War Of The Worlds
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sugahsean469
Well-known member
Coltrain said:
Wow. I've been gone for a couple of days, and everyone rises up against--uh, I mean, well, you know who I mean. But I wouldn't be surprised if he actually is Jake Lloyd or Ahmed Best. No wonder he's always so pissed off.
"Mesa no liken uddas with different opinions. Yousa no aggree wid me?! Not okie day!! Yousa needen to lighten up and chillen out!!"
a nice thing about WotW I just noticed on a re-view
(if, like me, you've seen it in theaters, and are planning on buying it on DVD, go ahead and download the torrent, there's no shame!)
the whole scene with the splinter. With Tom Cruise wanting to get rid of it, and help her remove it, and then Dakota going "No, just leave it, when it's done, my body will reject it."
Nice little microcosmic "tell" of the story at large. Didn't even think about it.
M.
(if, like me, you've seen it in theaters, and are planning on buying it on DVD, go ahead and download the torrent, there's no shame!)
the whole scene with the splinter. With Tom Cruise wanting to get rid of it, and help her remove it, and then Dakota going "No, just leave it, when it's done, my body will reject it."
Nice little microcosmic "tell" of the story at large. Didn't even think about it.
M.
Been gone for a bit so i thought i'd chime in on this thread. This was easily my most anticipated film of the summer so i went to the early showing on opening day. I left the theatre not liking the feeling I was having toward a spielberg film so i went right back in for a 2nd viewing. Damn why couldnt the whole film be as good as the first hour or so? I felt no sense of despair from the characters past that point. The struggle over the shotgun was laughable imo. Sure we were to be worried that he may shoot one and alert the aliens to there whereabouts but i was in pain during that scene. Oh and what was up with the shoe behind the mirror? That was something i'd expect from a scooby doo cartoon, not a film about hostile aliens trying to destroy the human race. Too many of the "emotional" scenes felt forced and we once again have a sappy ending. I know it has been mentioned before but the fact that grannies house was untouched kind of irked me. Smoke and debris can be seen in the background just behind her house and their entire street shows no sign of the aliens ever being there. Oh well, i'll buy the DVD for the first hour or so and the vfx features.
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,163458,00.html
Basically says that at world wide $500 million take, WOW will break even. I still don't understand that but I digress.
Basically says that at world wide $500 million take, WOW will break even. I still don't understand that but I digress.
J.R. Hudson
Spirit Animal
Well its been out for a few weeks already; I'm also wondering how it is barely breaking even at $500 Million
They're doing something wrong if that's the case.
They're doing something wrong if that's the case.
dat5150 said:
This film will make A LOT of money back.
DVD sales and rentals are worth about 3 times the box office gross nowdays. For many films, cinema distribution is merely a springboard for the DVD market and to avoid the "straight to video" label. Not suggesting WOW is one of those though.
Then there is international TV rights, merchandise, pay per view etc...
Rasquachemedia
Well-known member
just saw the film and I know my take won't be too popular, but this was one of spielbergs worst films ever. the son was poorly cast and to have him reappear at the end was weak. The bookend voiceovers didn't work. It took to long to get going and when the storm hit it was unexciting.
The son's persistence to "see" the battle that takes over the hill was pretty dumb. I never believed Cruise really loved his kids, the chemistry was missing between them. Dakota was good, but I'm getting tired of seeing her.
I saw close encounter the day before, and this film is not even a fraction of what spielberg made some time ago.
I don't think the cruise and spielberg collabortion works.
The son's persistence to "see" the battle that takes over the hill was pretty dumb. I never believed Cruise really loved his kids, the chemistry was missing between them. Dakota was good, but I'm getting tired of seeing her.
I saw close encounter the day before, and this film is not even a fraction of what spielberg made some time ago.
I don't think the cruise and spielberg collabortion works.
J.R. Hudson
Spirit Animal
Rasquachemedia said:
I agree; in my version we would never have seen him again.
