IMDb > War of the Worlds (2005)
War of the Worlds
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War of the Worlds (2005) More at IMDbPro »

Photos (see all 129 | slideshow) Videos (see all 15)
War of the Worlds (2005) -- US Theatrical Trailer from Paramount
War of the Worlds (2005) -- Clip: Tom Hides In Cellar
War of the Worlds (2005) -- CineMagia.ro - Trailer (Flash)

Overview

User Rating:
6.6/10   122,541 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
Up 188% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Director:
Writers (WGA):
Josh Friedman (screenplay) and
David Koepp (screenplay) ...
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Contact:
View company contact information for War of the Worlds on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
29 June 2005 (USA) more
Tagline:
They're already here. more
Plot:
As Earth is invaded by alien tripod fighting machines, one family fights for survival. full summary | full synopsis
Plot Keywords:
Awards:
Nominated for 3 Oscars. Another 12 wins & 19 nominations more
User Comments:
Plot holes like craters, but a scary ride anyway more (2683 total)

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Tom Cruise ... Ray Ferrier

Dakota Fanning ... Rachel Ferrier

Miranda Otto ... Mary Ann

Justin Chatwin ... Robbie

Tim Robbins ... Harlan Ogilvy

Rick Gonzalez ... Vincent

Yul Vazquez ... Julio (as Yul Vázquez)
Lenny Venito ... Manny the Mechanic
Lisa Ann Walter ... Bartender
Ann Robinson ... Grandmother
Gene Barry ... Grandfather

David Alan Basche ... Tim
Roz Abrams ... Herself
Michael Brownlee ... TV Reporter, Osaka

Camillia Sanes ... News Producer
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Additional Details

Also Known As:
Out of the Night (USA) (working title)
Party in Fresno (USA) (fake working title)
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MPAA:
Rated PG-13 for frightening sequences of sci-fi violence and disturbing images.
Runtime:
116 min
Country:
Language:
Color:
Aspect Ratio:
1.85 : 1 more
Sound Mix:

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
This is the third incarnation of The War of the Worlds story that Ann Robinson has appeared in, having played Sylvia Van Buren in the original 1953 film The War of the Worlds (1953) and then reprising her role for three episodes in the TV series, "War of the Worlds" (1988). more
Goofs:
Miscellaneous: After the crash of a jumbo jet right in the backyard, Tom's mysteriously untouched van right next to it somehow has a clear lane to drive out. And somehow a news van that had been filming National Guard units in the Pine Barrens (a hat-tip to Orson Welles' 1939 radio broadcast) the night before was already there. And raiding the airliner wreckage for food is hardly necessary with so many abandoned houses and stores available. more
Quotes:
[first lines]
Narrator: No one would have believed in the early years of the 21st century that our world was being watched by intelligences greater than our own; that as men busied themselves about their various concerns, *they* observed and studied, the way a man with a microscope might scrutinize the creatures that swarm and multiply in a drop of water...
more
Movie Connections:
Featured in We Are Not Alone (2005) (V) more
Soundtrack:
Fa Wat more

FAQ

1) Did the birds kill the aliens/tripods?
26) Why didn't the aliens take a vaccine?
14) Why did the alien shields go down?
more
209 out of 324 people found the following comment useful.
Plot holes like craters, but a scary ride anyway, 4 July 2005
7/10
Author: pbubny-1 from Belleville, NJ

"War of the Worlds" is Steven Spielberg's third movie in which extraterrestrials visit Earth, but the first in which their intentions are malevolent. It can't be coincidence that the arrival of the ETs is heralded with eerie lights flashing amid lowering clouds, as in "CE3K." From there, the similarity ends--no light show as friendly aliens come in for a closer look. These creatures (presumably Martians, as in the original H.G. Wells novel) aren't interested in making nice; nor is there any ambiguity about their ultimate objective (as there was for much of "CE3K"). They're here to wipe us off the face of the planet, plain and simple, a point we understand before the movie has played for even half an hour, and the giant walking tripods they deploy are remorselessly efficient. So, too, is the movie--at scaring the hell out of us, notwithstanding some gaping plot holes (what's up with that camcorder, anyway?) and a couple of sequences that are too reminiscent of other movies (particularly "Independence Day" and Spielberg's own "Jurassic Park").

That Spielberg uses imagery alluding to 9/11, the Holocaust, and perhaps the siege of London during World War II is, for me, less an exploitation than a reflection of how seriously he intends the audience to take the on screen mayhem. The atmosphere is heavy with threat, and the depiction of a populace numb with shock amid the devastation is chillingly convincing, despite a few moments of Hollywood cheese. We don't have Will Smith delivering snappy one-liners right after millions are massacred by the invading alien forces, a la "ID4." Nor is there much of a rah-rah, let's-kick-some-alien-ass mood as the outmatched Earthlings try fighting back. Even the ostensible protagonist (a low-key, effective Tom Cruise) crumples at one point under the enormity of what's happening.

I'm not really sure what the posters who complained of insufficient action and FX were talking about. Seems to me the tripods were pretty much a constant presence (if not always in the foreground) from about the 15-minute mark onward. And in fact the "war" of the title is waged from the beginning--it's just not on the level of humans vs. aliens combat that some viewers apparently were expecting.

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The US didn't win this time steve-544-31268
Mostly questions, but also other notable things.. folsoml
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Flying clothing...? movieman-232
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