War of the Worlds

"War of the Worlds" is the kind of summer movie that wants you to sit back and watch the action on-screen without thinking too much. If you do that, you will certainly enjoy Steven Spielberg's newest hit. However, if you start asking questions, like "what's up with the red stuff?", you'll lose the illusion of special effects and alien attacks.

Tom Cruise headlines as Ray Ferrier, a conceited jerk of a guy who is the same way around his two kids (Dakota Fanning and Justin Chatwin) who he has to keep for the weekend. He has no business being a dad and his kids really want nothing to do with him. As this storyline unfolds, a secondary story starts to become apparent as, on Ray's TV in the background, we hear reports of severe lightening storms occurring in various cities around the world. Within twenty minutes, these lightening bolts propel the story forward at, well for lack of a better word, a lightening pace. That's right, the action kicks in within the first 20 minutes, I checked my watch.

Every special effect in "Worlds" is stellar, the aliens and their sounds are believable, and the destruction is incredible as the tripod aliens come out of the ground and begin to destroy everything in their sight. Spielberg's touch is felt in some of the more haunting scenes, including clothing raining from the sky and bodies floating down a river. Truly, though, the most affecting and emotional moments come from the three main characters themselves. Cruise goes from cocky-guy to traumatized-human to protective-father seamlessly. Chatwin is solid as the pissed off teen wanting to fight back, first against his father then against the aliens. Plus, it's no surprise that Fanning sets the tone of every scene with the look in her eyes. Whether it's a panic attack in a car, witnessing harrowing destruction surrounding her, or seeking comfort as her father attempts to sing her to sleep, Dakota Fanning once again demonstrates that she's one of today's best female actresses, and clearly the best child actress out there.

"War of the Worlds" is a great sci-fi flick, supported by solid acting involving pure emotions. For me, the biggest fault comes with the ending, which seems rushed and a bit false. At the same time, that's how H.G. Wells put it to paper. But that, combined with some of the other unexplained things (how did we not know about all of these buried alien machines?) weakens the overall effect. Yes, a great summer aliens-do-not-come-in-peace movie, just don't think too much. I give it a B+.

"War of the Worlds" is rated PG-13 with a running time of two hours.