Hyped up film. Didn't really deliver. The original is better. Script is lousy and the action doesn't get you to the edge of your seat. Sudden ending with no real indepth reasons. Watch in 3 Christmases time.

Excellent sci fi film

I bought this dvd & glad i did as it's quite a good film. It was enjoyable and it was better than i'd expected after reading reviews about it.. 90% of the movie works so damn well that you'll be more than willing to forgive the 10% that does not. Well worth a look!

Excellent really enjoyed this movie. Well worth getting out

The book and the previous adaptations for TV/radio have always entertained me and I was originally pleased to see that an up to date version was to be finally made. As with most films it had been hyped as action packed and gripping. It turned out to be completely lacking in all but the FX, and even those were not that excellent! The twist in this film was to put a dysfunctional family at the heart action instead of looking at the war directly (IE government, army view point). Thus instead of explaining the war between the aliens/humans, most of the time was spent looking at the war within the family. With the poor acting these family fights were boring and distracted from the original idea of the book. The film may have not been so bad if the ending had been worth waiting for, but alas this was not to be. I hope that the original book will not be tarnished by this rubbish film.

This Film starts off with all good intentions and although The movie is good for the first 20 Mins and keeps you wanting more you finally realise this movie isn't what you'd expect. After a crazy plot of flesh eating monsters finaly comes to an end I feel the producers / directors forgot that we'd been sat there for 2 hours praying for a good ending. This obviously never came! I would say it's worth a watch but only so you can see how badly this movie was put together!

A must see film, very very good. Do not miss it.

Good film but I felt that it didn't quite have the spark required to make it really good. Well worth seeing.

why has this film been criticised so damn much?! most people dislike a film purely because Tom Cruise is in it, why? because he lives a lifestyle different to most of us, get over that and you will enjoy this film people!! it sets out to do exactly what it was supposed to do, show you the fight of one family and their struggle to survive, for me, the only downside to the film was that it was too short, if we were given more sequences of humans fighting the aliens it would've been more EPIC than it is.

GREAT EFFECTS AND GOOD STORY LINE. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

As Remakes go this film is ok, but if your one of those kind of people that have to compare with the old classics then you will be dissapointed. to fully enjoy this film you have to end any comparisons and see the film as a mere extension of the original.

Despite all the hype I really didn't want to see this but was persuaded otherwise. Don't normally care for Tom Cruise but thought he was excellent. This film is simply brilliant....well, almost.

i had the mis-fortune of actually watching this at the cinema. this film should haunt speilberg to his grave, the holes in the plot are so big even tom's ego can fit thru them. u will be left with such questions as 1. what happened on the other side of the hill 2. why was boston untouched when everywhere else was FUBAR. 3. how much did the reviewers get paid to lie thru their teeth about it 4.how can i ever reclaim those precious moments of my life wasted watching this p*** poor production. this is even more over hyped than blair witch was.

Really good. Not a fan of Tom Cruise, but in this he is good. Great acting and some good suspense and jumpy bits. Special affects were excellent, would rent again.

I was preparing to hate this film as read the other reviews. I loved the old record with Richard Burton as was so scared when I first listened to it. But i really enjoyed the film one of the best I have seen in 2005. The special effects were really real looking and the acting was good. Of course nothing will come as near as the audio version and no great music, but a good entertaining film were the good guys win.

War of the Worlds. Sounds good. Should be good. Failing that, you might even hope for average. But no. This movie just fails to deliver in all of the critical areas. The plot in the original book was good, however Mr. Speilberg abandons that in favour of something more American. And its so... so... slow.. Good job I had a wife to keep me awake. Excitement is unknown in this movie's vocabulary.

I have never seen such a great film destroyed by a screaming child. The aliens could have done us a big favour by bumping her off at the beginning of the film.

I have never seen such a great film destroyed by a screaming child. The aliens could have done us a big favour by bumping her off at the beginning of the film.

Only another chance to see Tom Cruise in mediocre film trying to look good. Fell asleep twice. Don't do it to yourself!!!!!!

Don't get me wrong, I did like this film. But why the heck do Hollywood have to b*st*rd*se (this site doesn't seem to like honest to god critism which is a normal word) everything good to turn it into a 'Hollywood Blockbuster'? Give me the original story as Wells told it please not what the re-writers thought would sell!

I really enjoyed this film. I went to the cinema to first watch it then watched it on DVD, still as good. You must see this. You'll enjoy. = )

Surprised by how good this movie was. Far better than some reviews would have you believe. Cruise and family flee very convincing remorseless unstopable alien machines that mince up(for nutrients) the people they don't vaporise. The film is not cute and becomes quite nasty and chilling as it goes on which I liked. There are flaws, the ending is unsatisfactory and hurried and the dramatic scenes with a stroppy teenage son are unconvincing to the point of being annoying. ps The effects of emp devices are highly unpredictable, some equipment always survives and cars can be started if you know how-I checked.

The film was alright but a lacked that extra spark that makes a film a classic. Watchable but not one I could watch over and over again, the ending was just too much of a sudden cut off.

Honest to god, I feel like such a fool for having rented this pile of.... well....Poo. I was so excited when I heard that they were going to do a film of The War of the Worlds. I was a little disappointed when I found out that the Spielberg would be in charge but as a fan of his earlier work I still had some hope in me. But then I hear that they are going to update it to a modern setting (Strike 1!) Then that they are moving the location to the U.S (Strike 2!) Then that they have cast Tom Cruise & that Fanning girl (Strike 3! OUT!!) Really this is a sorry excuse for a film that totally fails to live up too or even honour the book. Dear Tom does try very hard to act in this movie though. Honestly look at him in it! You can almost see the veins in the side of his head popping as he forces the raw power of his talent out through his face. He is so very bad in this. I can only assume that it is his (alleged) dazzling smile that has kept everyone blind to the fact that he is a talentless hack for the last 20 years. Why did I get this DVD out? Don't know. Do I recommend it? What do you think?

this is a very poor film, this story is a very well known one & of all the great directors you'd have thought speilberg could have pulled this one off. Apart from the good CGI effects this film sucks. Also a very unconvincing part from Tom Cruise this film seems to be an advert for Tom Cruise & a very bad one at that. I expected a lot more from this film. A big disapointment.

If you ever wonder how Spielberg manages to churn out so many films these days the answer must lay in the fact that he has abandoned all attempts at quality control. This noisy and witless sci-fi clunker has all the Spielberg cliches but none of the cinematic vision that made Close Encounters such a great film. Fans of bad child acting will relish Dakota Fanning's performance; she plays a precocious brat with a very Hollywood style line in self-help and personal space issues. But even more noteworthy is her constant screaming which can be heard above the noise of an alien attack it is so loud. Hardcore sci-fi or Spielberg fans may enjoy this but others beware

This film is RUBBISH!

was a good movie coz i really like dakoda fanning but the effects were a big O.T.T sometimes

Half way thru, I was going to switch it off. By the end I wish I had. This whole movie was awful, but the ending disappoints most. All of this is a shame because this should have been my kind of DVD.

This has to be the worst film ever made by speilberg. Not only does it not stay true to the book at all but it is boring. The film must have spent most of its budget on CGI and didn't concentrate on the characters at all.

Saw this at the cinema 6 months ago and thought it was dreadful. Plotline just was not believable - and i dont mean the Alien Invasion! It follows the family of Tom Cruise and their fight for survival. Unfortunately, it is just too cheesy and I got the impression that the Director just didnt want to kill any of the main characters, even though its what the film needs! The ending is pretty poor too! I dont like this film but for some reason i am glad I have seen it. The Invasion is pretty good and if they were backed up by a decent script then who knows.

Yes, there is Speilberg's obligatory schmaltz. Yes, it stars Tom Cruise. Yes, it does wobble in places. But I thoroughly enjopyed this movie. Big set pieces that actually work. Special effects with realism. And the device of just focussing on a specific family's journey during the invasion works incredibly well, conveying the true futility of the situation and an oppressive feeling of defeat. I was drained at the end - and didn't even care that some of the film didn't hang toegther properly. Don't expect a masterpiece and you will enjoy this.

This was a good film but surprised it is only a 12 as feel it would be more worthy of a 15 certificate. My 12 year old daughter was ok with it but (luckily) my 10 year old daughter didnt watch it as she would have got quite worried by it I think. So would suggest watching by yourself before deciding to let kids watch.

this film was very good it hasa god cast and is a film that makes you sit on the edge of your seat all the way through. anyone wouold like it

A silly film that ends just when you thought it's beginning!! very weak story line too.

i really enjoyed this film.its full of good action etc def worth a watch

This film was a huge disappointment to me. I thought as Tom Cruise starred in it and it being directed by Spielberg, this was going to be a classic film. There was little resemblence to the book and Cruise was also a disappointment. I would not recommend this film to anyone, but then again others may find it is a good film.

not as good as expected, too much on himself and family not enough action, mind you every cruise film is only made for his own ego. poor.

Dont bother seeking this out its poorly filmed some sort of docu style realism that doesnt work the use of children bad idea we end up with a tale of how cruise becomes a good dad with a poor backdrop of alien invasion. Bleak sad and hard to see any entertaiment value. Sucks!!

I was looking forward to a new Sci-Fi blockbuster, and this turned out to be one with a difference. It stands out from most disaster-type films in that it focusses entirely on the experiences of an ordinary person who has no knowlege or involvement in the 'big picture'. So rather than a film about the battle for the planet you get a film about one man's battle to save himself and his family as his world comes to an end around him. As you'd expect it's well made and well acted. However I did think it suffered from the hollywood ending which felt like the product of too many test screenings.

The usual hollywood story of bad father and rebellious children go through some bad times and all comes good in the end and they find they love each other really blah blah blah. Oh yes and some aliens are invading earth. The effects are good, the story is a bag o' Sh**e as they say in Scotland.

Very Gripping But spoiled by crappy ending Still a good movie though

DOnt know why SS chsnged the storyline so much but it just did not work. Tom Cruise chasing round trying to solve his marital shortfalls and at the same time looking after his snotty stuck up kids. Watchable but very disapointing for an SS movie

I don't know why I expected this to be anything other than complete rubbish - I suppose I had hopes that Spielberg would redeem himself after the Terminal (terminally boring / annoying - delete as applicable). Unfortunately he didn't! If you like mindless blockbusters and are prepared to put up with poor acting (but great teeth, Tom and the rest of the cast!)and an adaptation that completely loses any of the feeling of terror invoked by the book (or earlier versions) then go on - this could be right up your street ( :

This is a decent enough film with Tom Cruise and some very good special effects. The story is not difficult to work out and there are no challenges or surprises. Worth watching, but no more than that.

another rehash of a classic going for a more personal side of the events following a family though does deliver the impact i thought it would like the radio version or classic filmversion of the original tom cruise acting like a brookyn freight worker not convincing effects are excellent as to expect from spileburg blockbusters would reccommend to watch on tv only

Speilberg must have been trying to put the slide on Tom Cruise's career with this embarrassing effort. The special affects are OK, but there is no attempt to put any rational storyline over. What the hell are all these people just wandering about for? Cruise's lullaby to his daughter really brought it to the level of a comedy and I genuinely enjoyed the laugh! Most of the actors must have been wondering what they were doing there too. Spielberg must be well past his best judging by this enormous turkey!

OH MY GOD! this movie is AWESOME! Ok, it's extremely cheesy, and it's always going to end how it does, but the effects are IMMENSE! and it's shot brilliantly, with some amazing screenshots! I also loved the various idea's that were thrown in, but i won't ruin it for people who haven't seen it... I think it's brilliant! cheesy in places, but i dont think that matters

I really enjoyed the visual plot to this film-the aliens really looked and felt menacing and the characters were likeable, although I really did start disliking the little brat (sorry, little girl) in it, towards the end!

I grew up loving the HGW calssic and though this had a huge budget and star cast it was a little cold. I thought Cruise did pretty well and thought the effects were very good. Was quite p!ssed off with how indestructable the invaders were only to die off very quickly. Good viewing for the family though.

As someone who is normally picky with their films and doesnt normally like all of the usual Holywood crap they palm out and call amazing just cause its got a $1000000000 sfx budget, I thought this was pretty good. Ok, if you want a great story line, detailed plots, twist and turns then, no, its probably not the film to get. But if you want some easy friday night watching, loads of cool sfx, explosions, 'ooh, he just got away...' type stuff with a couple of beers with the sound wacked right up, then yeah, give it a whirl.

This is a brilliant film and should not be confused with the first one. This has a good story from start to finish and I for one like it.

This film was a complete waiste of time the story line was terrible and tipical of the latest American films although the special affects were very good and with some thought this could have been a fairly good film. Tom Cruise was rubbish.

A bit more story and suspense to the film (usual Spielberg expertise) makes this an enjoyable watch.

I have to agree with the majority of reviewers on this film. The only way you could have made this film is in three parts such as lord of the rings. The whole film looked rushed and relied to heavily on CGI. The acting was terrible. You have to see tom cruises' acting to believe it, he is just not believable. Looks like he was never told who or what his character was. This could have been so much better with a better script and time and different cast. Even keanu reeves would have been better. I now know why most directors delete scenes at post preduction, as they do not add anything to the final story. Every scene in this movie could have been deleted and i would not have noticed. I expected more sorry. Where was the original score by Jeff Wayne. Maybe he has a preview and decided it not to have an association with it. Just a thought.

So, everyone likes to have a pop at the Cruiser if they get chance but this film is not at all bad. It's fairly standard entertaining fayre and the story's a bit linear but there are some genuine edge of the seat moments of tension and Tom does try and inject a bit of humanity into his plight of getting his kids to safety, even if he is obviously indestructable. Excellent cameo from Tim Robbins and, on the whole, worth a couple of hours of your time.

Found War Of The Worlds a bit lame, especially Tom Cruise! Special FX were good, though fairly boring story line. I would say its a harmless enough film, but certainly not essential viewing.

I enjoyed it more on a second viewing, having gotten over the lack of colour comared to the 1960s original, and it seeming to take longer to get going (it really took off for me when they reached the deserted farmhouse -- at last! something recognizable from the original film). Still prefer Independence Day but at least it didn't have any vicars who thought it'd be safe to walk towards the death machines if only he held up his bible and recited the 23rd Psalm.

I was disapointed with the ending to this film. Thought the aliens could have been defeated in a more dramtic way. Enjoyable film for a sunday afternoon tho.

Difficult to believe in the characters let alone the family itself. Fantastic special effects and great scene mid-way through do not a great movie make.

brilliant first 30 min, terrible last 1hr 30 min. but who cares what i think, if you want to get it.

brilliant first 30 min, terrible last 1hr 30 min. but who cares what i think, if you want to get it.

brilliant first 30 min, terrible last 1hr 30 min. but who cares what i think, if you want to get it.

While I enjoy watching Tom Cruise and like his acting, I found the graphics in War of the Worlds proved a disjointed; a project too ambitious, when such big concepts were trying to be portrayed. It is nice to think that a family can stick together and find everyone is safe at the end of the story, but, it really is too disbelieving when the majority of the population of the planet is wiped out. I would like to see another, less ambitious, remake of War of the Worlds and would be happy to see Tom Cruise in it too.

TC is 'ok' in this resisted the TC temptation to always promote TC, but any number of actors could have been better in this. Unfortunatly everything that happens in or to this world has to be in the USA, and I am getting fed up with Hollywood propogander. Even in this the good old USofA couldnt resist kick ass at the end.

Despite the previous poor reviews, I really liked this film. You can't blame Spielberg for the storyline, this is a modern rendition of a classic novel. Personally, I don't watch films for the stars but I would imagine anyone expecting the story to be written around Tom Cruise will be disappointed. I'm a stickler for graphical detail, especially in CGI. This is possibly the first film where I haven't snapped out of the world created for the film by a bad animation or wrongly-lit effect. It was believable and had me totally immersed, and for this classic story that is what counts.

Having never seen the original this film was very good, funny moments along with edge of your seat stuff.Definitely one for your list.

So bad it made me write a review. This film is a complete waste of time. The film concentrates more on Cruise's inability as a father and once we understand he is useless we don't need to be shown this time and time again. There are some good special effects but nothing mind blowing. The characters in the plot do not seem to evolve, and the main storyline behind these characters, the war of the worlds, seems to be ignored for most of the film. Have an early night instead. Rubbish.

It doesn't live up to the hype. The story is so so but rather spoilt by the simplistic ending. The action is quite good in parts. Worth watching just don't expect too much.

A few good effects but then rediculous story errors and typical american slop. Pretty awful, just dropped it to one star as I recall how I felt as the film ended.

And once again, Hollywood has successfully spewed out yet another dreadful movie. Boy has Steven Spielberg failed on this one! Save your sanity and run for the hills.

I think that to rubbish this film is really unfair. It is a good film with great effects and gripping action. Even though they Americanised the story and brought it up to date they did the book justice. A film worth watching for just the entertainment but will never win awards.

Special effects are supposed to enhance a movie, not encapsulate it. If Spielberg had re-shot the original with up to date CGI effects rather than re-writing it, it would have been brilliant. If you want to see how far computer graphics have come, rent this movie - if, however, you want a suspenseful film with a decent plot and aren't too bothered about effects (although they were brilliant for their time), rent the original which, in my opinion, is far superior.

Tom Cruise is brilliant in this film. I never saw the original but this was fantastic. The effects were the best i have seen. Dakota is such a fantastic actress, she really pulls on the heart strings! You have to see it. It keeps you on the edge of your seat. The only thing i would say is that the defeat of the aliens goes too quickly and without much explaination as if some has been cut from the film. Brilliant viewing, make such it goes on your list.

I am not keen on Tom Cruise, but this film was very good. It kept you on the edge of your seat. Well worth watching.

Disappointing as a blockbuster starring Tom Cruise and directed by Spielberg. Otherwise OK. Some scary bits...

Nothing could follow the original soundtrack album but this followed the spirit of the story and ran some credible parallels If they had done a total remake it would always have been compared, this took it in what I thought was a pretty good direction

EXCELLENT FILM I COUDLNT TAKE MY EYES OFF, ONE OF THE BEST FILMS IVE SEEN IN A LONG TIME

I felt that the original radio show, and the album were far far better. The film kinda rambled on and on for a while then suddenly! they all died and that was that. Oh and another thing. The son in the film really irritated me, I mean, you've got the whole of mankind being routed out and captured, and eaten etc, and he wants to watch, and wander about etc etc, I mean COME ON! get real. Would you really stand and watch, or run in the opposite direction... Tom Cruises chap, ok I got the fact he's meant to be an unreliable Dad blah blah blah, but you'd like to think in reality he would be a bit more resonsible.. That said, It wiled away an evening so watch it, it's ok, but not brilliant...

