WAR OF THE WORLDS

[SAMURAI36]

I wanted to see this movie twice, to take it all in.

Most definitely one of the best films of this year.

After the first 30 minutes of the movie, I was immediately reminded of the sci-fi travesty, known as INDEPENDENCE DAY, starring WILL SMITH.

Even though I had already known that ID4 was garbage from the onset, WOTW only intensifies that knowledge.

WOTW was everything that ID4 should have been. SPEILBRERG had stated that he wanted to capture the feeling of and after 9/11, and he does exactly that.

If superior invaders from another planet were to come here, people are not going to be saluting and talking shit and cracking jokes and whatnot. There will only be the suffocating feeling of pending doom, and hopelessness.

WOTW captures this feeling perfectly.

Everything, from the battle scenes, right up to the "defeat" of the aliens, shows the sheer lack of control that we as humans have over ANYTHING.

Even the aliens were done very well, IMO (though they weren't depicted for very long)........They had a curious intelligence about them, as well as a simian-like demeanor about them.

Overall, definitely worth the viewing.

PEACE

[Os3y3ris]

Absolutely atrocious. Every single character was fukcing retarded. HEY, IM GONNA RUN UP TO THE FRONTLINES WITH NO GUN AND WATCH. HEY, THE GROUND IS FALLING OUT FROM UNDERNEAT ME AND BUILDINGS ARE COLLAPSING, BUT ILL STAY AND LOOK. HEY AN ANGRY MOB AFTER MY CAR. MAYBE IM NOT INTO IT DEEP ENOUGH. ALIENS HAVE INVINCIBLE SHIELDS. MAYBE I SHOULD LINE UP AT THE TOP OF A FUCKING HILL SMACK IN FROM OF ONE AND SHOOT THE SHIELDS WITH USELESS WEAPONS. OOH A MIRROR. BEEN HERE FOR A MILLION YEARS AND HAVE NEVER SEENT THOSE.

I could go on all day. This movie was god awful. Independence Day was far better. Why? Because the people had the sense to fight back in an intelligent manner, to run away when people started dying, and to generally defend themselves. The aliens were smarter too. Why is the WOTW deathray any better than a .50 cal sniper rifle? It kills people ONE AT A TIME. On the other hand, the aliens in ID4 were smart enough to wield nuclear type capabilities.

The original War of the Worlds INVENTED the alien invasion genre. It was the original. Is the movie entertaining? Sure it is. Is it scary? I suppose. But does it pay proper respect to one of the greates pieces of sciene fiction ever written? Hell no. For gods sake, we're supposed to accept that they came here 1,000,000 years ago and buried weaponry to fight a species that had never even evolved. WHAT THE FUCK?

[SAMURAI36]

PEACE O:

Truth be told, I was hoping for your response. Our movie discussions are always good.

So here goes.....

HEY, IM GONNA RUN UP TO THE FRONTLINES WITH NO GUN AND WATCH. HEY, THE GROUND IS FALLING OUT FROM UNDERNEAT ME AND BUILDINGS ARE COLLAPSING, BUT ILL STAY AND LOOK.

Those I agree for the most part with this, I can't help but feel a sense of relation to this feeling.

If you could stand unharmed, and watch the end of the world in real-life, would you do it?

HEY AN ANGRY MOB AFTER MY CAR. MAYBE IM NOT INTO IT DEEP ENOUGH.

I'm not sure I understand this one. They knew exactly where they wanted to go, and they knew that they would get there far faster on wheels than on foot.

They lived in NY, for crikey's sake......CRUISE's character had stated that he wanted to avoid the major highways for that very reason. Unfortunately, there is no such thing as that, when you're going from NYC (the biggest city in the world) to Boston (another big city).

His plan was originally a good idea, just not carried out very well. But then, what do you expect, when you're scared out of your mind, and worried about the safety of your screaming children?

Are you going to have it all together, when such a major disaster comes knocking?

As I had previously stated, SPEILBERG said he wanted to capture the feeling of 9/11, and he did precisely that; hysteria, helplessness and terror.

If you were in the Tower at that precise moment, what are your options, on a rational level?

ALIENS HAVE INVINCIBLE SHIELDS. MAYBE I SHOULD LINE UP AT THE TOP OF A FUCKING HILL SMACK IN FROM OF ONE AND SHOOT THE SHIELDS WITH USELESS WEAPONS.

