War of the Worlds (2005)

I love and respect Spielberg, let's make that absolutely clear. I grew up with the man. But, that love and respect, clearly, is exclusively one sided. I have the feeling I've been treated like a moron. There are so many concessions made in the film in a vain attempt to reach everybody, that at the end of the day, most everybody is disappointed. It's not one thing or the other. Much like "Artificial Intelligence" Steven Spielberg, more than any of his contemporaries, has everything at his disposal. He has the luxury to choose the best of the best in every department, so why not apply that standard to the most important, the writing. Here the source was H.G Wells so, no excuses for the cheap shots and the smart ass wise cracks. I think that compromises are, in a business of millions and millions of dollars, unavoidable, but, how terrible when the compromise takes over. When marketing researchers have so much power. I think that compromises based on political correctness have taken over the world of Spielberg. I remember when Elia Kazan received the Academy Award to his career and the polemic that followed. Spielberg found a way to be okay with everybody. He applauded but didn't stand up. Is that his position? He made comments about War of the Worlds, hinting that the updated story reflected what was happening in the world today. Really? There is a line thrown out there casually on purpose "Occupation never works" or something like that. But that's not nearly enough. It is an insult to our intelligence. "War of the Worlds" has a terrific opening. We are several steps ahead of the characters populating the world in the movie. The thrilling anticipation of what we know is coming, raises our expectations to levels that, naturally, are impossible to reach. Tom Cruise is terrific, but the film moves between Wells and Spielberg's worlds without being fair to either one. Technically the film is astonishing, but the soul is sadly not there.