Ok, but I prefered the origional. Not very scary and a bit too much screaming......

it starts and develops like a typical hollywood flick - not necessarily bad - but it looses me on how the war is fought/won. OK it seems this is the same story as in the novel - but it feels like the person responsible did not know how to end the book/film. Hey, aliens try to take over the earth, that would allow heroic fighting along the proven american way: underdog (mankind) win over the favorite (aliens) by determination, joint effort and clever tricks. But no....the end is simple the aliens die of (earth)bacterial infections! Even in a fight alien vs nothing the aliens would have lost - just by waiting it out.

Yeah it will be fun for the teenagers, who haven't read the book. Good everything, but I liked the book better.

A terrible film version of a classic SF book. The way it's been transposed to modern day USA is more naff than words can easily describe. Had the hysterical blonde child been eaten by aliens, I could have made allowances. As it is... awful. Don't bother.

Rating based on watching at home as best part about it (since end is known and predictable) are the special effects which you just aren't the same compared to the cinema. Having seen it at the cinema I would give it a 5 star rating

One star for the special effects,film keeps loosing the plot.Good for kids with a bit of action other wise if your board and nothing else to do it will slowly passes your time.

I gave this film 1 star because I could not give it 0 stars. Good director, A list star, classic story by a great author, million dollar budget. Crap film!

Speilberg & Cruise a good combination, great film, dull ending, expected a little more really......

basically this was mince

Excellent film, Tom Cruise has picked some brilliant films recently, and this one doesn't dissapoint. The CGI effects are dazzling and the story is dark and exciting

Not as good as the original. Yet another vehicle for Tom Cruise!

An awful finish to a film that builts up and up to and less than explovive finish, still a good film just not worth the hype or money, an average film, if you avoided the cinema for this fil then well done to u, watch it the once and never let any one buy this movie

I’ll just say I noticed that on the IMDB database this was actually nominated as one of the worst films of last year. What, worse than say ‘Cheaper by the Dozen 2, Freddy vs Jason....the last Star Wars nonsense’ ? I think what that shows is this film actually did touch a few nerves, which I assume was Speilberg's plan. Shame about the non-existent plot, Tom’s Technicolor teeth and Dakota Fanning’s Screams, but at times this was by far and away the scariest film I saw last year.

this movie would have been much better if the producer had gone for a more adult audience i understand the financial benefits of aiming for a wider audience but i believe mr speilberg has got it wrong

Watched this, and although it is a bit slow to start with it ends as a really good film. Tom Cruise does a wonderful job as does Dakota Channing. Would watch again.

I suspect this is an opportunity for Spielberg to show Americans that they are not invincible and to give them a feel for what an attack on a massive scale, in their own back yard, feels like. This has so many parallels with 911 it can't be a coincidence. I'm grateful that Spielberg didn't portrait a gooey father-son struggle like in 'The day after tomorrow' and he was right not to involve a man-woman love aspect like the original! Some minor situational gaffs in the storyline don't detract from what is a simple story told well. The effects are very impressive and have a 'gritty realism' about them. The ending couldn't have been any other way and is in keeping with the book. In all, a good 'take your brain out at the door' action adventure film. Don't miss it just because of the other 'perfection seeking' reviews.

I liked it when I saw this at the movies, great effects. The story line is fine but rather let down towards the end but this does follow H.G. Wells original, only the 'nice happy ending' with Cruise's son also surviving along with his estranged wife left a rather hollywoodish ending. Other than that probably the best action thriller of 2005!

I thought it was brilliant, I loved it and would watch it again.

I really enjoyed this film it had great suspence and it really looked real as if it was really happening.

This was good and had a good level of suspense. Bit spoiled by Screen Select not cleaning the CD - it kept skipping until I gave it a good wipe. Anyway - i'd recommend watching it.

War Of The Worlds (2005) was not as good as i thought it would be but the ending was really bad.

Didn't expect anything so was pleasantly surprised although bobbins ending a la typical Spielberg.

Didn't expect anything so was pleasantly surprised although bobbins ending a la typical Spielberg.

This wasn't bad. Liked the begining with the scary tripods and everything...tripods are scary, you know...a bit like whales with teeth ('Whales are nice' they say...YOU'RE ****ing joking aren't you...what about Sperm Whales...what's that then, a nice whale with teeth?) Did Stevie get bored at the end...just raced to it like. One minute is Ragnarok and roll, the next its, 'Move along, nothing to see here'. Too rushed, too red, too ripe...S'ok though!

I'm not usually one for Sci-Fi movies but it's quite rare that Spielberg directs a bad movie. Tom Cruise plays an amazing part as a dad and divorced husband. For me, the fantastic special effects and action make up for the fact it's a Sci-Fi. Definitely recommended!

oooh look at the special effects!! well, isn't that what most people comment on these days? After all, there isn't much more to comment on. The story was pretty bland (the remake that is), Tom cruise was unconvincing in the roll of 'lousy dad saves the day!', Dakota I felt was over acting. ...and as for the scene where Tom Cruise has to decide on whether to let his son go 'over the hill' in order to save his daughter? risible! and to top it off he manages to pop up at the end unscathed. and um, aliens riding lightning so they can get to their ships underground? hmmm doesn't work for me

If only this film had not been directed by Speilberg and Tom Cruise had not been the lead. Speilberg just can't resist his usual trite and over sentimental ending which completely spoils the film and Cruise is not a good enough actor to convey a man broken by what he has been through - including being forced to commit murder (which is a very powerful scene). Having said that, I liked that it focused on an individual situation and did not involve the president or some other patriotic nonsense. I was also worried that the ending was going to invole Tom Cruise blowing up all the aliens and I'm glad they kept to HG Well's downbeat ending. If only Christopher Nolan and Christian Bale had been given this film.....

Loved every minute of this the only bit that disappointed me was there were no original songs in it. But otherwise an excellent adaption.

Great special effects and sounds (with a home cinema sound system) made good of what was a far fetched and thin story line , also tom cruise has acted a lot better in lesser dramatic films.

Totally unbelieveable plot. As usually every other characters get hurt/killed when the 'aliens' were attacking and somehow Tom 'cruises' through the action completely unharmed. Very poor acting. Complete waste time.

Was really looking forward to this after seeing the set of the plane crash at Universal Studios. However, even this magnificent set was underused, and had no real point to the scene (How and why did it crash and where were all the bodies?). The special effects were good, but they had to hold the rest of the film together. You didn't really care about any of the characters, especially the son, and what was the point of the women they got seperated from at the ferry? Just buy the excellent original soundtrack and listen to it while using your imagination - a whole lot more satisfying!

loved it at cinema and on dvd..even tom cruise was great, and i dont usually like his films

Not worth watching, unless you're bored and have time to kill!

The movie starts off decently, and suddenly degenerates into a B grade movie where Tom Cruise is running away from non descript out of space creatures, himself and probably Steven Spielberg. One of the worst let downs.

Great effects in this film edge of seat at times.

Action from start to finish, Well worth watching. But i did find watching it first time at the pictures more frightening.

Expected alot more,

A BRILLIANT FILM - A LOT BETTER THAN THE ORIGINAL WITH GREAT ACTING EASILY THE BEST FILM I HAVE RENTED I THINK IT WILL BE YOURS IF YOU DO RENT IT - GEAT FILM

Not one likable character appears in the whole film. Cruise and his kids are really annoying as they jump from one improbable scene to the next.

Probably the worst film I have ever seen. Non existent script, terrible acting, annoying characters (they would have got an extra star if the girl had be killed) a total waste of 2 hours. They should have cut their losses half way through shooting and abandoned the whole sorry mess. One good point, it could have gone on a whole lot longer but I guess they got as bored as me and simply went for the ridiculous ending which will make you laugh out loud. Spielberg you should be ashamed.

Good story line not bad acting, wouldnt watch this film again, once was enough.

This is definately worth a look, really enjoyed this.

yet again we are subjected to an americanised version of, we are the center of the world and nowere else has a place. This version was so well built up in the public eye that i was itching to watch it and went the first day it came out and very nearly walk stright back out again, but for the fact that if i did not watch it all now i would have to watch it again just out of curiosity.speilberg has lost anything he has ever had AI was bad but this was trash.I like tom cruise but an actor is only as good as the director and producers.if you want to watch or listen to this classic story, then listen to the musical or watch the old film that is still great today.

Personally I think it was a good film and quite a good adaption of the book compared to the original film.

A genuinely awful movie! The ending is so bad that I just sat there in disbelief that the credits were rolling. It was as if they just ran out of time in the filming and thought, oh well we'll just leave it here! Terrible and genuinely one of the worst films I've ever seen!

this was actually worse than i thought it was going to be. how they can get away with producing films this poor, on such a big budget, is anyones guess. a waste of 2 hours if ever theres been one.

This film was good, it kept you interested from start to end. Worth watching.

very good film, recommend it

This was utter nonsense! The plot was a joke, full of holes that you could drive a tractor through! The charactor of his daughter was a right pain on the diddies! Somebody make that child STOP screaming, for the love of God! The charactor of the son was a complete nob, and I hoped he had died, but of course, in this sugar-coated, candy-kissed crap he lives - what a surprise, and I don't think! Tom Cruise's acting was good, as usual, but this film in gereral stinks to the high heavens!

Total waste of time. I am sorry to give it one star, but there was no option for NONE. I can't seem to see any story in it. What was that in the end ???!!!! If you are thinking of watching this one, think again, unless you are just interested in some average graphics or in just seeing Tom Cruise in his worst.

5 out of 5 for special effects, but the story itself was a bit poor. worth watching if you're a sci fi fan and enjoy the special fx, otherwise i found it a bit predictable in places and had to keep reminding myself that it was sci fi because it was a bit cheesy in places.

A first-class entertainment packed to the brim with astounding effects and near-non-stop action and suspense -- and laced with painful undercurrents, including numbing portrayals of social collapse and chilling references to 9/11 -- 'War' rivets and amazes, even if it falls just frustratingly short of the mind-expanding grandeur it could have had. Still, Spielberg and company send Tom Cruise through one blood-chilling roller-coaster ride after another, with Cruise as the usual Spielberg common-man hero: Ray Ferrier, a dockworker in New Jersey chased toward Boston by seemingly omnipotent monsters from space in huge tripod walking machines that lay waste to much of the planet.

It is not just another sci-fi movie got something more init.has cool effects and thrilling sound,worth watching on a home theater.

Considering this is one of the biggest blockbusters in recent years with if not the most well known director and star it just doesn’t give you that extra *special* touch that they should. The story is pretty weak, with the majority of the film concentrating on mind blowing special effects and showing off what it can do. The acting is yet again only really average, there are some good moments of emotion from Cruise but generally its what you would expect from him. The film just goes on for way too long at times and you just wish the war would end so you can escape before you fall asleep. The best bits about this film are indeed the aliens/monsters/robots and how they look, act and the sheer scale of how big they are. The beginning is one of the most memorable moment of the film. Overall this film lacks in any real depth, suspense, thrills and generally entertaining moments. 2 out of 5 stars

I am normally a Tom Cruise fan but this one was a really disappointment. It just seemed to plod along with no real purpose - Give it a miss !

Terrible script. Nuff said really. Although i do have to say that Dakota Fanning was brilliant.

This is a dreadful version of a great story. The only thing I can say in it's favour is that the portrayal of the early impact of invasion is momentarily chilling. Unfortunately I found the rest of the film irritating rather than engaging, especially the characters of the son and daughter. An insipid effort. Do yourself a big favour and watch the 1954 Gene Barry version.

I was really glad we eventually watched this film is was great and my 13 year old really enjoyed it as well. Special effects were amazing. Worth watching.

Most of the action is in the first part of the film when the alien tripods first appear. Once you get past that , all the film is about is Tom Cruise and his two children running away all the time. Glad I've seen it but even more glad that I only rented it on DVD and didn't go to the cinema to see it.

I was dissapointed with this movie, I preferred the old version and the musical. of course the effects were quite good with modern technology but it didn't push my buttons.

An interesting, modern version of the classic sci-fi. A good film with the usual family dilemmas worked out in the end.

Banal dialogue and totally irrelevant characterisations (loser father comes clean in the end? Give me a break!)with pretty average special effects simply decimates power of HG Wells story and earlier film version far superior on suspense and sense of menace. Tom plods rather than cruises through this one. Must have needed the dosh for his settlement with Nicole bless him.

I HAVEN'T SEEN THE ORIGINAL, ALTHOUGH I HAVE HEARD RICHARD BURTON'S FAMOUS OPENING LINES. VERY ENJOYABLE, WITH EXCELLENT SPECIAL EFFECTS.

A must for those who love special effects. Although based in the present day, the story line attempts to stick to the original script. It is unfortunatly all squeezed into one film where maybe it should be spread over two. It was however entertaining and the special effects very inpressive.

Not as good as I expected but it was ok

In comparison with the original movie, this is almost unwatchable. If you want a film that shows a few special effects, then by all means, give this one a go. However, the book (and in some ways the original film) relied on making this a tense sci-fi thriller, unlike this that does not. Cruise's acting is poor, and the storyline lacks coersion. In brief, if you want to watch War of the Worlds, see the original... the special effects are not as advanced but it is more entertaining.

I really enjoyed the film but my husband says it was watchable! Was really well made and makes you think what could happen! Worth watching!!

Really bad. The movie almost has no story and I found it boring. What a shame that Spielberg did such a bad movie!

i cant believe the bad reviews for this film. the special effects were amazing. i am a avid sci-fi fan and i thought this film was great. tom cruise was brilliant in it and i have watched it twice already.

Spielburg, what are you playing at. The original film was a hundred times better. The film has so many flaws you loose count. Cruise does not make a believable father. The idea that the aliens came down in a storm is just pathetic. How the heck does anybody know that the machines have been there for millions of years (just waiting). Where was the American Air Force? Why has Cruise the only one with a working car? How come their are two people with working cameras when their is no electric working. How come the kids mum's house has electric yet their are no cars? How come the son ran off to fight the aliens, gets blown and is still alive at the end of the film. Why does Cruise's charactor kill a man? (You can't justify muder no matter how hard you try.) Why is Cruise the hero of the film? H.G. Wells didn't write a hero. Last question. Why did Steven Spielburg even make this rubbish?

should be no stars very disappointing film

Sorry to say this must be Spielberg's worst film in his career. I've waited patiently for this film to arrive ever since it came out on DVD and after watching it, I wish I hadn't bothered. There's too much reliance on CGI at the expense of plot or dialogue. Perhaps Spielberg is relying on most people knowing the story? There are scenes which are totally farfetched. For example, how many motorways (freeways) have you seen that are totally jam-packed yet leave a gap down the middle for Tom Cruise & family to escape in a car. Later in the film, the car is parked outside a house which is totally devastated by a plane crash (with no bodies) along with all of the houses in the area, yet by some miracle it survives without a scratch and they manage to drive off through more convenient gaps in the wreckage. The final scene is the real howler. The basis of the film is TC trying to reunite his daughter played by Dakota Fanning, who by the way acts TC off the screen, with her mother and his estranged wife at the other side of the country. When they finally arrive at her house, it's an absolute picture of tranquility. The whole of the US, Europe and the rest of the world has been totally devasted and razed to the ground by martians, yet this house stands like an oasis in the middle of it all without a mark on it. The door opens and herself steps out accompanied by TC's son who somehow managed to escape a devastating blast by the martian's heat ray earlier in the film which took out an entire army of soldiers, and is now stood there without a single hair even singed! How did he get there so fast? TC was driving most of the way at high speed yet his son gets there first - talk about the tortoise and the hare. Americans and their happy endings.... ah, bless. Don't bother with this one, the earlier version with Gene Barry is far better. Better acting, better plot & better martians. P.S. Spielbergs martians look like they've been stolen from Independance Day.

I enjoyed this on the whole. I am not usually a Tom Cruise fan but he played his part well, the tension was good & although I always think it is hard critically for an actor starring in a re-make it was worthwhile renting it. After all, special effects improve over the years.

The biggest disappointment was when the opening narration finished and Jeff Wayne's music didn't start. Not bad if you hadn't seen the earlier version of the film or heard the album

Not normally a Tom Cruise fan I found his performance of a man under extreme pressure very convincing.The special effects for this film are amazing and at times created what I imagine is a very war like experience.The supporting actors are very good. Recommended.

Really disappointed by this film - I found the plot laughable, and not in the least bit suspenseful, scary etc etc. Tom Cruise doing all he seems to be able to do - running around trying to save the world. If you've nothing else to watch then go for it, but don't expect to be blown away.

Uusal good sound (DTS)/ visual effects of a big budget flick (esp if watched on good sized cinema screen), few gripping sequences but pretty forgettable otherwise

Enjoyed this at the cinema and again at home. Switch on the 5.1's and enjoy, very good.

Glued to screen throughout - excellent effects and acting

I watched this originally in the cinema, and although I found it quite enjoyable at the time I felt it didn't quite hit the button... However, watching it again on DVD did make me appreciate Spielberg's genius at entertaining his audience. Give it another try if you're not sure, as I hope you too, like me, will find it much better second time round.

What a let down this film was. A long drawn out story with very little action. Not a patch on the older version.

i haven't seen the original and loved this film from the start. however my husband had seen the original and therefor said it was ok! he did prefer the original. but for me i would have given it 5 stars!!!!

If you like films which make you think just a little bit (not a vast amount but just a little bit) then this is for you. I think that Cruise does a very good job of being very scared and The CGI is awsome as you would expect from SS. All in all a brilliant watch. I managed to see it 3 times before reluctantly putting it back into the post box.

Firstly this was a difficult film to make because he was trying to portray a modern set in the US version of a book that terrified England when it was released in the early 20th century. and to be straight up I dont think he did it well. There are massive problems with the plot such as how did we never notice the machines hidden under our cities? and why are some cities miraculously uneffected? The ending is frankly limp. the whole film is too harrowing for a 12 but the effort that must have gone into to skirting along on this certificate means that it doesnt do justice to the material being explored, whilst totally terrifying those poor kids who are watching it. to sum up, Disappointing, unfulfilling, and inappropriately rated.

