Review of War of the Worlds (2005) by Nick M — 08 Apr 2013

A harrowing vision of apocalyptic disaster in which humanity is scarier than the alien invaders (although they are scary too). There are sequences lifted nearly wholesale from other Spielberg classics, and it gets bogged down in the middle with its episodic structure, but Tom Cruise is great and forms meaningful relationships with the two lead kids, nicely played by Dakota Fanning and Justin Chatwin. Tim Robbins delivers an intense and memorable performance, and there are some powerful visual images (particularly the fiery train).

Yes, the ending pushes the sentiment a bit too hard, but this is less a problem with the ending than it is with an earlier war zone sequence. Ambiguity is not part of Spielberg's skill set-- he always shows you exactly what he means in the moment he means it-- and this was a scene that required a bit of chaos and uncertainty, which the director could not properly convey. Regardless, the whole film still works great, and two sequences in particular-- the first appearance of the tripod and its merciless heat ray, and a van slowly making its way through an angry mob-- are among the most heart pounding I've seen in some time.