War of the Worlds is a science fiction film based on the work of H. G. Wells. The film was directed by Steven Spielberg and was released in 2005. This work became the fourth adaptation of the novel.
Plot of the film
Alien Invasion remains arguably the most popular storyline used in sci-fi movies. Its appeal is simple: wondering if there is another life in the universe, we wonder what would happen if it were unfriendly? One of the options for the development of events is presented by Steven Spielberg in the film "War of the Worlds".
In New Jersey, a divorced man named Ray Farrier spends weekends with his children. The relationship between them is not the best. Son Justin quarrels with his father and steals his car. Rachel's daughter is more reserved, but also not happy with her father. A family conflict is interrupted by an unusual natural phenomenon.
Suddenly, lightning emits electromagnetic pulses that turn off all electronic devices in the area, and strikes the same place several times. But this does not happen in nature. In an attempt to understand what is happening, Ray goes to the epicenter of an unusual phenomenon. Then he sees the tripods begin to rise from the ground. Machines begin to destroy people with deadly heat rays. Ray manages to escape death and get home. He understands that it is not safe to stay here. Deciding that the best place to hide is the house of his ex-wife Mary Ann, Ray takes his children and heads there.
But the house is empty. His ex-wife went to live with her parents in Boston. However, they decide to spend the night there, hiding in the basement. And in the morning they see a completely destroyed city. Ray learns that an entire army of alien tripods has invaded cities around the world. Ray and his children travel to Boston, hoping to find salvation there and Mary Ann. You will have to overcome more than one test on the way to the coveted city. But they will cope and already being on the outskirts of the city will understand that the alien takeover was prevented.
During the epilogue, the story of how tiny terrestrial bacteria were able to destroy alien creatures will sound. It was these tiny organisms that saved the planet and all of humanity.
Steven Spielberg started working on the film "War of the Worlds" in 2004. He was so reverent about the adaptation of the work of the same name by H. G. Wells that he personally took part in the selection of key actors.
An interesting fact is that the performer of one of the main roles, Morgan Freeman, does not appear in any of the many frames of the film. But it is in his voice that the narrator narrates the events described in the motion picture. For the director, there was no question of who should play this role. Although the work of an actor of this level required an adequate budget, the film's producers did not economize. Many speculate that this was a clever move on the part of the filmmakers. After all, even the mention in the credits of the name of Morgan Freeman is already an indicator of the level of the motion picture.
One of the key characters in Ray Farrier's film was played by Tom Cruise. His hero is a simple dock worker. He witnesses an alien invasion. Now his goal is to save his children and get to safe Boston.
Tom Cruise's acting career began in 1981. By the time of his participation in the filming of the film "War of the Worlds" Tom Cruise is already well known to the audience for the films "Rain Man", "Mission Impossible" (all parts), "Eyes Wide Shut", "Vanilla Sky" and others. On the set, even a joke arose that you can no longer indicate anyone on the movie posters, the name of this actor alone is enough.
The role of the son of the protagonist Ray Farrier went to the Canadian actor Justin Chatwin. Work in the picture was one of the first for him. He played a teenager who does not have a relationship with his father. On his way to Boston, he joins an army fighting against aliens. He manages to survive and at the end of the film reunites with his father and sister.
Later, other films with his participation followed. The most successful of these were "Invisible" (high school student Nick Powell) and "Dragonball: Evolution" (teenager Goku). And in 2011 on the American channel Showtime came the television series "Shameless", where the actor played one of the main roles. The series was well received by the audience and added popularity to Justin Chatvin.
Hannah Dakota Fanning became the cinematic daughter of Tom Cruise. She played Rachel. At the time of filming, she was 11 years old and this was far from her first film role.
In 2000, she made her debut in one of the episodes of the drama series Ambulance. This was followed by small roles in the popular TV series "C. S. I.: Crime Scene Investigation" and "Friends". She became widely known for her work in the films "I am Sam", "Anger", "Charlotte's Web" and others. She also managed to try herself in the role of an actor dubbing animated films. Her voice is spoken by the heroines of the cartoons "Lilo & Stitch 2: The Big Problem of Stitch" (Lilo Pelekai), "Kim Five-with-Plus: A Struggle in Time" (preschooler Kim), "Coraline in the Land of Nightmares" (Coraline Jones) and others. She managed to receive more than three dozen nominations for various film awards and win them.
Another character in the film is Harlan Ogilvy, played by American actor, director, screenwriter Tim Robbins. He became famous for his roles in the films "Darkham Bull", "The Gambler", "The Shawshank Redemption", "The Mysterious River". In War of the Worlds, it is his character who saves Ray and Rachel from being pursued by the invaders. But soon he goes crazy. Ray is forced to kill a distraught Harlan to save himself and his daughter.
In addition to the main cast, Miranda Otto, Rick Gonzalez, Lenny Venito, Lisa Ann Walter, David Alan Bash and other actors also took part in the film.
Film at the box office
How successful a particular film is can be understood by looking at the Kinopoisk website. According to the resource, at the box office "War of the Worlds" collected 591.4 million dollars, which allowed it to take the fourth line among the highest-grossing films in 2005.
A review of the film information website Rotten Tomatoes found that most of the film reviews were positive, although not without criticism. Some of the viewers called the film's too abrupt changes in the plot, as well as Rachel's "constant" screams, which, in their opinion, "almost ruined the film," as the weak side of the film.