It would seem that, exactly 30 years after creating the 'popcorn event-movie' with 'Jaws', Steven Spielberg is now content on concentrating on smaller fish. In the last five years he's directed a mixed bag of features, ranging from the intelligent but disappointing thriller 'Minority Report', through intimate and quirky films like 'Catch Me If You Can' and 'The Terminal', even attempting to emulate Kubrick on the depressing 'A.I.' It's almost as if he's lost the appetite to entertain on the rollercoaster scale he last displayed effectively with 'Jurassic Park'. True, he has matured into a more 'serious' filmmaker, especially since the magnificent achievements of 'Schindlers List'. However, if he insists on keeping his hand in the blockbuster genre, he needs to give it more attention than he has here in this update of H.G. Welles' 'War of The Worlds'. Reportedly, this film was a’ filler’ project whilst both Spielberg and Cruise were waiting for other films to be completed or get started. And doesn’t it show. Uninspired and redundant remake which suffers from the inevitable transition from early 20th Century England to modern-day America. Whilst it tries its hardest to stay faithful to the original story, the sheer technological advances made during this time has created a lot of holes in the plot. As usual, Spielberg’s real agenda is the family, and the importance of unity in these post-9/11 times, etc, etc, etc… As if, like Eric Banna’s character in Spielberg’s ‘return to formTM’ pic ‘Munich’, he’s itching to react in some way to an event beyond his comprehension. As things turn out, a lot of the scenes in WotW seem slightly exploitative, evoking as it does a lot of the imagery attached to 9/11; ash-covered people screaming and running through apocalyptic street. As for the extra-terrestrial terrorists themselves, their intelligence and efficiency must be brought into question, given that their (very long-term) plans to wipe out an entire species of 6 billion involves door-to-door extermination tactics. They also seem to have about as much regard for the industrial and environmental changes of the last hundred years as Spielberg, failing as they did to check if our environment was still inhabitable to them since they first came to earth a few centuries ago. Tom Cruise is believable only in the sense that you suspect that ‘s the kind of self-centred father he would be. I don’t recall much of the other performances save for the Fanning girl’s constant shrieking, making the alarming bass calls of the alien craft sound like a comparative cat’s meow. Tim Robbins acts as if he’s just been woken up from a disturbing nightmare during his entire time on-screen. A conscience effort to avoid showing the usual cinematic definitions of the end of the world – a broken Statue of Liberty here, a token European landmark destroyed there – combined with an effort to keep the rural setting of the original story, has left Spielberg without an obvious means of conveying the global threat to mankind beyond that of an agricultural disaster on a massive scale. I could comment that original 1953 version was far superior, but that would be drawing a comparison between the two films as inappropriate as recommending you watch Midnight Cowboy if Duece Bigalow didn’t quite hit the mark for you.

friends of mine watched this film when it first came out and said it was good but had a strange ending where it ended abruptly. i dont think its true, it ends like any nomal film where everyone lives happily ever after....i think it was fab

Good all round action film, good family entertainment. Not too true to the origional story, but ok none the less.

We could not belive how bad this was. Much of the plt makes no sense, Cruise comes across as annoying and the special effects are nothing special. I know you will probably think with these stars, that director, teh size of the budget it will probably be ok. It isn't - do not waste 2 houyrs of your life

If only they'd kept to the book this could have been a great film. Some good effects.. but script and attitude just too macho American. This film should be kepy with the borders of the USA to avoid offending others. Please read the book.. after all these years it's still a good read.

as it goes this is one of the better films i've seen all year. i would recommend it

Excellent viewing the whole film very tense good action

I think it was alright but the graphics were good

After seing this at the sinema I was rather disapointed with the abrupt ending and reasoning beghind it however upon watching second time round on DVD I find the ending is more believable. Good film not so Tom Cruisey as most of his film seems to be. Worth watching as is always action packed

Really enjoyed the film, great effects and i found it difficult, to turn away from the screen, i would recommend this film to all.

I'm not really qualified to review this film, as I only saw the first 30 minutes, couldn't take any more. If you like special effects, then you may like it. other than that its just another bad remake. As Barry Norman once said about 'Batman'...'Its one of those films where you come out whistling the scenery'

This film had us gripped to our seats the whole way through with suspense. It was very scary as you can imagine it happening. Well worth the watch.

A bit disappointing really.

I thought upon renting this that i was in for a good night of viewing. Boy did i get it wrong. I was in one of those moods where i really wanted to like the film, but bye the end of it all i was very disapointed. The effects were good, but the film dragged out and had a very poor ending. Basic film discription: Lightning storm where aliens shoot down into buried machines via lightning, kill lots of people and destroy a lot of stuff, then aliens die from bacteria.

special effects good but Hey...its 2005 definatly not something that I will raccommend.By the way screen select does a very good service Thank You

Spielberg uses his usual tricks that we have seen too often in his previous films. Good performance by Cruise. Overall the movie fails to become a sci-fi experience and keep the interest high. It's nothing more than a disaster movie.

With cinema prices rising more and more every few months its about time films came out worth paying £6.50 plus to go and see. This 'War of the Worlds' had so much promise a trip to the cinema for a mates bday was definately in order.....after watching the film however we (all 7 of us) felt like we had just wasted 2 hours of our lives and were ready to complain and get our money back for putting us through this utter tripe! How can a combination of Spielburg and Cruise produce such a poor film! I would rather sit through the spice girls movie then see this again and i wish i could give it less then 1 star! if like me you were expecting something like Independance Day but EVEN MORE DRAMATIC with cities around the world crumbling at the might of this superior alien race then do yourself a favour and watch Independance Day again, DO NOT SEE THIS! BUT dont get me wrong, if you are in love with tom cruise then you will love the fact he's ALWAYS on screen and you wont mind the fact that the war only really effects him and his home town! now for the plus side of the film.... Good effects and realistic too, the rocket launcher at the end was well done. but the action was just way to few and far between and i was really expecting a few strong military type people to be involved and to have more of a resistance but Noooo! sadly its basically how tom and his kids run away again and again until the aliens die off for silly reasons! Ok thats my rant over, just do yourself a favour and DONT SEE THIS FILM! First we had the ridiculous 'Indpendance Day' where we are expected to believe that aliens, zillions of years in advance of us are running a computer system based on Windows 95 (How else was Jeff Goldblum able to infiltrate their computer system with a lap top). I didn't even know Microsoft was exporting to other galaxies. And now another silly alien film which insults our intelligence. Okay, it's Science Fiction, but does it have to be so full of holes? First, those tripod machines were supposed to have been planted on earth before man evolved. For what purpose? Are we supposed to believe that these aliens were psychic? They would have looked pretty stupid if evolution had never happened. Anyway, this would mean those craft were burried here over 2 million years ago. Supposing we stockpiled a few modern day jet fighters with the idea of using them in the future. Two million years later they would be completely obsolete. Are we supposed to belive that this superior, advanced race did not evolve in the proceeding 2.3 million years. Surely they would have developed much more advanced craft with different propulsion systems, weaponry, etc in the intervening years. Would they not have attacked us with this craft, rather than resort to digging up a fleet of obsolete weaponry from 2.3 million years ago? Beats me where they found all these wrinkly old aliens who remembered how to operate them. If they live that long on their planet why the need to come down here in the first place? And if they were clever enough to predict the evolution of the human race why wouldn't they know that our germs would be lethal to them? Don't they have any biological scientists where they come from? So they came here for food, supposedly? What did they eat on their planet? Did the alien hierarchy say 'Okay, chaps we're going to run out of food in a couple of million years time, but don't worry. We'll just pop down to earth and eat some humans, once they've managed to evolve themselves from amoeba. Taste much nicer than space dust' Can't understand why the ending surprised anyone. After all, HG Wells wrote the book in 1894 and I thought everyone knew about Orson Wells' infamous 'panic in the streets' radio broadcast of 1938. And then there was the original film in 1953....... some people need to get out more.

Far-fetched, but quite exciting in places. Wouldn't watch again though.

This film is really good and is worth watching as the special effects are awesome. However, the overall plot of the film is nowhere near as good as the original and it should have shown more of battles against the alien ships rather than following Tom Cruise around. Reckon they could have got a better leading actor for this role as Tom Cruise was not convincing as a crane driver, nor as the father of a lad who looked almost the same age as him and was a lot taller than him.

If you're in your early teens then this is probably enjoyable enough; you may think Cruise is plausible as the father of a teenage boy and you just might not pick up on all of the huge plot holes. For me, this was so disappointing I was clockwatching after the first 20 minutes or so. The special effects are pretty good, Dakota Fanning was on screen nearly as much as Cruise (too much) and Tim Robbins is surely embarrassed about his part in this.

good film, not bad for watching at home.

If you like special effects you might enjoy this film. If you have a low IQ you might find it interesting. It has no plot, the characters are all one-dimensional hollywood stereotypes. I cant believe I wasted 2 hours of my life watching this rubbish

This is dreadful. There's a horror bit with aliens sucking blood out of humans around three-quarters of the way through which should make the film an 18. There's no way kids should be watching this. Our here then finds his young daughter has disappeared with the aliens outside but manages to pause to put his leather jacket on before sauntering off to find her! And the ending... sloppy, sentimental, lazy irrelevant yuk. Find the original radio broadcast for the real War of the Worlds. It only got one star cos I can't give it none!

I am a sci-fi nut but I also like a plausible story line... if you don't mind a story line as far fetched as coal from China.. then OK the special effects a godd

This was a great dissappointment. How can anyone make such a mess of a great book?

A plot line that relied on bits of action to carry it along. The storyline dragged along in an irritating manner (one problem after another!) until - so it seemed - that everyone realized it was running long and decided to wrap it up in 5 minutes (in a very unsatisfying manner that called into question the previous 1.5 hours).

great film don't miss it

great remake, a bit dark/deep but all in all a good movie, recommend it for any saturday night

Didn't get to watch it.

brilliant, glad i didn't let my son watch it, very scary in some points. fantastic graphics kept you on the edge all the time

film was ok but bit long though. same all stuff from tom cruise

Watch it with your kids to while away!!. My 4 years old son was thrilled with the film...

Not as good as I expected it to be and for Speilberg I was expecting much more. Tim Robbins didn't need to be in it and the boy turning up in the end was a right let down. Only rent if you haven't got anything else to do.

Had Speilberg gone for a film that was truer to the way the book was written it and set it in the late Victorian times it would have made it so much better as he would still have been able to play around with the CGI that really made this film watchable. In saying that, the film wasn't too bad for all that, and was watchable.

special effects fest. gr8 entertainment for all the family although i guess some younger kids may find it a little disturbing.

This film fails simply for the fact that in the first ten minutes you're told that the alien weapon knocks out all electrical equipment and some guy has a working camcorder moments later!!? I find it strange to think a film maker such as Spielberg would build a blatant plot hole into one of his films unless he meant it as an insult to the hoards of lobotomised morons' to stupid to follow what's going on. If you have got brain damage, senility or just a very short attention span you've forgotten what I said at the start. So you would probably enjoy this Five Star Sci-Fi extravaganza.

This may not be the best film in the world, but it really gave me the creeps. I can understand why Orson Welles got everyone believing the aliens were coming in the 50's. It really kept me on the edge of my seat.

For all those nit pickers out there.. question for you.... Who else could pull of a 1950's movie coupled with a 1980's musical and make a great film out of them ???? If you look at the film properly you will see loads of new, fresh camera work never been seen before as well as Special FX ... Which I think for FX and original ideas Mr Spielburg is the best... I have sat down with my family and watched this movie and we all enjoyed it..

Starting from a well known story it could only go wrong, but this film was a great watch. It wasn't just the fantastic special effects that made this a good movie, it was mainly due to them sticking to the orginal story and so we had some acting as well. Great stuff.

Having watched the original, I was a little disappointed with this re-make but it was very, very watchable and one for the library!

I was sadly dissappointed as a huge fan of Tom Cruise, he didn't have me believe his fear, very boring. The little girl acted better.

Not great to be honest. Kept me entertained at first but got more and more disappointing as it went on. The ending was rubbish and so cheesy and sentimental I'm pretty sure I groaned aloud.

when i found out that Speilberg and Tom Cruise where working together again on such a classic story as war of The Worlds i awaiting yet another great Speilberg movie but Boy was i in for a Big disappointment, great special effects but not alot else apart from a great piece of acting yet again from the young Dekota Fanning. rent the original Movie instead.

If you are not sure what kind of film to go for choose this one. A fantastic film.

Spielberg: “Ok – here’s the deal. The hero is Tom - maverick – good looking, educated, vocabulary the size of a planet; everyone loves him, best crane handler in the state….” Marty: “Working on the docks?” Spielberg: “And he’s gotta be really unreliable, you know, cos that’s part of his charm, and he’s got to have no personality either, but still everyone loves him. But his kids have gotta be really messed up you know, cos of the broken home, and living with their new Dad” Marty: “That’s most kids nowadays – don’t you want them a bit more messed up? Spielberg:”Hey – you’re right Marty – good input. Have we done Tourette’s recently? OK, just screaming fits then. Like when her Mom goes off, she can start screaming and stuff, and when Dad goes quiet she can really go for it. She’ll be really annoying, but hey – not all characters have to be likeable do they?” Marty: “Maybe we could just make her a bit screamy at the start of the film, and pretend that coming to terms with really horrible stuff shocks her out of the attacks, that way we won’t have to have her screaming all through the film?” Spielberg:”Hey – you’re right Marty –good input. “ Marty: “I was being ironic” Spielberg: “Don’t mess with me Marty. And when the Martians arrive, forget spaceships appearing over the skyscrapers. Let’s have them coming out of the ground!!” Marty: “The ground? - How are they gonna get there Steve?” Spielberg: “They were already there – envious eyes have been on us for years. Maybe aeons. Marty: “OK - why live underground on it, if they are so envious? I don’t get it. Spielberg: “That’s the trouble with you Marty – you can never think outside the box – they aren’t living underground – they plant their machines underground, ready to attack.” Marty:” So, they put their machines underground, cos it’s a really nice place millions of years back. So why wait till now when we’ve messed the whole place up, and it’s full of guys with weapons? Spielberg: “Don’t mess with me Marty. And when the aliens arrive - they ride the lightning – we gotta have lightning, to stop all the clocks, and cars, and everything. Tom can notice things nobody else sees, you know and other stuff I’ll think of later, like maybe the force field drops around the machines, but only Tom notices (write that one down for later guys). And then we can show scenes where the lightning has struck twice, cos that could never really happen.” Marty: “Actually that is a fallacy Steve” Spielberg:” OK smartass lets make it 26! Marty” So where does the lightning come from?” Spielberg: “From the sky of course, where do you think?” Marty: “But where in the sky – the clouds? Spielberg:” Well of course from the clouds – where else?” Marty: “Uh …How do they get to the clouds Steve?” Spielberg: “That’s it – you’re out”

Spielberg: “Ok – here’s the deal. The hero is Tom - maverick – good looking, educated, vocabulary the size of a planet; everyone loves him, best crane handler in the state….” Marty: “Working on the docks?” Spielberg: “And he’s gotta be really unreliable, you know, cos that’s part of his charm, and he’s got to have no personality either, but still everyone loves him. But his kids have gotta be really messed up you know, cos of the broken home, and living with their new Dad” Marty: “That’s most kids nowadays – don’t you want them a bit more messed up? Spielberg:”Hey – you’re right Marty – good input. Have we done Tourette’s recently? OK, just screaming fits then. Like when her Mom goes off, she can start screaming and stuff, and when Dad goes quiet she can really go for it. She’ll be really annoying, but hey – not all characters have to be likeable do they?” Marty: “Maybe we could just make her a bit screamy at the start of the film, and pretend that coming to terms with really horrible stuff shocks her out of the attacks, that way we won’t have to have her screaming all through the film?” Spielberg:”Hey – you’re right Marty –good input. “ Marty: “I was being ironic” Spielberg: “Don’t mess with me Marty. And when the Martians arrive, forget spaceships appearing over the skyscrapers. Let’s have them coming out of the ground!!” Marty: “The ground? - How are they gonna get there Steve?” Spielberg: “They were already there – envious eyes have been on us for years. Maybe aeons. Marty: “OK - why live underground on it, if they are so envious? I don’t get it. Spielberg: “That’s the trouble with you Marty – you can never think outside the box – they aren’t living underground – they plant their machines underground, ready to attack.” Marty:” So, they put their machines underground, cos it’s a really nice place millions of years back. So why wait till now when we’ve messed the whole place up, and it’s full of guys with weapons? Spielberg: “Don’t mess with me Marty. And when the aliens arrive - they ride the lightning – we gotta have lightning, to stop all the clocks, and cars, and everything. Tom can notice things nobody else sees, you know and other stuff I’ll think of later, like maybe the force field drops around the machines, but only Tom notices (write that one down for later guys). And then we can show scenes where the lightning has struck twice, cos that could never really happen.” Marty: “Actually that is a fallacy Steve” Spielberg:” OK smartass lets make it 26! Marty” So where does the lightning come from?” Spielberg: “From the sky of course, where do you think?” Marty: “But where in the sky – the clouds? Spielberg:” Well of course from the clouds – where else?” Marty: “Uh …How do they get to the clouds Steve?” Spielberg: “That’s it – you’re out”

the special effects were good,the script was dire H.G.would turn in his grave if he saw this-a complete waste of Tom Cruises talent

I was very entertained with this movie, although there was abit of american lovey dovey crap at the end but the start and middle was enough for me to watch it again and not be bored. Well worth a look at.

very good film special affects brillent

This film was brilliant and captured the story by H.G Wells in a fanastic way. If you like Star Wars you will love this film.

Ive read many a bad review of this film on this site that I frustrate myself!!! This is a wonderfull remake. It doesn't subscribe to the orignal. And that's what I appreciate to Speilburgs effort so much; because it doesn't need to. Its a earfull and visual candifest (not a real word but allow me some artict licence) fest for those of us with with wide screen lcd and boominf 5.1 systems!!! I thoroughly enjoyed this dvd from start to finish. So did my 8 year old comradre (don't tell on me!). A story doesn't have to be regurgated to keep its integrity, it can be re-told with a new perseption and still be entertaining. I gave it a four star rating. Maybe if I didn't have a huge tele and sound system I may have found it mundane... but for our audience, it was fantastic. Speilbug can really deliver (large tele needed at times I think!)

Where was the original music in this version. A large part of what made the original so brilliant was the stirring Jeff Wayne soundtrack - it made things seem scarier. This was an OK film but personally I dind't find it that scary. My girlfriend on the other hand did, and the indentations in my arm from where she was gripping are proof. For those who haven't seen the original they will probably find this brilliant, for those that have it is an average remake at best.

Although this was watchable, I was a little disappointed by it. Perhaps this was spoilt by the fact that I had been brought up with the musical version, set in London. It just did not work being American-ised. Tom Cruise was below par after a bright beginning. He started developing a character, then after about 30 minutes this development seemed to be ditched in favour of what has to be said were good special effects. Good beginning, then fluctuated between dull and flat and back to good again. Strange mix that left me a little flat.

Don’t bother......you will be disappointed.

This was well made and worked well. In spite of knowing the plot (who doesn't) it was an interesting version which I thoroughly enjoyed.

Generally an average film, good effects, poorly presented story line, even though they had such a great sorry to start from.

The FX are totally amazing. Story is a bit lame (what did I expect). Have actually watched it twice

very good movies ,specially tom looks very cool.

I must say that as re-makes go this is really good. I still think the original version is the best, but overall very good. I must say the computer animation was very good, I also liked the way we straight into the action, if you have'nt seen this one yet, order it! You will not be dissapointed.

Most people on this page could have done the film better. Sorry Steven, better luck next time eh?