The bookend V.O. is true to from from the source material as an FYI. I thought the storm was fun and interesting; surely the things coming out of the ground was a spectacle
I agree with the part about the son; I too would not have gone down this route. I would have merely had them become separated during hte craziness...
However; as far as chemistry goes; I thin kthat was the point. These kids were completly enstranged from their father
I agree; seeing these two formulas merged woudl be epic; the whole ending from Close Encounters I always thought as 'Eh'
You may be the only one who thinks this
The two films they have doen togther have done about $900 Million dollars. (CHA CHING)
I loved both of the films they have done and look forward to more. Are they GREAT GREAT like Schindlers? No. But even par with some of Spielbergs best work
I can dig someone saying 'Eh. it was lairght.........' but when I hear people say I DIDNT LIKE It; I wonder what does get these people excited
Ought2bCommitted
Veteran
mmm said:
I found the whole movie showy and distracting... sorry! I expected a lot more from Mr.S.
For example, the thing that bugged me the most:
Opening narration-they've been studying us for thousands of years...
Mr. S shoots his wad by showing the aliens for the first time in the basement scene that is totally unneccessary in the first place.... if they have been studying us all this time, how do they not know what a photo or a bike is??? Come on!!! The moment of reveal would have been a hell of a lot more effective if it was the alien at the end crawling out of the ship. Mr. S should have known better.
And really, Mr. Katie Holmes' family lived on a block that showed no damage, they were all clean and appeared showered...
Not to mention! When they get to the mother's house they never once turn on a tv or radio to find out whats going on--or take food from the fridge!
Ug...
I'll stick with Close Encounters.
-Robert
KingVidiot
Well-known member
OK, I'll pull-out an updated version of some of my comments I had used on Film Threat's site a while back...
Here are a few major points (rants):
1. It's apparent that Spielberg likes fantasy and adventure more than true sci-fi, since any shred of speculative science-type stuff that made the original fascinating was garbage science in this one.
2. I don't know why "Big S" chose to remake a true classic and keep a lot of the "old fashioned" elements from it like that archaic style voice-over used in the original Pal masterpiece. Why not make it fresh, since in a lot of ways it wasn't a true remake.
3. The original had a great element of scientists solving a mystery like many movies of the time, so the stolen moment of the "chopping of the probe hose" (which eventually would be studied) is kinda fruitless in this one.
4. EMP's destroy circuitry to a greater level than a solenoid. Last time I checked a car has a fairly complex electrical system (I won't even go into the video camera scene). If we tried to hit them back with nukes we could cause more of the same problem (the Compton effect).
Check-out this quote from How Stuff Works:
...instead of simply cutting off power in an area, an e-bomb would actually destroy most machines that use electricity. Generators would be useless, cars wouldn't run, and there would be no chance of making a phone call. In a matter of seconds, a big enough e-bomb could thrust an entire city back 200 years or cripple a military unit.
The intense fluctuating magnetic field could induce a massive current in just about any other electrically conductive object -- for example phone lines, power lines and even metal pipes. These unintentional antennas would pass the current spike on to any other electrical components down the line (say, a network of computers hooked up to phone lines). A big enough surge could burn out semiconductor devices, melt wiring, fry batteries and even explode transformers.
5. If they buried the ships before we were around to notice it, why not just take the Earth then? Mars hasn't changed much in a million years, so if it's unpleasant now, it was bad back then.
6. Most importantly, if you use the microbe climax from the original movie, take into account that coming to Earth to plant the ships would expose you to the same things that eventually kill them during the final invasion, and they would plan for that. I was expecting the military to use man-made biological warfare, since they had changed the way the ships got there.
7. What were they fertilizing their "red weeds" with before human blood? Mars doesn't exactly have a thriving ecosystem with a cornucopia of animal victims.