And if you have a gun, you would do, what with it? I'm going to bring a knife to a gunfight, if that's all that I have. I might get a lucky slash in.

OOH A MIRROR. BEEN HERE FOR A MILLION YEARS AND HAVE NEVER SEENT THOSE.

You've never walked past your mirror at home in the dark, and startled yourself? I have, plenty of times.

Besides, who said the aliens were here all this time? They planted their machines here, but they had just arrived.

I could go on all day. This movie was god awful. Independence Day was far better. Why? Because the people had the sense to fight back in an intelligent manner, to run away when people started dying, and to generally defend themselves.

ID4 was better to you??

I don't know how much of WOTW you saw, but people were indeed running and screaming for their lives.....What about the ferry scene?

You mention the shields and what-not of WOTW, why on earth didn't the aliens of ID4 have any such things? Why did WILL SMITH's F-15 even make a dent?

No one hardly even got killed in ID4, even though these were supposedly a manevolent race of beings, who wanted to take over the earth. Does that make sense to you?

You saw what happened to people in WOTW: straight up Raspberry sherbert.

That's not more realistic to you?

The aliens were smarter too. Why is the WOTW deathray any better than a .50 cal sniper rifle? It kills people ONE AT A TIME. On the other hand, the aliens in ID4 were smart enough to wield nuclear type capabilities.

It's called "SCORCHED EARTH". If I want to take over your property, I only need to kill you and your family, not blow up the whole house.

And you say the ID4 aliens were smarter?

Besides, the WOTW aliens had a specific need for humans....Raspberry sherbert, remember?

The original War of the Worlds INVENTED the alien invasion genre. It was the original. Is the movie entertaining? Sure it is. Is it scary? I suppose. But does it pay proper respect to one of the greates pieces of sciene fiction ever written? Hell no. For gods sake, we're supposed to accept that they came here 1,000,000 years ago and buried weaponry to fight a species that had never even evolved. WHAT THE FUCK?

I'm not sure what this means, but we've had the human evolution discussion before. Even you asserted that even though we have not evolved that much physiologically, we have evolved mentally.

That's what the aliens had prepared for. Even if we were all neanderthals when they first got here, they had pretty much theorized that we wouldn't be on that level when they came back. Otherwise, why need eletromagnetic shields to protect their armor, if they were anticipating sticks and stones?

PEACE

[Os3y3ris]

If you could stand unharmed, and watch the end of the world in real-life, would you do it?

The street was falling out from under them. At that point I'd run.

I'm not sure I understand this one. They knew exactly where they wanted to go, and they knew that they would get there far faster on wheels than on foot.

I mean the mob scene. As soon as they saw the riot, they needed to turn around.

His plan was originally a good idea, just not carried out very well. But then, what do you expect, when you're scared out of your mind, and worried about the safety of your screaming children?

Are you going to have it all together, when such a major disaster comes knocking?

As I had previously stated, SPEILBERG said he wanted to capture the feeling of 9/11, and he did precisely that; hysteria, helplessness and terror.

If you were in the Tower at that precise moment, what are your options, on a rational level?

That is a valid point.

And if you have a gun, you would do, what with it? I'm going to bring a knife to a gunfight, if that's all that I have. I might get a lucky slash in.

Presumably these things had finite strength. A gun could POSSIBLY aid in one's destruction. At the very least it could be useful if the shields dropped for some reason. However, an unarmed person is 100% useless.

You've never walked past your mirror at home in the dark, and startled yourself? I have, plenty of times.

I then proceed to move past it. The alien was absolutely dumbfounded. Not plausible.

Besides, who said the aliens were here all this time? They planted their machines here, but they had just arrived.

70% of the planet is covered by a semireflective liquid. Even a preliminary glance should introduce them to that concept.

ID4 was better to you??

Yeh. It was on a lower level than this film, but it was better at what it did than WOTW was at what it needed to be.

I don't know how much of WOTW you saw, but people were indeed running and screaming for their lives.....What about the ferry scene?

How were they gonna escape in THAT? But ignoring the logic of that method of escape, yes, they acted like they had some sense there.

You mention the shields and what-not of WOTW, why on earth didn't the aliens of ID4 have any such things? Why did WILL SMITH's F-15 even make a dent?

They DID have shields. Remember? I forgot how he took down ONE fighter, but everything was indeed shielded up.

No one hardly even got killed in ID4, even though these were supposedly a manevolent race of beings, who wanted to take over the earth. Does that make sense to you?