Very good film right througth the best.

It really is quite difficult to describe the sheer awfullness of this film. Certainly impossible without ruining the storyline (what storyline?). Suffice to say the special effects were good, and it is always a damning moment when that is the best thing one can say about a film!!

WOW, I was not expecting to enjoy this film at all but I wanted to give it a go as I had seen the set in America. Entertaining all the way through with some great acting and effects.

Having seen the original back in the 50s I hoped for as good ,if not better, sadly I got nothing even remotely as good as the original. A dysfunctional American family miraculously escaping where most others failed, barely a mention of the World as in the title, telescoped time scales,no attempt at any form of explanation,and a total lack of atmosphere. H.G. Wells would be less than pleased. It gets two stars for the special effects, but only just.

I watched bits of this but my 10 year old son has watched it 3 times-not bad for a far fetched film

This is a very enjoyable sci-fi film with excelllent special effects. Tom Cruise does well with a slightly less than brilliant script and pinocchio as his son.

Its a young lads film i think, a bit slow all the way through, story line a little weak and the ending even weaker, I even did the wahing up while it was on, my boyfriend also thought it was poor

This was a boring film. No exciting story line and no ending. For a Tom Cruise film, this was a let down.

Actually very entertaining and Tom Cruise was not as 'mission impossible' as I thought he would be.

good movie, but i couldn't help comparing it to the musical version by jeff wayne, which it does nto match up to.

Lots of special effects but it never got had 'spine chilling' effect on me that reading the book had all those years ago.

Very good and special effects excellent. I wasn't sure about this film as it was my husband's selection but I thoroughly enjoyed it. Tom Cruise was excellent, in fact all the acting was excellent. Recommended film to watch.

has been a good timepass.however the ending was an anticlimax....

good special effects but nothing to write home about. ending shabby and tom in the leading role is poor casting the young girl actor is constantly in a state of shock not much acting needed when working along side alians

the special effects were good, an old story...the origional was better

watchable, great acting from dakota fanning, very annoying and unbelievable end, other than that good as always from tom cruise

Not very much 'invader' input until the end. Tom Cruse OK, but I expected a bit more alien action.

Shame really but this film is typically hollywood. Some good special effects but story line is so predictable it spoils the ending

Miscast Tom Cruise. Rubbish ending. Good effects though.

Not really. But in this flick Cruise plays quite a normal character which makes the film so much better as he is quite belieable. Great special effects, great monsters but pointless scenes with Tim Robbins, does not enhance the film in any way. Went on for too long. Of course there is the dewy eyed Hollywood ending. Well worth seeing though.

Being a huge fan of Spielberg movie, that was one of his worst ever! Yes the special effect is good but where is the storyline? Dakota Fanning is a really good actress, and probably steal the stardom of Tom Cruise in it as you can't tell that it was his best acting ever either. I guess it's just a good enough movie to rent in boring rainy day!

Be warned this film stars Tom Cruise. That means the stars of the film are not the Tripods, nor the special effects - but Tom Cruise in every sense of the word. Almost in every scene we follow Tom in what can only be described as two hours of watching a man running for his life. With some huge liberties from the book as well as some very huge plot holes that are too many to mention here the film makes up for it with some very good effects and a sense of panic effectively woven by the mastery of Steven Speilberg. But just like most of Speilberg films the ending has little going for it. More cop out than the usual Hollywood climax, the WOTW just ends abruptly and all so happy which given the film plot line is out of synch and plain rubbish really. The film is overall let down by the curse that is the age rating system. Making this a 12 certificate killed most of the tension whilst making death on a huge scale seem child's play. If the film was based on the book source material, if the Martians were made the true stars of the show, if it used Jeff Wayne's music (from his best selling album) and if this was a 15 certificate (at least) it would have been spectacular. Instead, like the Martians, its more of giant squib.

I read the war of the world book and have see the original movie, both of these had something that this movie lacked. They both had an epic feel, this movie felt ordinary. The ending was quite bad, it was too quick. The ending was to neat and easy and the human had not suffered enough and things had not changed enough.

I wish they had 1/2 stars. I didn't find it so bad as many here feel, to give it only 2 stars, but it's not really 3. Not by a long shot really. As people have said, way too many holes and yet it's this kind of stuff that ole' Stevie should be good at. If you are going to have video cameras working when you've already established that everything has stopped, then explain that. I made up that the car could start because it had gone kaputt before the aliens sent out the signal and so now it could be repaired. Doesn't really make sense but I could go with it. But I should not have to work so hard. The film maker should explain it. And how come there is a plane crash that takes out the whole house and surrounding houses but the car is not damaged and runs fine and NOBODY MENTIONS IT. I am very easy, all I needed was for Tom Cruise's character to have some stupid line like 'gee, after all that the car is working...how lucky we are'.... I know that's bad but at least give me something!

The original film, though black and white with basic special effects, had more suspense and emotion than this rubbish. Another action film for Cruise where he can jump about and demand an exorbitant fee for not much. Not really a remake as only loosely based on the original. Special effects were ok and the little girl was good. Other than that not worth the money.

Yes Tom does it for me everytime....he is the person he portrays and as such convinced me that it was actually him that H.G.was writing about....Mr Wells if only you could see the film It was convincing but too short ....can't someone out there write a sequel ....I want more !!!!!!

The opening 30mins of this film is worth the price of admission. The FX are fairly seemless, mixed with some trully mind blowing audio. It is unfortunately let down by some serious plot flaws. none will be mentioned to save spoilers. keep an open mind and play it on a decent TV and you will not be as dissapointed as some of these reviews would like you to believe.

Whether your a fan of the previous war of the worlds this is worth the watch. You may not think Tom Cruises charecter is simperfectic but unusual for a hollywood film his not meant to be. His meant to not know anything about his kids and show his inexperiance whilst dealing with the disaster. The story is vague and the voice over at the end explaining what happened is annoying seeing that we just sat through such a long build up. Spielberg does well and there is some excellant CG Effects but don't expect to be dazzeled.

I hate to admit that I actually enjoyed this film. I already knew how it would end having read the book many years ago and so I had relatively low expectations. The special effects are very impressive and thoroughly convincing and the sound is awesome (if you have a decent surround set-up). What made this film for me was that it genuinely conveyed the feeling of fear and uncertainty felt by the main protagonists as they make their way through the plot. The eery foghorn noise made by the tripods really started to creep me out and I found myself actually rooting for the main characters. All in all, worth a watch. It's not really suitable for kids unless you can get a sample of the tripod foghorn to 'encourage' the little dears to do as they're told.

what a boring load of tripe. Nothing like the original..typical Americanised watered down rubbish..an insult to any intelligence..the most boring film I have seen in years..avoid this movie like the plague. Cruise is terrible, the story line is abysmal, and so unlike the masterpiece original it's just plain pathetic.

Oh what a let down this movie is the only thing going for it was the action scenes Tom Cruise is greatly miss cast and his family are the worst I have ever seen shame on you Mr Speilberg I must prefer the 1950s version starring the late Gene Barry. My rating is nil for performances and story line I give it ten out of ten for special effects I rest my case

WITH ALL THE BAD REVIEWS I THOUGHT THAT THIS WOULD BE WORSE. IT WAS NOT AS GOOD AS IT COULD HAVE BEEN BUT WORTH A WATCH.

Simply awful. The character played by Tom Cruise was unbelievable, the plot line was almost laughable, the ending pathetic. There were glimpses of good acting from Tim Robbins, but the daughter just screamed a lot. It was a waste of the special effects which were probably the best bit......

first i would say don,t read the reviews before you watch this film, if i had i would not have watched it, yes it was strange trying to think of Tom Cruise with a teenage son but then thats what acting is about, both my husband and i really enjoyed this film i would say watch it and make up your own mind

after reading some of the reviews i was a bit hesitant to watch this. But son wanted me to add it to the list, we both sat and watched it and enjoyed.

Not the greatest Tom Cruise fan but this was really good all round entertainment . Effects were brilliant but parts were a bit predictable cutting my rating down to 3 , but well worth watching .

Has Spielberg given up trying these days? This film was possibly very slightly better than A.I. - and that's mostly because you don't waste as much of your life watching it. The plots are about as smaltzy and hole-ridden as each other and you also end up hoping most of the main characters die horribly. I find it reminiscent of the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy film. Recipe: take snippets of plot from the original story, hack them about and insert them in inappropriate points in the film to ruin them, and add some smaltzy, cheesy subplot. Why on earth did this film need some rubbish background about Tom Cruise's character's family life? It didn't. And this helped ruin the film as a whole.

you would expect with a director like Steven Spielberg & an actor like Tom Cruise they could pull something off that was very special. But it's not. The movie turns sour within the first 10 mins, when boy says: 'what was that dad was that a terrorist?'. Thats just one of the many things that makes it so american and maks it a s**t movie. the only thing that vaguely keeps it alive is the special effect which even then aren't amazing

Special effects were good. Can get a little boring but basically ok.

ok but not great average story and ok actors but more is expected from spielburg.

Really I mean it, I thought this film was a bit scary. I could imagine if this was true it would have been awful. Amazing special effects and an interesting storyline. I actually had no idea it was based on an H.G Wells novel (probably the only person who didn't know that). 4 stars for this film, definately recommend it!

Rarely am I spurred to actually write a review, however after enduring this movie I thought I must try to save the rest of humankind from the same torture! Poor old H.G Wells would be turning in his grave! The gleamingly white-toothed Mr Cruise is almost amusingly mis-cast as the hero dock-worker, and even the Spielburg magic touch doesn't work on the poor casting and script. Read the book, listen the CD........but don't watch the movie! Absolute pants!

Don't waste your time!

Don't waste your time!

If you compared it to the origanal film, its not as good but its fairly good its its own right

Don't bother with this film unless you are the type of person who likes seeing the same scene over and over again!! For a Spielberg film, the special effects are not compelling and the story does not ring true to the original - HG Wells would turn in his grave. To be honest, I have such fond memories of Jeff Wayne's musical version that it probably didn't stand a chance in my book! Oh,and Tom Cruise plays his usual annoying self - even gets the usual jump and punch in the air - change the record Tom!

Just a word of warning - it's a bit too frightening for a 12 rating. Not the gore, but the fear. Don't give your kids nightmares.

Great special effects and cgi (which deserve at least three stars - the rest pulls it down) but everything else well ..... ended like the hyped film Independence Day(2 stars again) .... bizarre even by Hollywood standard. Actingwise Dakota Channing the best considering she is still a child. Watchable but ran out of puff in the end and bizarrely so ..... doh!

Great special effects and cgi (which deserve at least three stars - the rest pulls it down) but everything else well ..... ended like the hyped film Independence Day(2 stars again) .... bizarre even by Hollywood standard. Actingwise Dakota Fanning the best considering she is still a child. Watchable if a great fan on special effects and cgi but ran out of puff in the end and bizarrely so ..... doh!

OK yes there are plot holes, unbelievable characters and it’s a bit cheesy in places (millions slaughtered in seconds but our hero continually surviving by the skin of his teeth). However as a switch your brain off, let it wash over you as a piece of entertainment I thoroughly enjoyed it. Some fantastic effects and a lot of tension.

this could have been great but was rushed in the making so little things don`t add up. so the story becomes unbeliveable. the book is so much better.

Great film and effects throughout. Really sudden end to the film like writters ran out of ideas but reason for sudden ending pretty clever. A film you'd only watch once.

Its a very good film and tense (especially where the alien is looking around the house on the hillside). However everything is crammed into the last 15 minutes or so which spoils the end really and its all over too quick.

In short this film looks amazing, top notch cgi and clever camera angles do a pretty good job of distracting the viewer from the obvious plot holes. I don't agree with the criticism of Cruise's casting or performance but the whole thing felt as if it had been rushed out to coincide with the publicity generated by Tom's love life!

I wasn't expecting much from this film, and I wasn't disappointed. The music was good, but without 'Forever Autumn' and the other famous music, it felt like something was missing. Keeping the bits with Morgan Freeman (the prologue and epilogue) the same as the original was a good touch, but all in all it was a very American film - especially the ending. It would have been so much different if it had been made by a British film-maker!

The positive side of this movie has to be the special effects and the brightest young talent around at the moment, being Dakota Fanning, other than that it is a basic run of the mill sci-fi adventure. It came across to me like someone had sat down and said to another bunch of other people, What shall we re-write today? How about 'War of the worlds' said another? Ok lets do it said another, Shall we go all out and make it the best movie of all time? said another, Why bother it will sell no matter what said the final person. TO sum up, its good, but no cigar.

What a dreadful film. The only decent acting was from a minor.

Good action movie, enjoyed by the whole family of all ages, funny, scary and keeps the suspense till the end.

I was in two minds whether to see this film. I am a great HG Wells fan and have recently read his War of the World again after several years, still thoroughly enjoying it. The whole essence of the story being that it was written in 1897 and set in rural England. I was dubious as to how an American would interpret this wonderful piece of English literature, even though it is a Stephen Spielberg film and I usually love his films. My fears were not unfounded. However, when watching it I tried to disassociate the book from the film and in doing so thought the special effects department had really gone to town and made a good job of it. The young girl in the film was a magnificent little actress. It was the weak interpretation and story line that spoiled the film.

PLENTY OF SPECIAL EFFECTS.TOM CRUISE DOES THE ESTRANGED FATHER SAVING HIS KIDS WELL. NOT TOO MUCH BRAIN POWER NEEDED TO WATCH

Great film - had the teenagers on the edge of their seat! Watched this one at night whilst away on a caravan holiday - there was a gale blowing outside and the van was rocking! - excellent effects from mother nature which fitted perfectly into the film and frightened everyone brilliantly! - worth a watch any day.

Although id seen this film on copied dvd,i wanted to see it again in a better picture quality so decided to rent it out and have a good watch.I was impressed with the original movie,and was just impressed with mthis one also.As being a big speilberg fan,i was'nt disopointed in this film one bit,i thought the special fx was fantastic,but could of done with a little bit more work to it as there was something missing which i couldnt put my finger on,still worth the watch though.

Good effects in this film. Kids enjoyed it aswell as we did.

wish i knew you told Tom Cruise he could act perhaps Dakota Fanning or Tim Robbins could give him some tips . Although Robbins was over the top and didn't seem to know what he was doing there . Nice Spielberg touch of Gene Barry from the original film . Wonder what he was thinking ?

It's great to see Tom Cruise in a film were has hasn't been the typical heart throb. It shows that he is capable of acting and I really enjoyed this film, I was expecting a lot from having read the book and wasn't disappointed. A very enjoyable film.

the story was nowhere like the original novel. The name should have been 'the family matters'

...Tom Cruise disappearing up an alien's backside - pretty much summed the movie up for me. Despite all the special effects and the hype, if you want to see the book on screen, go for the original. If I could give this no stars, I would.

very pedestrian- full of tom cruise posing. Not recommended

I do think people are being a bit harsh about this movie. Sure, it's not going to get a second viewing in this household, but it had its moments and kept hubby and me watching. I don't particularly like Tom Cruise, but I actually thought he was good in this role. He didn't try to play a hero and shivered and cried like any normal guy in his position would. The most interesting parts of the film were the interactions between the humans trying to survive and this could have been exploited more, as it was in the original book (who needs Martians when you're faced with starving humans who want your car?). The events in the book take place over weeks but here it all seems to happen almost overnight and the true horror of what the aliens are doing is rather lost in the rush of the action. Certainly deserves its 12 rating - I've let my 9 year old see Lord of the Rings (also 12) but I wouldn't let him see this.

I don't understand why this film got such bad reviews! apart the the ridiculous tripod things i thought that this was a really good movie! loved the fact that tom cruise wasnt a massive hero figure like the trailer suggests. definitely worth a watch!

This was really boring i would not recomend this film to any one dont bother

saw this at the pictures first time round. just as good the second time on dvd. good graphic, gripping story,

4 star for special effects only, the kids constantly screaming and screaming was a right turn off. 'IS IT TERRORISTS' come on even my 5 year old realised an 100ft walking machine had to be from space

I`ll give Tom Cruise 5 stars for making a prat of himself on the Oprah Winfrey show and 1 star for War of the Worlds-Poor film.

thought this was an amazing film- really well acted and tom cruise came up tops!!!

An okay film but a lot of hype leading up to this film, felt a little let down by it overall. It was action packed and good acting but something was missing, it wasn't that memorable.

Good film but sudden ending

The plot is a little weak with no great surprises or twists to get involved with. The ending is also an anticlimax and it is hard to warm to the eventual hero, who end up not being the lead man. Tom Cruise is Tom Cruise - you never get to see much depth of character.

do not watch this film. it drags. you don't care about the characters. the aliens seem a little non scary.

husband wasn't keen to watch

Disappointing - should have stuck more to the original story. The dialogue was very wearing too.

An excellent all action movie.

This film was amazing! I recommend it to anyone who's into sci-fi or action/drama V.gd. If you've played HL2 you'll see the insperation lol.

How rubish was this film!!! I only want to see it as I watched the tv series. The only simalarity was the desgin of the spaceships, and the ending or should I say what endding? They shoot down one ship and then immedately turn up at ex-wifes house with kid HELLO what about the other ships or maybe more importantly a storyline!!!!

This a great remake of a classic. I've seen the original and was in ore of it. This remake gives a fresh new approach that really gets you involved. The mystery is still there but it does get more detailed and dramatic. Cruise is good in it, it suited his style. Thoroughly enjoyed it.

Special Effects Brilliant, great adaptation of the original story. Actors perfect in the roles, little girl won an oscar for me, she's a great actor. Tom Cruise fantastic as ever.

Thought that this movie, with all modern tech effects available would be good. What a shame they did not portray it in a similar way that the War of the Worlds music album does. A great chance missed!!! Gave it one star, even though it did not really qualify for that.

I'll make it short so that you don't waste any time on anything to do with this film. DON'T BOTHER!!!!!!!!!

How can one little girl look sooooo terrified for the entire film?

I do not have many films that would make it onto my 'worst ever' list but my god this is one of them, I am always a big advocate of seeing a film or reading a book through to the bitter end to properly give it a chance but it truly was a struggle to make it to the end of this shocker. I am not Tom Cruises' biggest fan, in fact I beg to differ if he can actually act at all but that aside I was interested to see if Speilberg could produce a faithful remake of HG Wells' classic, the answer would have to be no. The movie was not helped by Cruises' depiction as a father of two, one of whom was 16, strecthing it a little don't you think? I am a fan however of Dakota Fanning but my god if she had been my child in that movie I would have left her to the aliens - what a brat! The two plus points were the amazing effects and the other was at least it stuck to HG Wells' ending and for once America didn't save the world yet again....I wouldn't use this DVD as drinks coaster.

