# War of The Worlds (Thread contains SPOILERS!) **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 27, 2005, 3:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-of-the-worlds-thread-contains-spoilers/309990 "2005-06-27T03:39:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![JonScribe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/3be4f8/32.png) [@JonScribe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JonScribe)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2005, 9:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-of-the-worlds-thread-contains-spoilers/309990/21 "2005-06-27T21:58:16Z")
> [@Stranger On A Train](#): > > …Count me in the group who wishes that Spielberg had filmed it as a period piece. … Yeah, but which period: The 1890s, when H.G. Wells wrote his book; the 1930s when Orson Wells did his radio play; of the 1950s when the first movie was released? I’d vote for 1890s, just to see something different. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d26b3c/32.png) [@Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Blue_Sky)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2005, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-of-the-worlds-thread-contains-spoilers/309990/22 "2005-06-27T22:02:36Z")
> [@JonScribe](#): > > I’d vote for 1890s, just to see something different. [Like this?](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0425638/) ---
**Author:** ![sj2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/65b543/32.png) [@sj2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sj2)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2005, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-of-the-worlds-thread-contains-spoilers/309990/23 "2005-06-27T22:32:06Z")
You can buy the Orson Wells broadcast on [radiospirits.com](http://radiospirits.com) for 7.95 USD. ---
**Author:** ![HPL](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/3da27b/32.png) [@HPL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HPL)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2005, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-of-the-worlds-thread-contains-spoilers/309990/24 "2005-06-27T23:20:58Z")
> [@AuntiePam](#): > > It’s been awhile since I saw the George Pal version, but I don’t recall a character like the one Tim Robbins is playing. > > Did I just forget? He might be the crazy preacher from the book, but there’s not enough to tell. ---
**Author:** ![DMark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@DMark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DMark)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2005, 11:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-of-the-worlds-thread-contains-spoilers/309990/25 "2005-06-27T23:31:46Z")
In today’s Liz Smith column in the New York Post, she tells a plot twist and lets you know who doesn’t die at the end. ---
**Author:** ![Zebra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c0e974/32.png) [@Zebra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zebra)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2005, 1:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-of-the-worlds-thread-contains-spoilers/309990/26 "2005-06-28T01:31:53Z")
> [@AuntiePam](#): > > It’s been awhile since I saw the George Pal version, but I don’t recall a character like the one Tim Robbins is playing. > > Did I just forget? No you didn’t. Pretty much the only characters from that version that are in this version are the aliens. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2005, 1:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-of-the-worlds-thread-contains-spoilers/309990/27 "2005-06-28T01:57:00Z")
And heck, what’s wrong with that? I mean, I’m not going to the theatre to see Tom Cruise or his moppet. I’m going to see some ghastly CGI aliens come down and kick some ass. ---
**Author:** ![Zebra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c0e974/32.png) [@Zebra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zebra)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2005, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-of-the-worlds-thread-contains-spoilers/309990/28 "2005-06-28T02:14:33Z")
unlike my dates, you will not be left unsatisfied. ---
**Author:** ![DocCathode](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doccathode/32/18773_2.png) [@DocCathode](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DocCathode)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2005, 3:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-of-the-worlds-thread-contains-spoilers/309990/29 "2005-06-28T03:39:35Z")
> [@Stranger On A Train](#): > > Count me in the group who wishes that Spielberg had filmed it as a period piece. Then again, I’m still waiting for someone to do _The First Men On The Moon_ [This version](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0058100/) with effects by Ray Harryhausen isn’t good enough for you? ---
**Author:** ![teela\_brown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d9b06d/32.png) [@teela\_brown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/teela_brown)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2005, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-of-the-worlds-thread-contains-spoilers/309990/30 "2005-06-29T16:10:53Z")
I didn’t have high hopes, because I loved the book (and the 1950’s film version) so much. However, the [San Francisco Chronicle](http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2005/06/29/DDGDMDFVCU18.DTL) is praising it to the skies. Doggone it - I can’t stand Tom Cruise, but I do want to see those tripods. ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2005, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-of-the-worlds-thread-contains-spoilers/309990/31 "2005-06-29T16:21:45Z")
If the movie’s a success, I think Spielberg will get more credit for it than Cruise. The movie would do just as well with an unknown in Cruise’s role, IMHO. Actually, I think this is true of any movie Cruise has been in. I don’t think people go to his movies just for him. What actor today is considered to guarantee an audience? It’s the whole package, especially if the movie has special effects. David Edelstein is reviewing the movie today on Fresh Air, so it’ll be in the archives tomorrow. ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Scrappy\_Hero\_Pup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ea5d25/32.png) [@Happy\_Scrappy\_Hero\_Pup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Scrappy_Hero_Pup)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2005, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-of-the-worlds-thread-contains-spoilers/309990/32 "2005-06-29T16:24:13Z")