8. Cruise's son should have died... how lame. "This is something I need to do." Do what, run into a wall of fire and destruction with no protection, weapon, or combat experience? What the hell did he need to do?
9. Disintegrating a body would not leave the clothing unscathed. Clothing is organic material (even synthetics) which is obviouisly a target of the ray. At the very least the clothes would be damaged in the process.
10. The van backdrops were very bad for a big budget movie, although the camera work was good.
11. The aliens were well animated, but they mostly looked like they morphed and escaped from the set of Independence Day. Why not try something new since they didn't really look like the original ones anyway.
12. What's with the sphincters in alien movies these days (in the walker nets)? See also Starship Troopers.
Let's remember though, it's called science-fiction for a reason. There is usually an attempt at having science somewhere in the movie, otherwise it's just make-believe and unrealistic. Why go to the trouble of having photorealistic elements if they don't represent anything realistic? Physics is also ignored in a lot of these flicks (see Armageddon's moon buggy which suddenly finds low gravity when it's convenient).
All that said, I still enjoyed many things in the movie. It was definitely action-packed. The walkers were very cool in both appearance and sound fx. I liked the fact that they followed the Jeff Wayne album art for their design. The film grading also looked very good.
Here are a few major points (rants):
1. It's apparent that Spielberg likes fantasy and adventure more than true sci-fi, since any shred of speculative science-type stuff that made the original fascinating was garbage science in this one.
2. I don't know why "Big S" chose to remake a true classic and keep a lot of the "old fashioned" elements from it like that archaic style voice-over used in the original Pal masterpiece. Why not make it fresh, since in a lot of ways it wasn't a true remake.
3. The original had a great element of scientists solving a mystery like many movies of the time, so the stolen moment of the "chopping of the probe hose" (which eventually would be studied) is kinda fruitless in this one.
4. EMP's destroy circuitry to a greater level than a solenoid. Last time I checked a car has a fairly complex electrical system (I won't even go into the video camera scene). If we tried to hit them back with nukes we could cause more of the same problem (the Compton effect).
Check-out this quote from How Stuff Works:
...instead of simply cutting off power in an area, an e-bomb would actually destroy most machines that use electricity. Generators would be useless, cars wouldn't run, and there would be no chance of making a phone call. In a matter of seconds, a big enough e-bomb could thrust an entire city back 200 years or cripple a military unit.
The intense fluctuating magnetic field could induce a massive current in just about any other electrically conductive object -- for example phone lines, power lines and even metal pipes. These unintentional antennas would pass the current spike on to any other electrical components down the line (say, a network of computers hooked up to phone lines). A big enough surge could burn out semiconductor devices, melt wiring, fry batteries and even explode transformers.
5. If they buried the ships before we were around to notice it, why not just take the Earth then? Mars hasn't changed much in a million years, so if it's unpleasant now, it was bad back then.
6. Most importantly, if you use the microbe climax from the original movie, take into account that coming to Earth to plant the ships would expose you to the same things that eventually kill them during the final invasion, and they would plan for that. I was expecting the military to use man-made biological warfare, since they had changed the way the ships got there.
7. What were they fertilizing their "red weeds" with before human blood? Mars doesn't exactly have a thriving ecosystem with a cornucopia of animal victims.
8. Cruise's son should have died... how lame. "This is something I need to do." Do what, run into a wall of fire and destruction with no protection, weapon, or combat experience? What the hell did he need to do?
9. Disintegrating a body would not leave the clothing unscathed. Clothing is organic material (even synthetics) which is obviouisly a target of the ray. At the very least the clothes would be damaged in the process.
10. The van backdrops were very bad for a big budget movie, although the camera work was good.
11. The aliens were well animated, but they mostly looked like they morphed and escaped from the set of Independence Day. Why not try something new since they didn't really look like the original ones anyway.