As others have written, the casting of Tom Cruise was a mistake. Other than that I thought it was acceptable. It didn't claim to be a 'high-brow' serious film and it wasn't. I think too many people thought they were going to see a classic film version of a classic story. It isn't any such thing. It's a typical film intending to entertain (which it does quite well) and make money for the creators.

Even though Tom Cruise is in it this film is excellant! I was on the edge of my seat the whole way through and that doesn't happen very often.

This wasnt up to Spielberg's usual standards, to my mind. I think the film would have been a whole lot better if it was set in late Victorian times, as is the book by H G Wells, as the whole concept of aliens from Mars is so much more exciting and improbable when set against the backdrop of Victorian England. After all, anything is possible in present-day America isnt it?! I suppose its typical of the wants of modern audiences that the film is set in America with a 'family' set-up, whereas the book's story centres around one man and how he makes out against the martians. Take my advice, read the book, its much better, but the visual effects are good and it does pass the evening, and can be quite tense in parts!

wasnt sure how this was going to be was very surprised, excellent film, really enjoyed it!

Classic HG Welss brought up to date with great special effects

I've heard mixed reviews about this movie. I actually found it really good but I was confused with the last 30 seconds of voice over. I think I understood why the tripod thingy died but the language was so 'Old English' - I'm guessing that it was Orson Wells' orginal text.

Unfortunately this film just doesn't work in my opinion. Tom Cruise's character and those of his son and daughter are so unlikeable that you really don't much care if they get vapourised or not. The Tim Robbins character is so grotesque and out of place it really jars. Stephen Spielberg and Tom Cruise were really having an off day when they made this. There is one utterly fantastic technical shot where the family are fleeing in a mini-van and the camera moves around the van and apparently into it and out without cutting as it speeds along the freeway amongst the traffic. The effects are very good but the plot is very very thin and the ending is so well known (it sticks to the same one as in the book) that really there's very little suspense. If you cared about Cruise's family there would be some suspence but I certainly didn't. Dakota Fanning's acting is superb but her character is written very un-sympathetically like all the others.

Forget the bad reviews - see this film!!

H.G. Wells must be turning in his grave. This film is truly awful - the acting is bad and the dialogue almost inaudible. Some of the special effects were excellent but I'm afraid the film as a whole did nothing for me at all

total crap, the orginal film was far more imaginative - this film just served to stroke the Tom Cruise ego

The remake of the cataclysmic alien attack on Earth starring Tom Cruise. An enjoyable movie with some good special effects.

This film was very good most of the way through! - But then the story just collapsed and all the build up was just wasted on a very weak and disappointing ending! Could have been so much better!

This was a good film,for once Tom Cruise wasn't so over the top and surprisingly there wasn't so many corny lines in it as i thought there would be. Great effects and good acting,espescially from Dakota Fanning. Could av been a little bit more info on the aliens though as it ends rather abruptly. I was pleased enough though and give it a 4 star rating. If you like the little girl in this then watch man on fire as it's one of the best performances you'll see.

A very enjoyable film the special effects were brilliant and Tom Curse was as always very good.

Another hollywood butchery of an old license, this is just Tom Cruise explosions overlaid on the classic license. Weak script, poorly acted and a real disappointment.

If you don't expect a film to make sense and are only interested in action then this is the film for you

Watched war of the worlds after seeing scary movie 4 which i think was a bad idea.(couldnt really take it seroiusly) but having said that it was quite watchable. Great effects but other than that i found it quite dull. wouldnt watch again but defo whiled away a few hours

Tom Cruise, well, I loved him in Collateral but this is a pile of poo!!!

I doubt if this will go down as one of Speiberg's best. Although it did have some entertainment value it was carried by the special effects. It lacked the atmosphere of the original. Perhaps Hollywood may learn that it's not always a good dea to pump our remakes of classics then rely on audience ignorance to sell the product. Entertaining - Yes A good film - No

Complete garbage. Cruise needs to come out of the closet and get back to Top Gun quality. Spielberg, time to hang up the slippers mate.

Tom Cruise confirms that he is a terrible actor and kills any enjoyment of what could have been more than just a boring hollywood blockbuster - he is so bad, he is almost good. Watch it and weep...

After all the bad reviews I had to see it for myself. Im not the biggest Tom Cruise fan but he proved his talent to me in 'Vanilla Sky'.. I did, at first think the ending was poor but after thinking about it, I appreciate it for being more realistic unlike in other films where HUMANS defeat the Aliens!! Think back to Independence day, as if we'd stand a chance!

Having not read the book maybe I misunderstood this film. Tom Cruise has lost his edge in his recent films and this one I found far fetched and predictable, disappointing

Was thoroughly bored throughout this film. No meat on the bone!

What an absolute crock. Don't waste your time watching this poor,poor film.

Spielberg follows the same plot as the original version. The special effects are much more dramatic, and quite spectacular. What I found more difficult to endure was the preoccupation with fear and running away. I really would have thought that Spielberg could have found other threads to weave into the story. It is also sad after Star Trek Next Generation and others with a similar broader view of aliens that this film takes us back to preoccupation with superior ruthlesly destructive aliens.

Special effects were excellent

Alas, this film is tedious in the extreme. There is no intelligible or even audible storyline and the characters are unsympathetic. If I were scraping the barrel in search of a commendation,the special effects are, I suppose, just bearable and maybe OK for a special effects' coinnosseur. It felt throughout as though the film was desperate to morph into some form of Mars Attacks but without the wit or will. Compared with the charm and mystery of HG Wells' book, earlier film version(s) and even Jeff Wayne's brilliant album, this is a travesty of the artistic tradition. To be avoided!

Alas, this film is tedious in the extreme. There is no intelligible or even audible storyline and the characters are unsympathetic. If I were scraping the barrel in search of a commendation,the special effects are, I suppose, just bearable and maybe OK for a special effects' coinnosseur. It felt throughout as though the film was desperate to morph into some form of Mars Attacks but without the wit or will. Compared with the charm and mystery of HG Wells' book, earlier film version(s) and even Jeff Wayne's brilliant album, this is a travesty of the artistic tradition. To be avoided!

Ridiculous storyline, loads of silly mistakes, but it still manages to build up and maintain the tension throughout - unfortunately with possibly one of the worst, most pathetic endings I've ever seen. Tom Cruise is surprisingly good and the set-piece special effects are superb. If anything it highlights how good the ogiginal was.

Do not indulge - a complete and utter pile of pants. If ever an invasion of earth could be portrayed so ineptly this is it. So we have a family at war (Cruise versus the kids) and occasionally a few lumbering aliens got in the way. The film left me wondering whether i myself had been abducted as it appeared to leap forward to an entirely new storyline at random. Save your two hours for anything else but this

This, for me, sealed Tom Cruise's fate as an actor. He was never that good anyway, except maybe for Top Gun, and he wasn't very good in this average film either. The special effects and Dakota Fanning's performance saved this from the rubbish bin. It was OK as my young lad was watching it with me, but I'm glad I never went to the cinema to watch it.

If you are looking for pure entertainment where you dont have to think or concentrate too much this is worth watching. Its definitely worth a look so do not be put off by poor reviews - I guarantee you will not be bored!

Very good film, amazing special effects ... one really to be watched on the big screen however will not lose its value on DVD. You will not be disappointed ... however as always with this story the end is abrupt but well represented!

Even Tom Cruise couldn't make this film great - yes the special effects in places were superb, but the film barely got going, and followed the same predictable story line as other versions.

The hype that preceded this film made it sound like an unmissable film but in reality it is just about watchable - if only for the effects.

I don't typically carry very high expectations into a Tom Cruise movie, so it was a pleasant surprise that the story wasn't changed to have Tom save the day with some 'we have the home field advantage' tripe. Good action, suspenseful, darkly fun.

This departs so far from the book that it doesn't deserve to share the title. This is Hollywood at its worst. The tension of the original tale is sacrificed for a shallow, trite and cliched storyline. It even calls the triffids "tripods"! Give it a miss!

Well, I'm writing this while the film plays on (and on and on) in the background. I'm glad I didn't fork out to see this at the cinema - I'd have been livid. Good special effects (though they lose their appeal the billionth time around) and plenty of action (leading to where exactly?). There were also a few moments of realistic tension (though too many illogical moments for my liking). What finally lost my interest was the huge number of incongruities: how come Cruise's family are the only ones to constantly find ways to escape? There is a limit to the number of ridiculous scenarios we should have to tolerate, surely?? The only plus side really was when the martians reveal their bodies (cute) and the fact it inspired me to watch Signs (a far superior film). If you're a Cruise fan & think he can do no worng, it's probably worth watching. Otherwise, read the book and watch the old B&W version. Trust me, this isn't worth even the curiosity value. I warned you ...

When hollywood takes a piece of history, a well loved book, or a blockbuster movie it never seems to work for me. "U571" is an example of history change out of all recognition, "King Kong 2005" an example of what they can do to a movie, and "war of the worlds" an example of the book butchering.
Is it because the Americans believe they are the centre of the universe or because they are not so geographically & historically aware that everything becomes US centred?

As for Tom Cruise I find him quite ridiculous in either macho roles or, as in this case, acting as the divirced father. At least acting with kids he doesn't look so short.

This film was saved by the special effects.

Will I watch it again? Not likely.

I really enjoyed it.

I found it very gripping and exiting. it was grate fun, and I would recommend it.

I found this film very true to the plot of 'HG Wells' original novel with some interesting variations to bring it up to date.

Tom Cruise is excellent as is Dakota Fanning. A very enjoyable fast paced film.

Yes it's predicable, but what else do you expect?

Most of us know the story and most of us have seen Tom Cruise do his stuff in countless movies, but Cruise is still very much a pleasure to watch in any role.

He didn't play "Mr. Perfect Super Action Hero” He played a less than perfect father coming to terms with both a global disaster and his relationship with his kids. I found this movie very fast moving and frightening.

Definitely worth a watch. Dakota Fanning is also great in this movie. The only criticism I have is that there seemed to be a lack of explanation as to what was happening to the aliens as they lost power etc, but all in all a great movie.

I thought this film was brilliant, im not really a fan of those kind of films and i had put it on my list for my partner to watch, but as i watched it i really got into it and the action started quite quickly into the film and lasted throughout and i was hooked to the tv. I think it is a film i could watch again and again and not get bored.

Not the best film ever but good special effects

Although this film was very well played out by the characters, I did in fact find that the action kept you on the edge of your seat. The think the only reason I gave it a 4 instead of a 5 is because the whole story line was very dark and you didn't get to know the aliens much at all.

Waste of time, just don't bother, ths is so disjointed, ludicrously badly acted and directed that I'm amazed it got released. If I could, I'd give it zero.

fantastic remake and excellent special effects...

not as good as i had expected not as good as i had expected

it was ok. i'm not a tom cruise fan to begin w/ and so maybe i am biased but i thought this movie was a stretch. for all the hype it got, i wasn't super impressed.

lacks imagination been done before famous actors is so seventies

Tom Cruise plays a character you don't like for a change, he is irresponsible and ignorant to his kids needs. We watch him rediscover his children and feel his pain as he fears he might lose them. When the action speeds up you hardly get chance to breathe as Tom and his family are thrown from one life threatening moment to another. Don't think of this as a re-make, just take it for what it is .. a thrilling, rollercoaster ride through alien invasion.

review heading says it all

Didn't bother watching this at the cinema - and am I glad!

not as good as it was hyped up to be. the original film was 100% more exciting

Brilliant action packed movie. Thoroughly enjoyed.

I like it. Thought it was very fun and entertaining to watch. I have never seen the original. Very cool movie. Sorta like Independence day. Great effects

The film starts with Tom Cruise meeting up with his two children. Soon it becomes cloudy with thunder and lighting, and aliens start coming. The film has lots of action and is fast paced although it has a disappointing ending, the film is still enjoyable and entertaining to watch. Well worth a look!

Although some of the special effects were good and the confusion of the population, well shown, I was disappointed with the film as a whole. The film had two of the most irritating kids in it I've seen for a long time (I'd have given them over to the Martians after about five minutes!). Tom Cruise's habit of bilndfolding his young daughter so she was spared the ghastly scenes in the movie was unrealistic. The film seemed to suddenly come to an end (pretty much like the Martians really) just as it seemed to be going somewhere. It might be a much better movie on the big-screen, the effects were good but I'm left feeling it was nothing more than OK.

Not a patch on the original. Top notch special effects fail to make a good film. Very disappointing direction, annoying american children, ended far to quickly. Great Sci-Fi story quite well told but ultimately the direction lets it down.

Not as good as I expected but OK. It shows the invasion from a one man perspective like Signs did which is refreshing.

Good special effects! Story line - I dozed off, says it all really.

Great Special effects. Story line - Dosed off - says it all really.

Poor acting, dull story line, and littered with continuity errors. This has to rate as one of the top ten worst movies of all time. Don’t rent it.

This was awful. AWFUL. Don't rent it!! I waited the whole movie to see if there was any plot. Tim Robbins was the only saving grace, and even his role was AWFUL. Good way to kill yourself slowly.

I cannot say why I regarded it as a silly movie, maybe because is trying to use new effects on an adaptation, or maybe because I never liked Tom Cruise and his style. This adaptation should have been done differently and did not tick any of my boxes. So I would not really recommend this movie unles you wish to eat pizza and salad at the same time.

Started of great ended poor.

i have never read the book but i have listened to the storey tapes and steven spiellberges rendition of war of the worlds was exactly how i emagined it to be.

In general an ok film, but do not reccommend it people under the age of 15 to be honest. Think the rating is wrong.

Spielberg tackles HG Wells' classic. Sadly, what he achieves via visual spectacle is frittered away by a combination of annoying and dislikable characters, and enough plot holes to trip up a tripod. As usual, Cruise tries way too hard, and where Fanning was mesmerising in Taken, here she's mostly the wrong side of irritating. High points? The 'people baskets' beneath the tripod shells; a tripod's silent probing into the cellar hiding place; the view through the woods as victims' clothes drift and flutter to earth. One day someone will make the definitive WOTW. Sadly this isn't it.

Excellent version of a classic. Tim Robbins trys to spoil it but the special effects are far too superior. The young girl is going to be a big star

Was I watching a different film? why has everyone made out that this was awful? I thought it as great. Yes, Tom Cruise is a bit Tom Cruise-ish, but it is a good film. I thought it was great from the start, getting straight on with it and into the action from the beginning. Well worth watching, and yes...I would watch it again. Why has everyone said it was rubbish? Were we watching the same thing?

All hype nothing to back it up with, very loose story.

When will Hollywood learn to leave alone classic books? War of the Worlds isn't about gleaning smile beautiful Hollywood A-listers with rockets, missiles, jet fighters etc. Does Hollywood not realise that there are in fact other countries in the world where, yes wait for it, you can actually take a camera and film?! This is an atrocious film (sorry Tom!).and what a wasted opportunity. Why not actually set it in England in the 1890s, period costumes and with a serious (British) actor without an American accent playing the lead (e.g. Christian Bale)? Then examine the real issues behind the book? Not a chance!

dont waste your time pointless watching it! boring story line! absolutely crap!!!!!!

FIRST IMPRESSIONS USUALLY COUNT AND IN THIS PARTICULAR CASE IT DOES TOO,I WAS DISAPPOINTED WITH THIS MOVIE IT SEEMED TO TAKE A LONG TIME GOING NO WHERE ONCE YOU ACTUALLY SAW THE ALIENS THEY DIED AND THE MOVIE WAS OVER.THE SPECIAL EFFECTS WERE GOOD CONSIDERING WE THE AUDIENCE GENERALLY EXPECT SO MUCH THESE DAYS,THE CAST DID THE BEST THEY COULD WITH THE SCRIPT IN PARTICULAR TIM ROBBINS CHARACTER WAS PROBABLY THE BEST ROLE.TO CONCLUDE IF YOU LIKE DISASTER MOVIES AND SCI FI THEN THE MOVIE IS WORTH A LOOK...

Considering I - and my husband - both can't stand Tom Cruise, this was surprisingly good. We actually really enjoyed it; perhaps because our expectations were low? Yes, there were spectacular special effects, but the well-known plot still managed to be quite gripping, however simple and uncomplicated it may be.

Quite a good remake of the original, Cruise's character is good.

Ignore all the cynics moaning about inconsistencies - it's a blockbuster so you expect these things.I expect entertainment in a film like this - I don't necessarily care if Cruise appears too young to play the role, or if some characters are 'throwaway'. Just sit back,turn it up and enjoy the film, only let down by the rushed ending (I know that's how it went in the book, but surely it could have lasted just a little longer?)

But a good role for Tom Cruise, excellent special effects.

I think i missed the plot to all this, can anyone explain it to me?

I was slightly dissapointed in this film as being of an age when I know the whole narrative behind Jeff Wayne's musical version, this did not live upto my anticipation. Having said that some of the special effects were very good & Tom Cruise was sufficient in this role. Could have been better though & all in all would say it is worth watching.

As it has Cruise in it it is full of action. The special effects are good but the story didn't do anything for me.

Hubbie enjoyed this movie, for me it was a load of rubbish, good ideas but terrible ending and in the end a lot about nothing! Maybe just a guys film but certainly no Independance Day!

It's essentially a story of forbidden love in Saxon (?) times. Plenty of decent fight scenes and some very strong characters. I wasn't expecting much - but it delivered. One that you and your other half can both enjoy ....

Yet another 'the yanks re-write the story' and yet again it doesn't really work. Tom Cruise doesn't really seem comfortable in the lead role and hence doesn't seem weighty enough for it. The story meanders around using some elements of the original - but uses the grotesque to fill in the blanks. Worth seeing - but only just!

This film was absolutely terrible! especially the acting

The film begins well but then quickly deteriorates. Even some good special effects cant make up for a sudden and very disappointing end. It is however watchable and is not the worst made film but you cant help feeling tht they could have made it much better.

Not good, typical american rubbish

Dont bother , typical American rubbish , unrealistic and how many times can you dodge a lazer beam tom ?

watchable sci-fi. great movie for sound effects. the noises sound awesome thru' a surround sound system. classic Spielberg, really.

I thought this film was pretty good, there were a few bits that were just daft but what can you expect of a film portraying alien attack...its not like anyone knows what it would be like!

Tom cruise thought it was his best film, but I dont think they made the best use of the material in editing . Scary and engaging but seemed to lose its pace after half way. Perhaps there will be an other cut made available.

This was obviously going to be packed with special effects which were not possible in the 1950's. But the 1950's film was....well....classic! This version is not.

I found this extremely disappointing given the hype but unfortunately as with most big blockbusters you end up seeing all the best bits in the trailers, which leaves you feeling cheated when you watch the film.

This is a really interesting take on the well known backgroud story of alian invasion. Speilburg makes a visulally interesting film with plenty of tension. However it somehow misses the mark- and those hand granades were just far too convieniently placed!!