\*\*Zebra \*\* and I saw it last night. It was amazing. Expansive when it needed to be, claustrophobic when called for, little dialogue, excellent situational directing. I don’t even want to say a word about it because it’s so stunning that I don’t want to ruin it. But I recommend it wholeheartedly. Go go go right now. I will review it furhter in my LJ this afternoon. ---
**Author:** ![Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/13edae/32.png) [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stranger_On_A_Train)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2005, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-of-the-worlds-thread-contains-spoilers/309990/33 "2005-06-29T16:25:10Z")
> [@JonScribe](#): > > Yeah, but which period: The 1890s, when H.G. Wells wrote his book; the 1930s when Orson Wells did his radio play; of the 1950s when the first movie was released? In the original 1890’s setting. The George Pal-produced film was good, but the '50s-era Red Scare subtext is kind of tedious, and the acting and dialog is subpar, to say the least. It’s not bad enough to be funny (see _Earth vs. The Flying Saucers_ for that), but not really a great classic like _The Day The Earth Stood Still_, either. > [@DocCathode](#): > > [This version](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0058100/) [of _The First Men On The Moon_ with effects by Ray Harryhausen isn’t good enough for you? Huh. I’ve never seen that. The reviews don’t give it a break, though. Stranger ---
**Author:** ![Rock-n-Rolga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/22d042/32.png) [@Rock-n-Rolga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rock-n-Rolga)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2005, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-of-the-worlds-thread-contains-spoilers/309990/34 "2005-06-29T16:56:10Z")
> [@Baldwin](#): > > I’ll go see it, and Spielberg definitely knows how to make an entertaining picture… but I can’t help wishing he’d simply filmed the book, made it a period piece set c. 1900. (There’s supposedly a low-budget independent movie that does just that, but it may or may not have actually been filmed; there are allegations that the director is a scam artist.) Saw a quote from Spielburg in a recent issue of _Entertainment Weekly_ (Sorry, don’t know the exact one. Was thumbing through it at the oil change place) where he said he wasn’t interested in doing a version set in the 1890’s because he thought that among other things the costumes were unattractive and stuffy, something like that. Anyway, he seemed very disdainful of doing a period piece, which is too bad because he probably could have done a bang-up job of it. Am currently pondering the Cruise dislike/Whoa, tripods! dilemma as well. ---
**Author:** ![Rock-n-Rolga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/22d042/32.png) [@Rock-n-Rolga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rock-n-Rolga)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2005, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-of-the-worlds-thread-contains-spoilers/309990/35 "2005-06-29T16:59:06Z")
Err, SpielbErg, sorry. Dang aliens must have stopped here and hijacked my brain on their way to Tom’s place… ---
**Author:** ![Shirley\_Ujest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/45deac/32.png) [@Shirley\_Ujest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shirley_Ujest)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2005, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-of-the-worlds-thread-contains-spoilers/309990/36 "2005-06-29T17:31:34Z")
I will wait for video because 1) movies are too expensive and 2) The Whole Tom Cruise thingie. However, it would be really funny if Speilburg slipped into the film a Yoyodyne Propulsion Systems gag. HAH! ---
**Author:** ![a35362](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3da27b/32.png) [@a35362](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/a35362)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2005, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-of-the-worlds-thread-contains-spoilers/309990/37 "2005-06-29T18:14:02Z")
It’s got a 79% “Fresh” rating at Rotten Tomatoes, but Ebert gave it two stars. ---
**Author:** ![DMark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@DMark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DMark)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2005, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-of-the-worlds-thread-contains-spoilers/309990/38 "2005-06-29T19:29:56Z")
> [@Happy Scrappy Hero Pup](#): > > \*\*Zebra \*\* and I saw it last night. > > …little dialogue… Actually was going to ask that. I have some friends visiting from Germany and their English is zilch. Would they be able to understand the film if I took them along with me? (I don’t want to have to whisper translations in the theater.) In other words, if I give them the outline of the story before we go into the theater, would they be able to follow along and like the film? ---
**Author:** ![The\_Hook](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ccd318/32.png) [@The\_Hook](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Hook)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2005, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-of-the-worlds-thread-contains-spoilers/309990/39 "2005-06-29T19:31:45Z")
> [@a35362](#): > > It’s got a 79% “Fresh” rating at Rotten Tomatoes, but Ebert gave it two stars. Mostly because it’s just another “blow’em up” movie. However, I don’t know how much I can trust Ebert’s review on this one. He doesn’t like it, basically, because he didn’t like the tripods. :dubious: ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2005, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-of-the-worlds-thread-contains-spoilers/309990/40 "2005-06-29T19:36:40Z")
> [@Rock-n-Rolga](#): > > …he said he wasn’t interested in doing a version set in the 1890’s because he thought that among other things the costumes were unattractive and stuffy, something like that. 1890s fashion unattractive? He needs a better costume designer. My feelings about Mr Cruise have not swayed my decision. The tripods win. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-of-the-worlds-thread-contains-spoilers/309990.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-of-the-worlds-thread-contains-spoilers/309990.md?page=3)