"War of the Worlds" - - pro-Repuke side-effect??

[AngryWhiteLiberal]

I saw "War of the Worlds" today, even though I'm NO Cruise fan. The movie was good...a little uneven, but all-in-all a masterfully somber and terrifying vision of powerlessness against an insurmountable force.

When the aliens start to kick ass, the first inclination of two of the main characters is to ask, "is it the terrorists?"

At this point, it dawned upon me that this gritty and real disaster movie may actually increase the sense of unease in those most suggestible in our society (e.g., Repukes, uncritical religious types, etc.). When fears of powerlessness are increased in these types, they tend to move even farther towards unquestioning authority or religious fervor. There are going to be scads of these sort of persons going to see the movie over the July 4th weekend, most of who are going to be unprepared for this unrelenting and subconsciously injurious movie. I fear that the Repukes are going to get a bump as a result from the "help us, Repukes! We are helpless" contingent.

BTW - I highly recommend the film for sheer mood, cinematography, and special effects that do not have that "special effects" feel.

JB

[FearofFutility]

1. But in the end, it was the microbes that saved them.

Everyone was powerless, including the military. It really upset me when the little girl said "is it the terrorists?" Why? Because that is what our children our inundated with every day. The "boogie man" is out there and is going to get them.

I also recommend the movie. It had me on the edge of my seat from start to finish. I really didn't like the ending though. It was kinda flat.

[AngryWhiteLiberal]

6. Didn't bother me...plus, isn't this how the H.G. Wells book ends?

What did bother me was the miraculous reappearance of a certain character at the end of the film. I thought it was needless, sentimental, and predictably "Hollywood" by trying to pull a happy ending of sorts. I hated this plot point...it would have been far better and more touching to have no resolution on the status of the character in question.

The Fanning kid was good. I realized that she was a good actress when I wanted to slap her silly at the onset of the invasion antics. Unfortunately, I also have to say that Cruise did a good job as well. He may be a COMPLETE NUT, but he's grown into a decent actor. Magnolia, War of the Worlds, & Born on 4th of July are high-points for him.

JB

[pinto]

8. Yeah, that's the Wells ending. It's "quiet" and the irony is beautiful.

Glad they stayed true to the author. The trailers highlight the special effects, of course. Thanks for the post.

[FearofFutility]

12. The microbes saving the world didn't bother me either.

It was the terrorist thing. I agree with you about the Hollywood happy ending (the character reappearing). That's what I was referring to when I said the ending was kinda flat.

[shanti]

2. thanks for the review

i was planning to see WOTW this weekend (and i'm no cruise fan either). it looks like a thriller!

[megatherium]

3. Another thumbs up from megatherium.

I'm no Cruise fan either (one of the most difficult to watch scenes in the movie is Cruise singing). But the movie is intense. Not much plot, this movie is pure brain stem.

I don't know what political effect this movie might have. Some on the right are wary of Spielberg, who keeps liberal company. But I didn't see much politics in the movie.

By the way, the NYT review (which is spot-on) concludes with the advice that the movie is PG-13: Billions of people are killed, leaving little time for bad language or sexual content.

[Radio_Lady]

4. See the thread I started on Monday after going to the preview

Any questions? I'm still around tonight!

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=105x3533920

[whistle]

5. Interesting, the previous version of the War of the Worlds.....

...came out at the height of the cold war in 1953 and stared Gene Berry and Ann Robinson.

<snip>
After the success of 1950's Destination Moon and 1951's When Worlds Collide, visionary producer George Pal brought the classic H.G. Wells story of a Martian invasion to the big screen, and it instantly became a science fiction classic and winner of the 1953 Academy Award for Best Special Effects.

It's a work of frightening imagination, with its manta-ray spaceships armed with cobra-like probes that shoot a white-hot disintegration ray. As formations of alien ships continue to wreak destruction around the globe, the military is helpless to stop this enemy while scientists race to find an effective weapon. Gene Barry and Ann Robinson play the hero and heroine roles that were de rigueur for movies like this in the '50s, and their encounter with one of the Martians is as creepy today as it was in '53.

It finally takes an unseen threat--simple Earth bacteria--to conquer the alien invaders, but not before War of the Worlds has provided a dazzling display of impressive special effects. As memorable for its sound effects as for its spectacular visions of destruction, this is a movie for the ages--the kind of spectacular that inspired little kids such as Steven Spielberg (not to mention Roland Emmerich and Dean Devlin, whose Independence Day cribs liberally from the plot) and still packs a punch. --Jeff Shannon

<end of snip>

[friesianrider]

7. I would think...

It seems to be making fun of the paranoia about terrorism, not justifying it.

[AngryWhiteLiberal]

9. This movie is DEFINITELY NOT making fun of terrorism.

There's really nothing funny about the film, aside from a few "relief" quips to break the nervous tension. The context of the "is it the terrorists" quip does not afford any chance of it being miscontrued as a joke...particularly since it's being said by a helpless 12-14 yr. old girl.

In some ways, this movie has the visual intensity of Saving Private Ryan (Omaha Beach sequences) and the dour/somber mood of Shindler's List. It's definitely not your typical July 4th "feel good" fare.

This movie is going to scare people at a deep core and increase the sense of vulnerability...or is a direct sociological consequence of our increased sense of vulnerability post-9/11. Just as Godzilla was a reaction to the Japanese's sense of helplessness after WWII, so I suspect will this movie flow along the same lines for U.S. audiences.

JB

[MrScorpio]

10. Paranoia has always been associated with War Of The Worlds

Spielberg is just keeping his version relevant to us.

[Ilsa]

11. I love the Tim Robbins clip they've been showing on the talk

shows. He's pretty gritty when he describes it not as a world war, but as an "extermination."