This film is non stop action with characters you don't give a damn about. The visual effects are superb of course and this is where the film gets its two stars. The worst thing is that some of the action is highly reminiscent of Jurassic Park making me think Spielberg got lazy and did this one by the numbers.

I was expecting this film to be quite rubbish but it was actually quite good. Not the best of story lines but I think Tom Cruise played a more believeable character and he didn't turn out to be the action hero as such which I expected to happen. Its worth a watch

Although I'm a tom cruise fan I could find anything to endear me to anything in this film. Through out the film it never really feels like it gets started, add to that 2 child actors that are only there to annoy and scream and run into danger and be stupid at every possibly oppertunity and your left with something that after watching you'd rather wished you hadn't. I should have known that I wouldn't enjoying as it was directed by speilberg. but i suppose thats what rentals are for. overall it was quite a let down

Very good special effects, but not overdone. Kept your interest all the way through.

In a nutshell, great effects as you'd expect. The storyline is pathetic with no real direction, skipping around under a lightshow. Very disappointing!!!

Superb film. Special effects brilliant. Good references to the original book (shame it wasn't set in england as the original book was, very hollywood). Well worth a view.

I was really impressed with this film and was not expecting that much from it. The special effects are so incredible I wish I had seen it on the big screen. The vapourising of people and the destruction of the earth is spectacular and cruise is on form to make this invasion credible and believable. There were some silly bits, especially the cameo by gun loving Tim Robbins. As if you can fight back against a 200ft tripod with a shotgun (RUN!). I really enjoyed this film so i would recommend if you like special effects. Turn the sound up!

What there ws of it was good and entertaining. But I don't think the film does justice to the original brainchild. Ending was abrupt and left cold. OK for passing an hour and a half if you've already washed your hair ten times.

Feck me - were we watching the same film? Wells wrote this story YEARS ago - so your pathetic little pedantic rants about holes in the plot really are wasted on anyone with sense. You have to make allowances for the age of this classic, and respect that Spielberg revitalised it just enough for todays audiences. We sure as sh1t wont see remakes of your beloved Star Feck Next Generation on this kind of scale so best you go back to learning Klingon and drifting into obscurity you sad little people. Special effects were outstanding and balanced well with the character progresssion in the film so not overpowering at all. Independance Day it aint, and thank God for that. The destruction of major cities is handled clinically, which reflects the nature of the invasion as described by Wells. The long shots of the Tripods towering over bridges and buildings were genuinely daunting, and seeing it mostly from the ground through the eyes of people trying to get away made it all the more realistic. The only real negative I found with WOTW was the casting of Tom Cruise. This film stands on its story alone - it didnt need a big Hollywood name to prop it up and I found him a distraction. Some unknown would have been more suited to the the role.

Could have been a lot better, awful casting, and what's with all the screaming from the daughter, ok sure, aliens are scary, but please, we don't want to watch a movie and receive painful ears from REALLY annoying casting

If Tom Cruise hadn't been in this movie I would have turned off within the first 15 minutes. Thank God there was some eye candy cos the rest of it was rubbish. Decided to do my ironing at the same time which made it (surprisingly) more bearable.

not a bad film but with a funny ending

Tom Cruise is fantastic and the special effects are amazing. Although sometimes the story is a bit unbelievable the plot is easy to follow.

good enjoyable sci-fi film...plenty of action from the beginning although we found the ending to be a little disappointing...ie a bit abrupt...all in all though pretty good.

Great stuff. Scary and tense. A really good rainy day film.

Not much to say about this. Started ok but was too over the top and a typical american box office film. Very disappointing!

What do people want out of a film?? Just watch this for a bit of fun, yes I agree Tom Cruise is badly cast, but heh, its just another churned out overly hyped, non-blockbusting, American film. Bit of fun. Thats it. Chill everyone...

No I am not a Tom Cruise fanatic and only vaguely remembered the tv seires so maybe that helped. I would contemplate buying it to watch again. Excellent.

I could see where they were going with showing how people would act in those situations, didn't really get why the aliens where there in the first place?! From the start it was madness and chaos, no real storyline as such, and the ending was a disapointment in itself. All of a sudden the aliens disappear! Where did they come from? What did they want? None of that was explained! Watching it once was enough!

awfull awfull awfull please avaid this like the plague its that bad just attrocious

The thought of it left me cold, but I was very pleasantly surprised. Not the usual `Cruse fest` of cheese,white teeth and smug self adoration you normally find in Tom`s movies.! It was gritty, real and not at all `Hollywood`. This film had an atmosphere that almost took you there. A good effort, one of his best ! Try it.

OK, a few things to preface my review; I've never read the book, I never particularly enjoyed the Jeff Wayne (sp?) thing, and I realise this isn't generally a well-liked or well-regarded film. Whilst far from perfect, I liked it and so did the missus! It's a rather sombre and downbeat affair with only a few (very good) action set-pieces and a fair smattering of quiet/slow bits. The most radical aspect of the film is Tom Cruise's character and his casting. I suspect the reason this film didn't do well at the box office is because Tom's character is in essence 'not a very nice man'. He's not particularly successful, glamorous, clever or likeable. And through the film he doesn't (in contrast to most Hollywood blockbusters) undergo some amazing 'road to Damascus' conversion, realise the error of his ways and somehow save the universe. He just plods on, doing unpleasant stuff and being grumpy/ fairly useless (nicely underplayed by Cruise as the common man). This downbeat nature is also reflected in the wider picture, where there's no huge CGI-laden climax where mankind wins against all the odds. The film maintains a confined, humanistic feel throughout and feels decidedly un-blockbuster-y, letting it's guard down only in the very last 60 seconds of the film to provide the sugary sweet ending so beloved of American focus groups (and which always garners howls of derision in my household!). Probably worth 3.5 rather than 4 stars but I'd take this over Mission Impossible III any day of the week!

THIS FILM WAS GOOD ENTERTAINMENT IT GOT A BIT SLOW IN PLACES BUT OVERALL IT WAS A GOOD FILM

Unlike a lot of people I am not anti-Hollywood or anti-Tom Cruise. But boy did this film tempt me to be both ! Only positive point - some pretty good effects. But frankly, that's no achivement these days. Cruise is TRULY terrible - if he does ANY acting in this I must have blinked and missed it. Tim Robbins shows up and looks like he's thinking 'why the hell did I agree to do this crap ?!' The level of fear and the scale of the invasion are both completely sacrificed for the sake of sickening sentimentality. In summary : God-awful.

Enjoyable viewing that adds a modern twist to the original film. Tom Cruise plays his role well and when combined with the superb special effects, this makes the film well worth watching. However, as the plot and suspense builds and you are expecting fireworks, the ending is rather sudden and much like the original leaves you with a feeling that while the final twist is thought provoking, it is somewhat of a disappointment after the build up. Good film, but can't help thinking, Tom missed a trick a little, by not enhancing the final chapters of the tale, and maybe improving on the original.

This one got hit by the Budget and it shows. It had the perfect scenario of a willing Public due to the original Classic Burton Film - I still love that original soundtrack and still have the original vynal 33rpm long play record of it :) This version did not really cut into the story in a sufficiently different way from the original to get clear blue water between the two, and therefore seemed a little disjointed. It also failed to capitalise as much as it should have done on modern special effects and CGI techniques - there are some of course, and some very good ones, but overall weak use of CGI. I get the feeling the Budget was not big enough. However, overall its entertaining and a good one to watch - nice Sunday afternoon movie.

I saw the original.. as i've said in other reviews, it takes something very special to better the original and this film does nothing, i expected better coming from spielberg, i was very disappointed, what was different between this film and the original, other than the time zone, in that this version was brought up to present day, absolutely nothing, in it's day the original was something special for it's time, sad to say i would have better spent my time watching paint dry.

I thought this film was dissappointing neither as good as the book or as catchy as the musical... and how come the family in Boston appeared untouched by the drama... too many questions, too little thought... and i agree, Tom Cruise was miscast as a docker with a 16 year old son...

I was not sure about this film as i had heard bad reviews about it but i thought i would give it a go. It was a lot better than i expected. Once the action started i was on the edge of my seat. I felt as though i was also running from the martians! I gave this film an extra star because whilst it was not a masterpiece, this film kept my girlfriend rivetted and she is not a big fan of sci-fi films.

I must say I don't particularly like Tom Cruise, but I did warm to him during the course of this film. Feeling both empathy and sympathy for his character, I wanted him to fight free and show his kids that he could be a good father. What really annoyed me about it, though, was the OTT alien invasion and the lack of conviction about it on the director's part. There were parts where you couldn't help but laugh, and that is no good in a film that warrants absolute submittance from the audience into a story that should be wholly emotionally engrossing. Apart from this, the special effects were good, but the whole film seemed to drag on way too long for such a meek ending; I hate to say it, but there was a feeling of 'what was the point in that' about it all.

Saw it at the cinema and thought it was worth a second watch Great acting Great movie Great effects Started at a pace and never slowed up

As you might expect, the effects in this film are brilliant and probably justify the effort on their own. The disfunctional family storyline is cliched and perfunctory, but not nearly as bad as some people suggested to me before I saw the film. The ending is abysmal - a key element of HG Wells' original vision, it is undeveloped, unexplained and, frankly, pointless. Spielberg would have been as well creating his own ending rather than damaging his film with such a lazy use of the original.

The is Stephen Spielberg as we all know him

Utterly disappointing and the fact that Tom Cruise is a Scientologist just added Irony as he believes Aliens are our God/s! The original film is so much better in that its: (suspenseful, frightening, realistic, terrifying, seat gripping and great to watch) this remake made me hide behind the sofa for the sole reason that I couldn't bare to watch anymore of this crap. Please rent the original and enjoy a classic for what it is.

Good Effects, but a shame the Americans can't follow the original story without blowing 'their' own trumpet. Does anything happen in this world ( or others) that doesn't happen in America ? I'm suprised that 'Jesus' didn't come from New York ! Or is that film in the making already.

Why bother making a version of a film that is no half as good as the 1st film. Tom Cruse makes me feel sick....

It was okay, nothing really outstanding, Tom Cruise was okay. Some fantastics effects and story was watchable.

I listened to the cassette book when I was little and could not wait to see the film when it came out. I was more than impressed with it. Yes, I have heard about the mistakes made (if you don't know then just search the internet) but even after watching it now for the seventh time I have been too engrossed and haven't noticed one. It hasn't had great reviews, and a lot of people have said they didn't enjoy it. I just cannot understand why... I personally have never been keen on Tom Cruise but he is very good in it! The acting of all the characters is superb, the special effects are astonishingly real and the sound effects, well, they are simply bone chilling. The sound the aliens make still haunts me. My suggestion is: 1) Be open minded, ignore all the reviews, watch it anyway and decide for yourself 2) If you aren't a fan of science fictionish films then you probably won't like it. 3) If is blood and guts you want then watch one of the Saw films (BTW I love the Saw films too), if you can use your imagination then this is for you. 4) My dad and I both love this film so I don't think age makes a difference. Obviously though, stick to the age rating. It was haunting for me and I'm 23 and a horror film addict. The ONLY thing I think it is missing is the original soundtrack.

Great film for all the family - not unlike the original but good all the same.

The film started off well enough, but as has been said, you need to ensure you can imagine Tom Cruise as a dock worker. After a lengthy introduction to the kids, you're then rushed through the invasion of the tripods way too quickly. Toward the end of the film it becomes clear that the filmmakers had just decided to chop about an hour out of the (still lengthy) running time. Scenes are introduced with absolutely no lead-in, it jumps from place to place, and the plot just races ahead with the audience left wondering 'What? How did that happen?' A very very poor third act, and an ending that makes no sense whatsoever, with no explanation given. Disappointing from about 20 minutes to the end.

A great story, some good effects and some smart direction. But the acting Oh dear what would L Ron have said ? (He might have liked it nuff said) This really is the MFI school of acting. Wooden and still, until it collapses. Dreadful charactures, particularly the kids, the son should have died by reel two and spared us the Bostoian reunion. Rubbish

Good special effects here - quite a good film even although sci-fi is not my cup of tea!

A rubbish film based loosely on the work of a great novel. Spiced up by over-budgeted film makers to add length and suspense. An ideal film if you haven't read the book but if, like me, you have I'd steer clear. I find several scenes incredulous. The only thing this film lends to the book, is the tripods, the cause of final death, the intro and final soliloquy. One or two similar ideas from the book have been harshly manipulated to bring it into the 21st century era the film was based in.

Well, OK, it's probably still too soon to answer that question yet but this, the second movie version of the classic story from HG Wells follows the novel surprisingly closely. Like the novel, there's an initial narrator perspective of the story: the deep and distant intelligences laying their plans. Unlike the book, the movie doesn't make a direct connection between the aliens and Mars. Unfortunately modern knowledge would make that rather difficult so the aliens are merely alien and no effort is made to give them a homeworld. Tom Cruise is a very convincing everyday type of guy (though there were odd flashes of wider knowledge), forced to look after his kids for the long weekend. There are indications of strange things going on in Europe - EM pulses taking out the Ukraine. Nothing to worry about. Until the skies darken and a storm breaks over New York (a brilliant shot of people staring and taking pictures apparently of Cruise's character as he comes out of his house). Aside from Cruise himself, the best actor in this film was Dakota Fanning, playing his 10 year old daughter, who was slightly too wide-eyed-with-terror at times, but managed the feisty female role these types of films require with elan despite her relative youth. The aliens were in their traditional tripods as per the book, rather than the neat little craft in the earlier 1953 film. The scenes where Cruise and his daughter are trapped down in a cellar along with a somewhat deranged fellow survivor when an alien investigates their hidey-hole, first with a flexible eye stalk, then with an actual physical presence were amongst the most tense and creepy in the whole film. The end of the alien invasion is managed as per the book but the true end of the film is when Cruise finally gets his daughter to her grandparents home, to find the son he'd feared dead had managed to make it through, which, while nice in a general way was just a bit of a cop out in that the effects of the invasion are somewhat mitigated. Unfortunately, there doesn't seem to be many special features on the disk apart from additional languages and photo-gallery.

Superb Film! I absolutely loved it! Tom cruise is an amazing actor and the film was extremely well made. The special effects are stunning and the storyline is great. I love everything about this film.

Superb Film! I absolutely loved it! Tom cruise is an amazing actor and the film was extremely well made. The special effects are stunning and the storyline is great. I love everything about this film.

Your usual Hollywood action packed movie. Aliens blasting everyone and everything, people running for their lives etc. More or less based on the original and on the whole not a bad movie. Tom Cruise plays a good part as he usually does in most of what he stars in and all in all not a bad cast. I thought the film might have ran for a little longer and it did fizzle out to nothing towards the end but definetley worth watching.

really annoying screaming kid

Shame about the plot; it is full of holes but it was exciting to watch and well acted.

I was a bit disappointed with this version of the film, although the visual effects were very good. I couldn't help comparing this to the original film and would have enjoyed a rendition of the original music at the end of the film. However, overall it was worth watching.

Gave up after 10 mins

This film was showing so much promise and after 1hr 30mins I thought the film must take at least 45 minutes to wrap up the ending, but somehow the film only lasted 15 minutes more . . . much too rushed at the end with no explanations as to what really happened. A good effort, none the less and definitely worth a watch.

As long as you view it as a separate film you can enjoy this si fi thriller. Don't expect anything of the original feel - after all it is Tom cruise. OK for a week night film.

Considering I am not a great fan of Tom, I quite liked this film. Had me on the edge of the sofa on numerous occasions and some fantastic special effects. Tom's acting was a little stiff (nothing new here then!) but overall an enjoyable watch.

Huge alien machines mercilessly pick off humans who vainly try to run for their lives. Human life and value means nothing to them, and to see humankind being uniformly splattered all over the landscape with nowhere to run or hide on our adored planet is horrifying. Especially because the aliens have impenetrable shields! Aaaaarrrrggghhhh!!!! The non-stop action makes up for the lack of plot or good acting, definitely worth a watch!

This is a great film largely from the point of view of the special effects. The scene where the tripods come out of the ground is excellent. Tom Cruise plays himself as per usual which is OK in this role. The original book is better given that it was written so long ago and as per usual Hollywood has to centre the whole thing on the US - I love the line about the tripods being from Europe as if it were the same as outer space.

Brilliant movie. Effects fantastic and well acted. Not my usual kind of movie but had me hooked.

Dull re-hash of a classic - what a shame Cruise and his brats weren't wiped out early on to save us all the grief...

4 stars have to be awarded to the film simply for the special effects. Fans of the '70s Jeff Wayne album will remember the artwork which accompanied the record and fed young minds with the concept of alien invasion via towering and terrifying weapons of mass destruction. The director and designers clearly drew inspiration from these images (and the book itself) and has coordinated CGI set pieces which.... well - just work superbly! OK - the ending is naff and Amercianised and Tom Cruise's performance is better than average but not outstanding. But anyone wanting to relive their childhood imaginations of a seemingly up-stoppable force against mankind should get this out.

the story line was ok but the ending was a big dispointment like our little bacteria or whatever can kill these huge powerful things.

I HATED THIS Every part of my being screamed NO - think of all the words to describe bad.....this is how this film made me feel. Himself on the other hand loved it (check out digital traffic music to see why!!) It was def more his thing.

i dont know why everyone loved war of the worlds anyway. i think it had something to do with a radio broardcast which some dummy thought was real. kind of like the blair witch project! And like that film im not jumping for joy. It had its good bits, and the effects are typically good for a speilberg film. just didnt grab me due to the plot not really coming together very well. mookstar*

For a big star he did a fair job of portraying an average Joe with family troubles. Striving to survive the unbelieveable. Nice not to be spoon fed. Good graphics and some well shot scenes. Although not as good as the original music.

Kept me entertained throughout. Better than original, because of special effects.

There was a lot about this film that I liked. Most obviously that Tom Cruise for once was actually a bit of a looser and not some unbelieveable hero. It was much scarier than I'd anticipated and freaked me out a little but I have to say I didn't get the ending.....why did they all just die??? So there are worse ways to spend an evening but I wouldn't want to watch it again.

Given what a very good technical director Stephen Spielberg is, it's amazing that he still hasn't grown up. The set-pieces here, although rather crushingly obvious, are excellently done: the opening attack, the panic at the ferry, etc. But, why oh why, does he still insist on filtering everything through kiddies. Dakota Fanning's character here is unspeakably irritating, doing absolutely nothing except screeching a lot and getting in the way (and it's no excuse to say that that is what a kid would do in such a situation), but Spielberg insists on tracking her all the way, his trademark sentimentality giving way in short order to simple infantilism. It's particularly annoying here, because, every so often, there appears to be quite a decent film going on around her. Tom Cruise's best ever performance (and I loathe Tom Cruise with a vengeance most of the time), and a wonderfully done sequence with Tim Robbins as a crazy in a cellar. But Spielberg is only happy if an audience is crying sentimental tears at the end, so everyone gets to live happily ever after. What a complete cop-out.