Did you see the same movie? In my version they blew up entire cities instead of taking the time to aim at each human.

It's called "SCORCHED EARTH". If I want to take over your property, I only need to kill you and your family, not blow up the whole house.

In the book, if I recall correctly, they gassed them. Mass murder as opposed to the slower methods used in the movie.

I'm not sure what this means, but we've had the human evolution discussion before. Even you asserted that even though we have not evolved that much physiologically, we have evolved mentally.

Why even fight humans though? They could've simply taken the planet before there were humans. They needed them? They could've come back when they first evolved and farmed them. It makes no sense to wait until a threatning (not really, but still...) species has evolved and THEN fight. Doesn't make sense.

[SAMURAI36]

os3y3ris said:

The street was falling out from under them. At that point I'd run.

C'mon O, we all know that most people are stupid. You do realize that during 9/11, alot of people got hurt, simply because they were standing around watching?

It may not make "sense", but that doesn't mean that it was no less realistic to what really happens.

I mean the mob scene. As soon as they saw the riot, they needed to turn around.

By the time they saw the riot, they were pretty much in it.

And by the time they saw the riot, the riot had seen them to, and they were all over them. Theirs was the only working car for miles. How are you going to turn a mini-van around, in a street full of terrified, angry, looting people?

Presumably these things had finite strength.

Do you mean when they were inside the machines, or outside walking around?

Because if it's the latter then you're right, but if it's the former, they were totally invincible.

A gun could POSSIBLY aid in one's destruction. At the very least it could be useful if the shields dropped for some reason. However, an unarmed person is 100% useless.

I was speaking strictly about the military. What TOM CRUISE's son was trying to do was totally ridiculous, but at the same time, part of me understood his reasoning as he explained it to TOM.

I then proceed to move past it. The alien was absolutely dumbfounded. Not plausible.

There were numerous things that I took into consideration here, within the context of that scene.

For one, after the whole mirror bit, the 2 aliens then begin to contemplate over a photograph of some humans.

I immediately began to delve into the mind of these beings, and I could see them thinking "why do these earth creatures like looking at themselves so much? Are they really that vain? Fuck it, all the more reason to destroy them."

I could see these beings never having a mirror in their native society......They all pretty much look the same (unlike humans), and since they were clothesless and with no apparent cosmetic enhancements, what would be the need to look at themselves? They would pretty much see themselves, if they looked at each other anyways.

70% of the planet is covered by a semireflective liquid. Even a preliminary glance should introduce them to that concept.

They obviously knew what water was, because they knew to drink it.

Seeing your reflection as you pass by a pond is one thing, and I don't think that was the issue, since that room that they were in was flooded with water anyways, and they didn't even respond to it the whole time.

That's why I said that what they were pondering was the human external need to constantly view oneself.

Yeh. It was on a lower level than this film, but it was better at what it did than WOTW was at what it needed to be.

Wow, sorry to hear that. We obviously disagree.

How were they gonna escape in THAT? But ignoring the logic of that method of escape, yes, they acted like they had some sense there.

It's the same thing with the guns and tanks. Part of you knows that "resistance is futile", but that doesn't stop you from trying to fight/escape anyway.

They DID have shields. Remember? I forgot how he took down ONE fighter, but everything was indeed shielded up.

Did you see the same movie? In my version they blew up entire cities instead of taking the time to aim at each human.

I obviously need to see that film again (if I can stomach it ), if for no other reason, than for the sake of this discussion.

All's I can recall about it (besides how horrible it was), was WILL SMITH talking shit to the alien, and punching it in the grill.

Totally stupid. The role he played in MEN BLACK was more convincing, in context.

In the book, if I recall correctly, they gassed them. Mass murder as opposed to the slower methods used in the movie.

Yeah, that's true. That would perhaps have been more expedient, however not as entertaining to a wide-eyed CGI-addicted audience.

Besides, these new machines were more like "cull and capture" sentinels, rather than just warriors.

Their methods in this recent one, seemed to be alot more meticulous an surgical, than in the older version.

That's why I mentioned the "SCORCHED EARTH" scenario earlier.

Remember the movie SIGNS with MEL GIBSON? They perfectly explained the "foot soldier" rationale; if you bombard the planet, then it's useless to you.

Even in ID4, the one alien stated that they wanted to take the planet.

