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Features: DVD, Limited Edition, Widescreen, Aspect Ratio 1.85:1, Dolby Digital (5.1), DTS 5.1, Dolby Surround Sound, Production Diary, Featurettes, Introduction, English, French, Spanish Subtitled, 2 Discs
An earth-shattering adventure that both "rivets and amazes" (Michael Wilmington, Chicago Tribune), War of the Worlds reunites superstar Tom Cruise and Academy Award-winning director Steven Spielberg for one of the most awe-inspiring cinematic experiences of all time!A contemporary retelling of H.G. Wells' classic, the sci-fi thriller reveals the extraordinary battle for the future of humankind through the eyes of one American family. Fleeing from an extraterrestrial army of killer Tripods that annihilate everything in their path, Ray Ferrier (Cruise) races to keep his family safe. War of the Worlds is an action packed adventure that explodes with spectacular special effects!
"...rivets and amazes." Michael Wilmington, Chicago Tribune
"Steven Spielberg at his best." Joel Siegel, Good Morning America
"Explosive, non-stop action!" Claudia Puig, USA Today
"Tom Cruise's finest performance." Gene Shalit, Today
Editor's Note
One cannot help but think of terrorist attacks while watching Stephen Spielberg's update of the classic sci-fi fantasy THE WAR OF THE WORLDS. While the H.G. Wells story dates back to 1898, and has inspired previous adaptations, this particular version feeds off its 21st century audience's fear of a terrorist-induced apocalypse. Even if the sight of tall buildings crumbling to the ground and crowds running fearfully away from their demise doesn't trigger post-9/11 paranoia, dialogue such as "Is it the terrorists?" will. Disgruntled, divorced father Ray Ferrier (Tom Cruise) is struggling to connect with his estranged kids, who have been dropped off by their mother for the weekend, when a severe and unusual lightning storm leaves his New Jersey neighborhood powerless. Over the course of the next few hours, it becomes obvious that this was not a storm at all, but rather the first sign of a worldwide alien attack. Emerging from the ground in multi-legged tripod-like machines that have apparently been stored beneath the earth's surface since before man's time, these aliens begin the process of waging a long-planned war on our planet. While WAR OF THE WORLDS follows Ray's growing closeness with his two children (Dakota Fanning and Justin Chatwin) in the face of imminent disaster, and his transformation from lousy father to hero, their story is used mostly as a vehicle for illustrating an unending series of horrific scenarios. The human element of the story is also briefly explored with Tim Robbins's portrayal of a crazed, alien-fighting recluse. Sticking closely to Wells's original descriptions of alien warfare, the film focuses mainly on visuals and succeeds through impressive special effects to create two hours of thrilling, frightening, realistic terror.
| Features | Production Diary: Part II - Filming on the West Coast | | Pre-Visualization | | Designing the Enemy: Tripods and Aliens | | Revisiting the Invasion: Introduction with Steven Spielberg | | The H. G. Wells Legacy | | Production Diary: Part I - Filming on the East Coast | | Audio: English, French Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround, English DTS 5.1, Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo | | Subtitles: English, French, Spanish | | Widescreen Presentation |
| Technical Info
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Release Information
| | Studio: Dreamworks (Universal) |
| Release Date: 1/16/2007 |
| Running Time: 117 minutes |
| Original Release Date: 2005 | | Catalog ID: 94562 | | UPC: 00678149456226 | | Number of Discs: 2 |
Audio & Video
| | Original Language: English | | Available Audio Tracks: English [CC], English, French Dubbed | | Available Subtitles: English, French, Spanish | | Video: Color |
Aspect Ratio | | Anamorphic Widescreen 1.85:1 |
| Cast & Crew | Dakota Fanning | | Justin Chatwin | | Tim Robbins | | Tom Cruise | | H.G. Wells - Based On Novel By | | Janusz Kaminski - Cinematographer | | John Williams, et. al. - Original Music By | | Josh Friedman, et. al. - Screenplay | | Kathleen Kennedy, et. al. - Producer | | Michael Kahn - Editor | | Rick Carter - Production Designer | | Steven Spielberg - Director | | Paula Wagner - Executive Producer |
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| | Professional Reviews | Entertainment Weekly
"Watching Steven Spielberg's spooky and playful remake of WAR OF THE WORLDS, you may feel a surge of childlike awe..." 07/08/2005 p.45-46New York Times
"Effectively scary and visually impressive." 07/29/2005 p.E21 Rolling Stone
"[The] road trip, by car and foot, inspires Spielberg to create extraordinary images of a frayed family in a frayed civilization." 07/28/2005 p.92 Uncut
"Spielberg handles the action with practiced flair. There are even some uncharacteristically dark touches..." 09/01/2005 p.139 Sight and Sound
"The film delivers on spectacle, from the jarring initial appearance of an alien tripod breaking up through tarmac to the collapse of the war machines in post-holocaust Boston." 09/01/2005 p.83-84 USA Today
"Steven Spielberg's summer blockbuster has knockout special effects, masterful cinematography, and terrifying and suspenseful sequences. Its explosive, non-stop action brings to mind SAVING PRIVATE RYAN's indelible opening battle sequence." 07/01/2005 p.4E Premiere
3.5 stars out of 4 -- "Janusz Kaminski's icy-blue cinematography and John Williams's unusually discordant score underline the movie's sober reckoning of Armageddon..." 12/01/2005 p.185 Rolling Stone
Ranked #2 in Rolling Stone's "Top 25 DVDs Of 2005' -- "Spielberg's technical mastery, especially with the Tripods -- aliens as nasty as E.T. was sweet -- is evident in every frame of this superior transfer." 12/01/2005 p.92 James Berardinelli's ReelViews 7 of 10
There's a longstanding movie riddle that asks the following question: Is it better to have a mediocre director and a great screenplay, or a great director and a mediocre screenplay? War of the Worlds, Steven Spielberg's entry into the 2005 summer box office derby, can be used as an argument for the latter scenario. To call the script (credited to Josh Friedman and David Koepp) "flawed" might be charitable. The original novel, penned in 1898 by H.G. Wells, seems almost quant by today's standards. Although the changes employed by Friedman and Koepp to modernize the story are adequate in displacing many of the book's events to a contemporary time frame, they result in a tale that is rife with logical errors. War of the Worlds is not watertight; in fact, it leaks like a sieve. But, with Spielberg at the helm, we hardly notice the chop in the water as we're taken on a smooth and somewhat breathless ride. - James Berardinelli
Chicago Sun-Times 4 of 10
War of the Worlds is a big, clunky movie containing some sensational sights but lacking the zest and joyous energy we expect from Steven Spielberg. It proceeds with the lead-footed deliberation of its 1950s predecessors to give us an alien invasion that is malevolent, destructive and, from the alien point of view, pointless. They've "been planning this for a million years" and have gone to a lot of trouble to invade Earth for no apparent reason and with a seriously flawed strategy. What happened to the sense of wonder Spielberg celebrated in Close Encounters of the Third Kind, and the dazzling imagination of Minority Report? - Roger Ebert
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