Mr Cruise makes a decent fist of this;I liked the way there were nods towards the original but it was just different enough to make the movie entertaining in its own right.Good escapist fare with a feelgood factor

i enjoyed this film excellent remake

Oh dear ,you are slipping Mr Cruise.This was truly awful,stick to knocking on people's doors on a Sunday .

Absolutelly loved it! Great scene with the alien eye thing - kept me on the edge of my seat!

Great effects which i would expect from Steven but hey story line weak and the acting confirms why i steer clear of Toms films

Ok, nothing special. I remember the original with misty eyes.

Hmm, a reasonable watch but very slow to start. TC is an unconvincing father and there is too much screaming in it for a lot of enjoyment. This is rated 12 but I found it really rather scary and thought it was a 15 when I watched it.

Tom Cruise attempts to save his 2 children from the alien tripods killing everything in their path.

I remember the old version, which I enjoyed. This was good, but with the usual Hollywood style of goo and gunk and contemporary updates. Personally I preferred the original, but this wasn't bad

I loved the book, I loved the musical, I hated the 50s rendition, I was sceptical about this. However I went to see it many moons ago in the cinema and it blew my mind away! The effects even transfer brilliantly to the small screen. The acting is quite something, essentially capturing the essence of human reactions to extreme situations, and how such events can turn life around. Ray ferrers reconciliation with his son for instance was so inspiring. It is not another 'Independence Day', the original book wasnt even gung ho, it is more intelligent than that. These themes have been expanded and updated substantially to a 21st century setting and despite the numerous pitfalls associated with this I believe it was successful. The whole point of the first story was the reduction of the worlds greatest power, Britain at the time, in just a few days; so the translation to America for the update is apt. Also the same original message against human arrogance at their superiority is also translated well, the realisation that we are merely bugs on a galactic scale. This film therefore brilliantly updates and reinvigorates a classic on many levels.

A jolly good romp that as a movie with spectacular CGI effects was great however ... is it worthy - I have to say not really war of the worlds for me. Very much Tom cruise and an adventure so great action good heartwarming true american movie. Great stuff.

great special effects / carnt wait see it on hd dvd

Really good special effects and everything takes place on a massive scale so it's really good to look at - however apart from that it gets a bit stale, bordering on boring even, and the 'bit' which includes Tim Robbins just seems pretty pointless - plus a very poor ending

What a disappiontment. A dull retelling of H.G.Wells classic Sci-Fi story(that is the inspriration of most modern Alien invasion movies). As usual with Hollywood the action is uprooted from the original setting, in this case Victorian England, and transplated to Modern Day America (The only place Aliens ever invade apparently). Spielberg is usually the master Story Teller, but this time he seems to have little interest in the tale he tells. The action is unengaging and strangely distant to the viewer. The important Alien landing scene is hardly seen by the movie viewer at all ,we just see the faces of those watching this , apparently (we can't tell, we can't see it), facinating sight. All in all a dull, disjointed and ultimately disappointing Movie. I can't help but wonder what Peter Jackson could have done with the same Story... Jeff Wayne's Musical version remains the best 'War of the Worlds' adaptaion.

Don't normally write reviews but I felt I had to for this as its a truly awful film. Absolutely nothing happens in it and I wouldn't even say theres any storyline to it. Even the CGI looks terrible in parts, mainly at the beginning when the cars are getting thrown about. Terrible, terrible film.

What a disappointment - Hollywood has to add in some repugnant children from a split marriage as a major part of the storyline. The young girl spends most of her time throwing wobblies and the teenage boy being morose and silent. Stood a chance of being reasonable lightweight entertainment without the children. Should have taken the original instead.

Fabulous. Tom Cruise is excellent as the bad boy who becomes a man and a real father when faced with a truly terrible reality. Dakota Fanning as always is brilliant.

Spectacular special effects. A fair amount of graphic injury for the certificate. A thouroughly enjoyable film which managed to keep up the tension even though the story is well known.

this film was ok, bit space like/alien/science!?! wasnt too interesting

The title says it all.

Having seen the original, read the book and got the Jeff Wayne version (narrated by the great Richard Burton - which is hard to top). This wasn't bad - Tom Cruise gave a competent performance but with effects like that who was watching? I give the effects 2 stars and one for Dakota Fanning who was brilliant.

This remake of the famous 1950's film (and earlier radio play) updates the story and sets it in the 21st century in New Jersey. It features brilliant CGI effects and some amazing sets (such as the destroyed Boeing 747). It differs a lot from the original GH Wells book in that it sets the invasion of earth against the story of a divourced dock worker and father of 2 who is looking after his kids one weekend. It's a very different role for Tom Cruise to take (incidentally this is his biggest film ever in terms of box office takings) and it concerns itself too much really with this dysfunctional family backdrop and him trying to look after his kids who don't have any respect for him. There are major faults with the story and although being true to the book they aren't explained properly, such as why the alien invaders all start dying because of them having no immunity to earth's micro-organisms. The spend nearly the entire film running from these aliens with super weapons and armour/shields etc just for them all to start falling over and dying with no proper explanation. It's a weak ending really and one they could have rewritten to make it a more satisfying film (although admitttedly it wouldn't be true to the book).

But not unexpected. We all know how this pans out so why watch again. Save tourself some time and watch another DVD,

So much better than I expected it to be, a 4-5 * film until the final minutes, when inexpicably Tom Cruise makes it to his ex-wifes house which is undamaged, plus the fact that everyone has been evacuating and they are still there, and her new boyfriend's parents look extremely clean and neatly coiffed for people in a war zone. And the fact his son is still alive (after being engulfed in a giant fireball), and has got to Boston before him without a car. The reason for the demise of the machines was badly explained and came across as fuzzy science and a rather symbolic, not realistic end for them. I am told that the original book has the same ending, and I can't help but think HG Wells would do a better job of getting the message across. It seemed 'tacked on' compared to the rest of the story, and there should have been more exposition about it and build up, including more scenes of the machines collapsing.

I was on the edge of seat, as I have seen this already, watched it with my partner and still enjoyed it the second time.

I really liked this one. Like one of the comments above I wasn't sure about TC in the lead role. He was trying to be a bit of a dumb old boy who had messed up his family life, drove a crane and lived for junk food, beer and baseball......but he still looked too much like good old clean cut slightly barking Tom Cruise. They would have been better off with an unknown. He wasn't bad - but I just couldn't quite believe him in that role. The kids were far better. The special effects are of course great and for me the start and ending were just about right. We all know how the book ends and I feel if the cause of their demise was ...well I won't say it just in case anyone has lived on Mars [no pun intended] for the last 50 years and doesn't know the ending - but it would be swift in those circumstances, so I have no problem with that and thought it was well done. It has a rather nasty, sinister, ucky feel to it a lot of the time, and it is none the worse for that. So the end for the martians was well done. The ending for the people was the tried and tested Hollywood formula where everything is neatly wrapped up - why do they always do that? Still, stick a good unknown in the lead role and the job would be done for me.

I've now watched this 4 times, i've enjoyed more. The first time I wasn't too sure, thought it was good, I think it's because it's not the typical Tom Cruise movie. Dakota Fanning who plays his daughter is a fantastic actress and played her part brilliantly. Well worth the watch though. Very Sci-Fi.

I found this film so boring. I wasn't sure what was going on most of the time. I wouldn't bother!

Tom Cruise has actually made a film that he can be proud of. I must admit to having little time for Mr Cruise, who I felt ruined the whole Mission Impossible genre in pursuit of his own ego. Imagine my delight when he is cast in this film as the stereotypical male idiot. He plays it to perfection. However, what makes this film so good is the skill with which his charactor develops through the film. It is a heart wrenching tale of how the human spirit rises to the challenge of survival in the most desperate times. Well done Mr Cruise.

I was looking forward to seeing this film as I had hoped to watch it when it originally came out, and I loved the Jeff wayne version. It wasn't what I expected, which was a massive all out action budget alien fest. Which I'm not a particular fan of...and I guess that would have been the easy route for them to take. But in true Spielberg auteur stylee he went for the family orientated storyline when approaching alien material, a la ET, Close Encounters. Which to be fair does work really well. And no-one can deny he is a master of that craft. To be fair Spielberg or Cruise rarely make a bad film, and this isn't a bad film at all, it just lacked that special star factor that pushes it into the great film bracket. Another spielberg family movie that i'm sure will bother Christmas TV schedules for decades to come. And once again Cruise fills his qouta of running really fast in a film.

I was more than excited when I heard they were making another film of Warof the Worlds - as a child I had loved the radio version my Dad used to play to us on long car journeys. This film does not disappoint, and I could watch over and over - a rare thing indeed for me. The 'monster's' a scary, characters interesting and special effects fantastic. Spielberg and Cruise at their best.

Another very poor Hollywood remake of the classic George Pal film and the even greater H G Wells book. The stupidity of the characters and their naffness was unbelievable. The only issue really is what is worse - this or the remake of Time Machine with Guy Pearce. Hollywood, please stop it.

Sorry this is turd. Sleep, sing, dance do anything else but watch this film.

S H * T REALLY SH*T

We enjoyed this film, much better than we expected great performance by Tom Cruise

not bad, crusie isnt really a action hero though hes too small and short, great effects and yes we all know the ending,

FANTASTIC..I DIDN'T THINK FOR 1 MINUTE IT WOULD BE AS GOOD AS THE ORIGANAL 1978 ALBUM.IT WAS, IT IS, IT''S FANTACTIC..

NOT AS GOOD AS I HOPED...

I really enjoyed this film, great action and scary in a Aliens are attacking earth kind of way, if you love that kind of film give is a watch I completely recomend it....great FX and typical Spielberg big action and all great actors.

Having seen the original this did not live up to expectations.

not a bad film, too much the same thing

I studied this novel at University and accepting that the novel was written over a hundred years ago and in rural England, as opposed to modern-day America, this is a cracking update that's true to the original. Total sense of dread, humans absolutely helpless as the martians methodically begin to exterminate the human race. All Cruise can do is run. It's an hour and half of one of those nightmares where no matter how fast you go you're still being chased. Great stuff, though perhaps Cruise is too dishy and too Tom Cruise to play Joe Shmo. The only thing I didn't like about the ending was the re-appearence of someone who should have been well vapourised! - but I suppose that's why we like Uncle Spielberg isn't it. All in all, an excellent flick with amazing effects. Rent it.

I can't write a review. It was a mistake so I returned it without watching it. I do not like this kind of cinema.

A classic story which has been given an American makeover resulting in a disappointing film.

I loved the graphics adn the SFX in this film but the characters weren't brilliant. Once again Tom Cruise can come across as pompous and himself rather than a specific character. loved it all the same and there are definately some good jumpy bits.

This was alot better then expected, special effects are good, worth watching.

Great film. I was so scared and on edge at the beginning of this film. I didn't want to take my eyes of the screen , scared i would miss something. Really really good. You have to rent this. You won't be disapointed

This is a brilliant film, really good. Great acting from Tom Cruise.

Not too sure what to make of this movie. I thought Tom was great in it. But the ending is strange which I thought spoilt it ever so slightly. Some great parts, some moving, and some spine tingling, but all in all there was something missing that I can't put my finger on.

While this film had great special affects the characters were very annoying and couldn't really care if they survived or not, between the girl constantly crying or screaming and the son having 'issues' with Tom Cruise's charachter in the middle of an alien invasion I was actually hoping that the aliens would get them. I only watched the whole film to see how it ended, sometimes I hate happy endings.

Tom Cruise gives an unconvincing performance. Elements of the original story are left intact but where the story has been changed leave you with questions or are just plain laughable. The ending is awful. It is good visually and Tim Robbins gives a brilliant if short performance.

Gripping movie. Had me glued to my seat, great special effects, good plot line... the ending left me wondering thou? - I think that they could have finished it better, or perhaps explained things better? - if you like independence day, this is similar without the comedy, and without Will Smith!

I enjoyed this film, but it was not as great as I was lead to believe. I found it confusing at times, and the ending was unclear.

I'm sure that, before too long, Hollywood is going to film the Bible story and have it set in Los Angeles.

This film is a complete "Curate's Egg". Some bits of the book were slavishly copied while others were totally ignored. Now, while there is nothing at all wrong with 'adapting', the way it has been done here makes one think that they just 'got it wrong'.

There are a number of disappointments. That End! Far too sudden. Rather like a roller coaster coming to a stop half way up a steep climb. The main battle scene. We see a couple of tanks going over a hill then.......... a few flashing lights. Pah! Those kids!!! The film would have been far better if they had been wiped out in the first attack (though I fear that this would have put too many audience members firmly on the side of the aliens).

On the plus side, most of the film was enormously entertaining. The CGI effects were top rate. I'll watch it again.

A lot of people gave this "nothing like the book" adaptation some very bad press, but all in all it's a perfectly good Friday night jump flick. Who cares if Tom Cruise is more than slightly bonkers nowadays? The effects are excellent, the suspense well maintained throughout, and it actually makes you feel good about having a cold.

I was very disappointed with 'The War of the Worlds'. A great classic novel of English literature has enough contents and thoughts to appear attractively on the screen and still stir emotions and feelings. Unfortunately, this is another, rather trivial and banal, mixture of a film of catastrophe with the 'Jurassic Park'. Shallow, short of psychology, short of action, very predictable, and rather poorly performed.

I am usually excited by anything what Steven Spielberg does. But this is a sad failure of a great film director.

A classic which has been re done when it really shouldn't have. It is a good enough story but the usual aliens trying to take over earth, and then not winning. Rubbish

There are loads of special effects which are ok, but for some reason good old Tom Cruise seems to miss all the flying rocks, glass and cars.... as always.

As for the aliens... why can't they come up with a better shape for them...because they all look the same ie.. Alien, Pretetor, etc...

The ending is rubbish, his e-wife and family all survive in the grandparents house, and look like they seemed to have missed everything that had been going on around them.

Worth watching but I wouldn't buy it until it was in the bargain bin. Worth renting just to for something to watch.

It wasn't what I thought it was going to be like, then I don't know quite what I was expecting. It was different! High action with a family. The main characters were great Tom Cruise did a truely brilliant piece of different acting to what he is normally like, you really felt for them! It was quite gripping Good action right from the start.

I think this film is amazing, with stunning special effects, lots of action packed scenes and it keeps you on the edge of your seat all the way to the end. I couldn't take my eyes off the screen from start to finish. The film has that great blend of action, suspense and emotional parts to it, making it the kind of film anyone can enjoy. I would only suggest that, as great as the film is, it shouldn't be watched to many times in a row because it is a reasonably long film and the more emotional parts, like in most films, can get a bit boring if seen to many times and takes the thrill out of the film.

The acting in the film is fantastic, Tom Cruise plays his role flawlessly as the irresponsible father whos life doesn't seem to be on track or going well at all, and he shows the change in the character throughout the film. Dakota Fanning plays the frightened young daughter in the film so she does scream and cry alot, which is brilliantly acted, and when she isn't screaming or crying she acts incredibly well, making her character very convincing. Dakota Fanning is probably the best child actress and in this film it really shows, her excellent performance plays a big part in making the film as good as it is.

An excellent movie. Plenty of action. All the characters played their part. Each one was a hero. Everyone was just trying to survive. Tom Cruise was just a regular guy, trying to protect his family.

OK so it doesn't follow H G Well's classic book, that said the film was very enjoyable and kept me in suspense, it had more than enough 'going on' and the special effects were excellent, as you would expect from Speilburg.

Overall, it's well worth a watch and nice up-date on the original.

I watched this film twice, just in case I missed the point the first time. My opinion did not change after the second viewing. The whole thing is a steaming pile of tripe. I could not find an ounce of sympathy for any of the characters. Dakota Fanning was bloody irritating, Cruise was dull and his son just needed a good slap. Not even the pretty decent effects and the added gravitas of a Morgan Freeman voiceover could save this mess. I really wanted to like this film, but the truth is I hated it.

What makes this film unique in Science Fiction is the writer ditched all the cliches bar one.

I was Sooooo disappointed by this film there I was expecting a film perhaps more based on the superb book and even the 'musical' apaptation - which scared the hell out of me when I was a kid! What we got was a set in modern times Tom Cruise vehicle trying to show his 'acting' skills which I am afraid just aren't good enough I wanted the aliens to massacre cruise and his family in the first 5 minutes as they were so irritatingly banal and stereotyped. Spielberg a once great director is obviously losing his way as for a high budget film (most of which probably went to pay mr cruises 'acting') we hardly see any action! a golden opportunity half way through the film to show our human forces fighting the alien invaders to protect the refugees was hidden behind a hill! all we hear is a few bangs! then we get 30mins of cruise hiding in a cellar with a wildly overacting tim robbins What fun!! well more like what a waste! I recommend listening to the war of the worlds musical album that at least has you caring about the characters and afraid of the martian invaders

No depth to any character. Predictable. Good effects though!

I was dissapointed with this remake, as I understand is the general opinion across the world now... Special effects are obviously excellent but these are the only redeeming feature in what is otherwise a sketchy and seemingly half hearted attempt at matching the original film - which I would recommend renting afterwards to see how it should have been done! I really don't like Tom Cruises' character either - he is so miserable, especially to his kids!! All in all, the whole film feels like it has been rushed and generally results in one anti-climax after another which is frustrating.

I really enjoyed this film, not a great tom cruise fan. But thought the special effects were brillant, a lot of people did not rate this film but i thought was great

The original 'War of the Worlds' movie was (and still is) terrifying and full of suspense, despite the limitations of 'special effects' in the 1950s. I still remember the eerieness generated when the first meteor opens and the alien machine appears. Fast forward to 2005 and the news that the biggest director (Speilberg) and the biggest budget ($200 million) will get together to remake this classic. Wow!! I ould imagine how the latest digital effects will really make the alien craft rock! But what's this? Rather than stick to the story (or the original film), the premis in the remake is that the alien craft were already here, buried for millions of years (or a long time anyway) and it was only the aliens who arrived, travelling on lighting bolts. Okay, but we all know that the aliens are killed by the microbes in the air, which would have been around when the aliens first visited Earth to bury their war machines?? And why wait so long to come back?? WHY change this important aspect of the story?? This spoilt the film for me, before Tom Cruise saved the day in true American fashion... Good effects though...

I expected a great deal less from this, but the actiing is great, and the cgi looks for real. Cannot fault it.

To put it bluntly, Spielberg's film is absolutely amazing for ace special FX, but the acting is so poor in comparison. The HG Wells storyline deserves a lot better. So you'll enjoy this if you're easily wow'ed by alien tripods, but if you're after Oscar performances from Tom Cruise, Tim Robbins and the like, you'll be sorely disappointed.