In fact, that's been said in every single alien movie, from WOTW, ID4, SIGNS, THE ARRIVAL, and X-FILES.

Why even fight humans though?

They were "fighting" the humans? They were more like culling and slaughtering them.

They could've simply taken the planet before there were humans. They needed them? They could've come back when they first evolved and farmed them. It makes no sense to wait until a threatning (not really, but still...) species has evolved and THEN fight. Doesn't make sense.

From what little I recall of the old film and novels, there was a reason that they had been waiting in the cut for so long. IIRC, it had something to do with the development of the planet on a geological level (same recurring theme in those other movies I mentioned as well).

But the price to pay for the development, is the evolution of the various species on this planet as a result--from the so-called dominant (humans), to the smallest........Ironically it was that evolution (or the lack thereof), that was the aliens' downfall.

PEACE

[Os3y3ris]

C'mon O, we all know that most people are stupid. You do realize that during 9/11, alot of people got hurt, simply because they were standing around watching?

It may not make "sense", but that doesn't mean that it was no less realistic to what really happens.

You must say, they certainly took it to extremes in WOTW.

By the time they saw the riot, they were pretty much in it.

And by the time they saw the riot, the riot had seen them to, and they were all over them. Theirs was the only working car for miles. How are you going to turn a mini-van around, in a street full of terrified, angry, looting people?

Turning around was a shitty option, but CLEARLY better than driving THROUGH it.

Because if it's the latter then you're right, but if it's the former, they were totally invincible.

Oh? Well, we only saw some rather half-hearted attacks. No searching for weak points nor any REAL firepower.

I was speaking strictly about the military. What TOM CRUISE's son was trying to do was totally ridiculous, but at the same time, part of me understood his reasoning as he explained it to TOM.

Cool.

There were numerous things that I took into consideration here, within the context of that scene.

For one, after the whole mirror bit, the 2 aliens then begin to contemplate over a photograph of some humans.

I immediately began to delve into the mind of these beings, and I could see them thinking "why do these earth creatures like looking at themselves so much? Are they really that vain? Fuck it, all the more reason to destroy them."

I could see these beings never having a mirror in their native society......They all pretty much look the same (unlike humans), and since they were clothesless and with no apparent cosmetic enhancements, what would be the need to look at themselves? They would pretty much see themselves, if they looked at each other anyways.

Thats an interesting analysis, but not consistent with the scene. The mirror clearly played a part in discourging further search by the alien. These things were previously cold, disinterested and methodical, but all of a sudden, at the most convenient moment, they show curiousity? Lame.

They obviously knew what water was, because they knew to drink it.

You think so? You mean after they wrecked the ferry? I took that as "fishing", not drinking.

Yeah, that's true. That would perhaps have been more expedient, however not as entertaining to a wide-eyed CGI-addicted audience.

Besides, these new machines were more like "cull and capture" sentinels, rather than just warriors.

Their methods in this recent one, seemed to be alot more meticulous an surgical, than in the older version.

That's why I mentioned the "SCORCHED EARTH" scenario earlier.

Remember the movie SIGNS with MEL GIBSON? They perfectly explained the "foot soldier" rationale; if you bombard the planet, then it's useless to you.

Even in ID4, the one alien stated that they wanted to take the planet.

In fact, that's been said in every single alien movie, from WOTW, ID4, SIGNS, THE ARRIVAL, and X-FILES.

I agree with that. However, the comparison is of men and ants (or maggots, wtf?). This implies a different type of war than was displayed here in the movie. The original intent, and clearly the most plausible, was one of mass slaughter followed by a cultivation of sorts. Even ID4 followed this pattern, with the aliens using weapons of mass destruction before pulling out the smaller guns. So while there's rationale for foot soldiers, it doesn't fit here.

Speaking of which, the issue is also addressed in Starship Troopers from the alien's point of view. Very interesting. In the book, the invaders used their foot soldiers as an alternative to bombardment so as to surgically remove the leadership from hard to reach areas. You need to read that by the way. Definitely my favorite sci fi novel. Invented all that mech shit the Japanese are on. Anyways, on to the discussion at hand.

They were "fighting" the humans? They were more like culling and slaughtering them.

Indeed.

From what little I recall of the old film and novels, there was a reason that they had been waiting in the cut for so long. IIRC, it had something to do with the development of the planet on a geological level (same recurring theme in those other movies I mentioned as well).

Hmm, gonna need to read the book again.