12. What's with the sphincters in alien movies these days (in the walker nets)? See also Starship Troopers.
Let's remember though, it's called science-fiction for a reason. There is usually an attempt at having science somewhere in the movie, otherwise it's just make-believe and unrealistic. Why go to the trouble of having photorealistic elements if they don't represent anything realistic? Physics is also ignored in a lot of these flicks (see Armageddon's moon buggy which suddenly finds low gravity when it's convenient).
All that said, I still enjoyed many things in the movie. It was definitely action-packed. The walkers were very cool in both appearance and sound fx. I liked the fact that they followed the Jeff Wayne album art for their design. The film grading also looked very good.
J.R. Hudson
Spirit Animal
mmm said:
Whatever. Now you're just playing games.
That shot was and is epic. Genius.
You guys try to hard.
Rich Lee
I shoot Pirates.
i liked the roundy round shot...wasnt composited that great, and some of the backgrounds didnt really match...but whateva..i still liked it...
sure was convenient that the whole time they had a nice perfect little path down the freeway, would have been cool if he had to do a little four wheelin in the grass...
the first time we see an alien is straight up bad ass. felt real, and scary as shite.
sure was convenient that the whole time they had a nice perfect little path down the freeway, would have been cool if he had to do a little four wheelin in the grass...
the first time we see an alien is straight up bad ass. felt real, and scary as shite.
J.R. Hudson
Spirit Animal
Exactly dudes
The Roundy Round (heh heh) works.
Hey, I have some reservations with the film; but all in all? It rocks. Is it on par with JAWS? Hell no. Is it one of Stevies finest hours?
I think so
The Roundy Round (heh heh) works.
Hey, I have some reservations with the film; but all in all? It rocks. Is it on par with JAWS? Hell no. Is it one of Stevies finest hours?
I think so
John_Hudson said:
No... I just didn't like it. Trying to hard to do what? I think decisions like this are crucial for a director and warrant discussion... surely?
Most of the film was shot in quite a "docu" style, which Spielberg brought new life to with Schindler and SPR. Personally I would have stuck with that. They are two of my favourite examples of well justified, clever DPing/Directing ever.
What I really liked about WOW was that it WASN'T your typical blockbuster - it just followed one family and we only know what they know. Shots like the "roundy-roundy" one detract from this style and intimacy IMHO.
I didn't like the old Pearl Harbour bomb POV shot either. Even a none cinema buff knows in their head it is impossible and therefore must be fake. Of course, in some contexts "trick shots" are great - the Matrix for example, but in this kind of use, it's not for me. Each to their own.
xl70e3
Skywalker
You know, I wouldn't say the camera movement in the scene broke the sense of intimacy. In a way it even further increased it. It is going around the family and only them, it stays focused on the characters for the whole 5 (or w/e) minutes the scene runs, while all the chaos outside takes place. There are 3 of them and only 3, noone else is going to help them and father can't risk his children by helping anyone else and here are they are running from the unknown danger in the world taken over by panic. And the camera only adds tension and signifies the fact that they're alone. IMHO
Ought2bCommitted
Veteran
John_Hudson said:
I don't. Mr. S is capable of a lot more and maybe I just expected the more part on this one.
Some of the story choices were just non-sensical (examples sited above for starters) and really I can't get past how stupid the moment of reveal of the aliens was. Come on!!! You've been studying us for thousands of years but don't know what a bike or a wheel or a photo is????? That scene did nothing for the story and was a weak revelation of what the aliens looked like, IMO. It was like the brilliant aliens in Shamalamadingdong's movie who come to a planet composed so much of water when they're afraid of it and even stupider can't open a frggin door for crying out loud.
It would have been more suspenseful to just wait until the shot of the alien crawling out of the ship dying. That to me would have been better. You wait the whole movie to see them and then you are rewarded, not to have them shown for the first time in a scene that just doesn't make sense or do anything to move the story forward. It just stops.
Ug.
I love Mr. S, but did not like WotW.
-Robert