I really cant make up my mind about this movie.I was really excited when I heard that Spielberg was doing this project and honestly thought he would make a good job of it.Which he did.......and he didnt......I was looking forward to watching the original story of the 'War of the Worlds' with some of the original score to go with it.Was trully disappointed that most of the story had been lost in the modernisation and even more tragically, there was no sign of the hauntingly excellent music that was written for the original story.Tom Cruise was ok, and the graphics and the effects were good .....but it just lacks something....the ovewhelming feeling is that they got the hard stuff right but that they couldnt quite get the story right....?Watch it and decide.

3 words: Utter Dog Crap!

With a great classic story as the basis, and several truly excellent actors, how did this turn out so boring? The alien invasion appears in a series of unconnected bursts that seem to be mostly trying to be as disgustingly gruesome as possible. It is never adequately explained or remotely believable and merely forms an incomprehensible background to a 'main' story rehashing that tired old chestnut, the relationship between absent no good father and his kids. To add insult to injury the actors spend a lot of time screaming their lines at each other, making them very hard to understand. Though since I think the root disappointment in this film was the script, maybe I wasn't missing much. In summary? - don't bother!!

I really enjoyed the film. Good effects and some moments which really made me sit up such as the tripod coming over the hill while everyone is getting on the boat. Tim Robins character is wasted and I could not understand how cruise kills him when minutes earlier he could not even get a gun off him? Worth a Watch!!

As a big fan of HG Wells I was expecting at the least a laudible film from arguably one of Hollywoods greatest directors. What we have here, however, is a film devoid of plot and character development where it is obvious that the spectacle is more important to Spielberg than the story. I am actually quite impressed that Spielberg managed to make such a mess of what is a very tranferable plotline. War of the Worlds lends itself fabulously to subtle plot development, causing you to sit on the edge of your seat just waiting for the next horrifying alien encounter....But not in this adaptation. Awful acting, poorly casted with no thought as to any kind of plot tension or character identification, this is a film that throws in the action as soon as possible and forgets that you need a well rounded story to back it up. Truly awful.

good film to watch. very good special effects and great acters.WAR OF THE WORLDS it is not.

Spielberg and Cruise have had success in the past and this movie should have been a simple homerun, however it managed to miss on almost all levels. Mostly it showed that Steven Spielberg, who was once one of the most exciting directors working, no longer has the talent needed to produce movies of this style to the screen. Worse still, he appears to be rehashing old ideas. The beginning almost mirroring the surprise and awe of Close Encounters, the initial attack reminiscent of the T-Rex attack from Lost World. As the movie progresses it is filled with moments which he has done better previously in his career, one particular moment involving a mirror is a little too close to Jurrasic Park for it to be a coincidence. Recently he has excelled in his dramatic storytelling, but here he also fails. Not aided by some bad casting choices (Tom Cruise is especially ill-casted) and a poor script. The characterization is inconsistant throughout, especially Dakota Fanning's character which seems to switch scene to scene from world wise 10 year old to a snivilling 6 year old. This movie should have been everything that Independence Day promised to be from it's amazing promotional campaign. Unfortunately it just feels tired and weary amonsgt the many superior disaster/invasion movies.

I've just been reading many of the review for this film and i am flabber gasted to say the least! The new war of the worlds film is certainly a return to form from one of the best directors of the 90's! To say that the original is better than this is in my opinion a lie, i'll tell you why ( im talking about the 50's film not the book [which i haven't read]). In the 50's version of war of the worlds the aliens dont look nearly as good (theres no denying this!) In the new version there is ten times more characterisation, by the end you love Tom Cruise and his screen daughter Dakota Fanning. The new version tells you so very much about human behavior, (just check out the scene with the car) and in teh basement of the house. Although i may be one against many on this matter i still would recommend you watch this film a) for dakota fannings peformance and b) for the stunning visuals. In other one of the best remakes of a film in a long time but im waiting for 'the day the earth stood still' with baited breath!

Very disappointing ending was terrible

The movie should have been ace...instead the actors let it down. Tom cruise was ok, but the child was really annoying... she should have been shot.

Often slated by people who just assume that a re make of a classic by the likes of Tom Cruise couldn't be any good. Admitadly it did heave several flaws not least being his annoying daughter constantly hyper ventilating. (Though I suppose the world being invaded is a good enough reason to hyper ventilate!) How ever the film did have many good points. The build up at the start was very atmospheric. The scene with the bodies in the river, the scenes in the cellar were all well crafted. If you approach this film with an open mind you should enjoy it.

I found this quite boring and flat

I'm sorry, I was't going to make a comment regarding this until I saw the high but unworthy praise drizzled over this charade of a movie. Yes, we may have the worlds supposedly greatest director directing one of Hollywood's top stars, but Spielberg seems to be film-making by numbers these days. Pick a topic, gather stock crew together (John Williams music again. Janus Kamnski DP again ILM Effects bunch etc etc) Pick nice safe box office dead certs for cast. Rattle the thing off and get working on the next job before even finishing the last one. I'm not saying War of the Worlds is a turkey, but it should have been on my Christmas dinner table with an onion stuffed up it's backside. It is truly abysmal. Take an age-old English classic, move it both in time and space to New York (WHY!!?) Screw around with the plot and bury the story deeper than the spaceships, (What was wrong with meteorites?). Set the 'hero' as a miserable, obnoxious idiot with a dysfunctional family of a separated wife, car-stealing son and a precocious daughter that never stops squealing. She is one good reason to keep the pro-spanking bill. Most leads, you want to follow them, empathise with them, worry for them. Personally I wish Tom Cruise's character had been made toast in the first reel and put us all out of our misery. He was totally unlikeable, as were most of the cast. The only redeeming feature were the effects, but we still spent far too much time running around dark cellars with little green men. The recent remake of 'The Time Machine' was not great, but it had the atmosphere and joi d'vivres of H.G.Wells, The fact that Victorians would have reacted so much differently to this technology. Shifting it both historically and geographically so that Americans could understand it just makes me wince. Why do filmmakers SO underestimate their audiences intelligence? I despise Hollywood for messing with other peoples work. Maybe we should take an American Classic like 'Gone with the Wind' and transpose it to 1980's Guy Ritchie's London. I think there would be a riot. 'Frankly my dear, I don't give a rat's arse.'

This film is thoroughly enjoyable from the very beginning to the very end.

Seen it before but worth watching again.

Everyone in the house enjoyed this film, it was well worth renting.

Tom Cruise whoooo!! good acting some parts bit unrealistic, overall very good action film.

This film was nothing special but is was an alright way to spend a couple of hours.

A flim you could watch over again

worth renting and watching twice!

As with a lot of remakes. It's over done. Preferred the original

Great film really had me on the edge of my seat . Well worth waiting for Tom Cruise gets 10 out of 10 for best actor

really good kept the children entertained

On paper, everything about this sounded good. Spielberg, Cruse, H G Wells - mmm. I forgot Hollywood, which changes everything. The story went out the window early on, any belief was suspended after ten minutes and the gaps in the plot would have H G spinning in his grave. To be honest, not even on a wet Sunday afternoon with no Formula 1 on the TV would I be tempted to watch this again, not that I have seen all of it through the last time. You have heard of the Land That Time Forgot, well this is a film that everyone should forget.

Loving the music, I was looking forward to this film. Although I am not a Sci-Fi fan, I was prepared to suspend belief, to a point. However, words fail me! I cannot believe that this film was made with an adult audience in mind. The 'special effects' were not even remotely 'special' & the plot was totally devoid of any sense of possibility. Despite the fact that I have seen every Tom Cruise film, I have to say that this is absolutely the worst film I have ever had the misfortune to see. I cannot imagine that it would appeal to anyone who is a) sober; or b) has a single brain cell. Having said that, my friend who accompanied me has an honours degree & loved it! So, see for yourself!

this is one of my favorite Spielberg films, he is having so much fun making this his enthusiasm for the project spills out into the audiences lap, those HUGE tripods on the hill and that siren noise thing they do, unforgettable

I really enjoyed this film, right from the start it grasped me. The special effects are incredible and Tom Cruise is fab. He manages to portray intense fear/panic with hypnotic force. The little girl also portrays terror realisticly in view of the events happening around her. The film is fast paced throughout with some very disturbing moments. The only disappointment to me was the typical American ending!

This film was an insult to the original. It was slow and dull. Not worth a second watch, If you like Cruise than watch this film just due to the fact that there is not a minute of the film that he is not in it! The super dad! RUBBISH!

good to watch chose to see it

It is highly over rated film which has no logical evidence behind the concept of the creatures. The film has taken only the Tom Cruise name in the film, can be played by some one else rather than Tom Cruise. It is kind of film which is waste of time and money by director and the producer.

This film is a lot better the second time you see it - for some reason !

After some negative comments concerning this film I was pleasantly surprised at how gripping the motion picture was. Film captures a father (Cruise) desparately seeking safety for his kids, whilst avoiding detection. Ending came to an abrupt conclusion, yet this is in the same manner as the original.

Unfortunately whenever I watch a film with the stumpy one in it, I just find myself waiting for a long shot that shows how short Mr Cruise is. This is a decidedly average film, that doesn't seem to go anywhere. Poor character construction & fairly standard CGI. If you're a fan of the Umpa-lumpa Cruise, then probably ok. But I'm no fan of him or his evangelist religious fervour.

An ok film, typical Tom Cruise. Not really a young persons film but followed the original story ok.

Fantastic really scary would watch again

I hate to be critical of movies, as everyone has their own tastes and views... But I seriously found this too boring to get too engaged in, and the lead kids where so annoying that I really didn't care about their fate...

When I saw this at the cinema, I really loved it, but that's what cinemas do to you, they have the ability to cover up any nastiness in a film because of it's big booming speakers and massive screens. The more and more I watched this movie, the more I realised that it is probably one of Spielberg's worst films. Though it starts off really well and has a typical Spielberg way of story telling and genuinely has you on the edge of your seat for about half an hour, after the main climax it's a feeble effort to sustain the action and potential horror. Oh, and the plotholes! Without going too deep into any details, Spielberg seems to have left many, many holes in the details of the story that just don't seem to add up, but you can see where he was coming from and what he was trying to achieve. Overall, a poor adaptation, but CGI effects aren't bad.

Not the most exact adaptations ever made... by a long shot, but it is excellently made. Some real, gritty and disturbing scenes mixed with compelling effects. The Martians themselves weren't in keeping with HG Wells' vision, but were convincing. Down side? Generally the actors. Many say Cruise is 'always in centre of screen'.. I don't believe that is true; though it is Tom Cruise.. he doesn't play the down right hero, instead something of a uneasy, failing hero. However... was Dakota Fanning REALLY necessary? At least turn her volume down.. there is only so much constant screaming/complaining one can take! The end is a bit wobbly too; ditching its gritty realism for a fairytale ending puts it out of place.

Special effects astounding and call me a wimp but when that alien emerged from the ground - oh boy did it make me jump. Scarey is the nature of the film; from the fog-horn noises to the creepy dangly bits coming out of the alien. Tom Cruise shows his acting ability to perfection in my opinion; full of tension, fear and horror all in one so well acted.

Tom Cruse does what he does in that slightly annoying way but that aside- scary but not properly terrifying and I think it was a shame that I knew the story. Visually superbe but thats not quite enough to make it a great film.

Forget what Cruise was up to on the publicity trail for this movie! Bouncing on sofas... IT DOESN'T MATTER!! What does matter is that Spielberg is still the master of big budget, crowd pleasing Blockbusters. Although the requisite Spielberg sentimentality shines through at times, this is far grimmer than anything Spielberg delivered in the '70s and '80s, with a truly apocalyptic feel. Great SFX and if you thought the ending was a cop-out, well thankfully it's identical to HG Wells' classic novel...

the movie was good to watch, good animations with the aliens, the little girl acted well

Maybe I know the story too well. Whatever it was, neither a decent cast nor super director were able to raise this above the mundane.

why has this got so many terrible reviews? This to me was a very intersting take on alien invasion films. Instead of seeing the same old invasion where we see the whole picture and how they somehow destroys all the aliens, you see a film all about one family and their fight for survival and instead of them killing the aliens it quite realistically shows how they die. Altogether thi is a great film and highly underated. So what if its not shindlers list, spielburg isn't going to be able to make films of that standard for everything he does

Shoulda been, coulda been......wasn't. Dire. Come on Tom....you can do so much better.

Firstly, if you think this has ANYTHING to do with H G Wells' fantastic novel, you are mistaken, as was myself. It should be classed as a b movie with expensive fx. Dakota Fanning is the best actor in the film, but I would have changed my agent. The story runs as a list of ideas stuck together with paper glue, and the important fell of the board. It only manages to portraits Americans as being stupid and selfish. I love H G Wells' war of the wars, so did not have high hopes for the film, but even those have been crushed.

A gripping film start to finish with good special effects. Itells the tale of how the human race fight to survive against the Martians and their powerful machines when they suddenly appear on earth. Sci Fi terrorist's have met their match here on earth,but are not defeated by any mechanichal weapons available but by a force we deal with daily that wipes them out but you have to watch to the end?????

what a bad film, not only is it a very bad remake they left holes in the plot, things comming from mars? not in this film deep space was the best vaugueness the'd manage lazer beams and unreal gfx, do yourself a favour watch the original it will say with you alot longer and is pure classic, compaired to this INDEPENDECE DAY WAR OF THE WORLDS HYBRID

what a film,it will have you looking at the clouds above wondering what really is up there.action all the way through.another spielberg masterpeice

This is easily one of the worst films ever made and is one of the biggest let downs too.Read all the bad comments you can find about this film, put them all together and you still won't be anywhere near the truth about just how incredibly crap this film is. AVOID!!!!

the effects were great the film was entertaining and kept me on my seat .....well worth the watch !!!

If you were expecting a great film, exciting story and class actors - forget this one - watch the Magic roundabout. This is a very bad film.

Terrible in every way!!!!

Why did htey call it War of the Worlds ?? perhaps they didnt know ther is a story with that title already - certainly the script writers have never heard of it. Bad film

This film is entertaining. There are a few silly things in it but if you don't take the film seriously you will enjoy it.

I'm very sorry but icannot agree with anyone who says this film is better than the original story. Admitedly it did have good effects and it was well acted,BUT! The intensity and excitement were not there, unlike the H.G.Wells gripping story. and why oh why does a truly british story have be based in the usa. it lacked the scariness of old London town as it was reduced to rubble, the fight against capture and death was lack lustre. Too much of the original story was changed, although i enjoyed the film, i was quite dissapointed that it was based in the usa.

To be honest, I enjoyed most of this film, despite the many gaping holes in the plot and ridiculous scenarios. Unfortunately, however, the ending was so abrupt and unbelievable that it seemed as if Spielberg either ran out of ideas, or decided that he had had enough of the whole stinking mess. I am being over-generous by awarding 2 stars.

When Cruise walks down the street at the end and his wife opens the door I thought ' excellent, they've done the dream sequence thing and Cruise and his daughter are back in the cellar about to die.' Then when the rest of the family appear next to her I then thought ' Oh, okay he's laying it on thick to really make the dream thing more dramatic'. Then what happens...no dream sequence...this is the real ending..what happened, did he get bored, did Michael Bay take over while he went on holiday.Unbelievably terrible ending. Formulaic story telling at its worst but who's the target audience for an ending like this..?

Oh dear oh dear!Might have been good,if it weren't for that Cruise fella-wondering who else turned up for the auditions????Considering the director and the amount of money spent,this is an embarrasment.And what about the ending-whats that all about?TRIPE!!!!

Excellent film, good action, keeps u at the edge of your seat but a bad ending

Exciting and entertaining.

WAR OF THE WORLDS (2005) is a timely remake for the post 9/11 era. TOM CRUISE is very watchable as a father of a dysfunctional family trying to save his family from invading aliens. The scenes with the tripods are superb as is the crashed plane wreckage scene, but the film goes downhill after Cruise has a confrontation with an unhinged TIM ROBBINS. The ending feels rushed and (unusually for a Spielberg film) the editing seems a bit sloppy. Still, DAKOTA FANNING gives a great performance as Cruise's daughter. The music score by JOHN WILLIAMS is suitably dark and foreboding too. Not a perfect film, but very watchable.

this movie sux like lemons. it is a crap film with a crap story...

absolutely brilliant, fantastic marvelious, super what more can i say the film was briliant..............

the book is fantastic, the original film is an exceptional piece of film work this, though entertaining, is poor because it is based in america and is another case of the americans taking a british story and turning it into a piece of american drivel which has no depth except to destroy things which seems americas answear to everthing, rent, enjoy but dont analyse or it will drive you mad

REALLY, REALLY ENJOYED THIS FILM. GOOD FROM START TO FINISH. VERY RECOMMENDED.

Great tension - excellent movie !

TOO MANY FILMS RELY ON CGI THAN PLOT NOWADAYS. E.G. STAR WARS 1977 OR PHANTOM MENACE (NEED I SAY MORE?). ALL OF 2DAYS FILMS R LIKE WATCHIN A CGI CARTOON THAN A MOVIE. AM I THE ONLY 1 WHO FEELS LIKE THIS OR AM I GETTIN OLD? ANYWAY 'WAR OF THE WORLDS' WASN'T THAT BAD, CRUISE AS USUAL SHOWS HE CAN HOLD A WHOLE FILM 2GETHER BY HIMSELF. BUT Y OH Y DIDN'T SP.BERG FOLLOW THE ORIGINAL STORY, I WAS HOPING IT WUD B LIKE JEFF WAYNE'S MUSICAL CD, SET IN THE EARLY 20 TH CENTURY WITH THOSE TOY SOLDIERS GETTIN BUTCHERED AND BI PLANES INCINERATED THE SENSE OF HUMAN SUFFERING WUD HAVE BEEN GREATER, WHICH AFTER ALL WAS THE WHOLE POINT.

No need to use too many words to describe this...its rubbish....I actually meant to rate it 1 star but by accident clicked on 2...RUBBISH

This was quite a good movie, although a little slow in some parts. Not too scary for older children to watch.

This looked very similar to Independence day except it was missing lot of details.

I don't know what all the other peoples problem is with this film. I thought it was brilliant. I jumped on a few occassions. Would not call it a family film though as it could give some smaller children nightmares. Apart from that the effects and film was brilliant.

I think the other reviewers giving this film a stupidly low score are missing the point. I found it refreshing that it was nothing like such films as Independance Day in that it concentrated on just one family caught in the midst of the alien invasion. It didn't attempt to tell a wider story and I think it's all the better for it. The special effects are amazing and I for one was gripped by the story line. Minor technical inaccuracies did not spoil my enjoyment whatsoever (didn't notice them to be honest). One of Spielbergs better films and one you should certainly make your mind up about yourself rather than dismissing it due to the low rated reviews on this site.

1st half of the film is outstanding, increasingly looses its edge as it moves towards the end or I would rate this as a 5 star. Worth watching more than the usual once.

horrible thoughts if came true. Good film with good acting.