The War of the Worlds (1953)

A small town in California is attacked by Martians, beginning a worldwide invasion.

Director:

Byron Haskin

Writers:

H.G. Wells (novel), Barré Lyndon (screenplay)

Stars:

Gene Barry, Ann Robinson, Les Tremayne

Won 1 Oscar. Another 4 wins & 2 nominations.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Gene Barry	...	Dr. Clayton Forrester
Ann Robinson	...	Sylvia Van Buren
Les Tremayne	...	Maj. Gen. Mann
Robert Cornthwaite	...	Dr. Pryor (as Bob Cornthwaite)
Sandro Giglio	...	Dr. Bilderbeck
Lewis Martin	...	Pastor Dr. Matthew Collins
Houseley Stevenson Jr.	...	Gen. Mann's Aide (as Housely Stevenson Jr.)
Paul Frees	...	Second Radio Reporter / Opening Announcer
William Phipps	...	Wash Perry (as Bill Phipps)
Vernon Rich	...	Col. Ralph Heffner
Henry Brandon	...	Cop at Crash Site
Jack Kruschen	...	Salvatore
Cedric Hardwicke	...	Commentary (voice) (as Sir Cedric Hardwicke)
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Cliff Clark	...	Australian Policeman (scenes deleted)
Rudy Lee	...	Boy (scenes deleted)

Storyline

H.G. Wells' classic novel is brought to life in this tale of alien invasion. The residents of a small town in California are excited when a flaming meteor lands in the hills. Their joy is tempered somewhat when they discover that it has passengers who are not very friendly.

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Plot Keywords:

alien | martian | invasion | h.g. wells | atomic bomb | 

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Taglines:

They came to CONQUER the EARTH!

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Genres:

Action | Sci-Fi | Thriller

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Certificate:

G

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Spanish

Release Date:

26 August 1953 (USA)

Also Known As:

Kampf der Welten

Filming Locations:

Westminster Presbyterian Church - 1757 North Lake Avenue, Pasadena, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$2,000,000 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$4,360,000

Company Credits

Production Co:

Paramount Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

85 min

Sound Mix:

3 Channel Stereo (Western Electric Recording) (5.0) (L-R)

Color:

Color (Technicolor) Black and White (newsreel archive footage before opening credits)

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

George Pal originally wanted the audience to put on 3-D glasses when the actors put on goggles. The rest of the movie would have been in 3-D.

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Goofs

When wild horses are running down a steep embankment, in the final seconds of the scene you can see men on horseback following the wild horses, raising their arms and causing the horses to stampede.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Radio Reporter: [voiceover] In the First World War, and for the first time in the history of man, nations combined to fight against nations using the crude weapons of those days. The Second World War involved every continent on the globe, and men turned to science for new devices of warfare, which reached an unparalleled peak in their capacity for destruction. And now, fought with the terrible weapons of super-science, menacing all mankind and every creature on the Earth comes the War of the Worlds.

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Connections

Version of War of the Servers (2007)

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Soundtracks

Paramount on Parade
(uncredited)
Written by Elsie Janis and Jack King
Played over the opening logo

User Reviews

the little men in lime green machines

HG Wells' futuristic novel responds well to the Technicolor splashed on it in this 50s B classic. Gene Barry over emotes in the lead now and then but the martian invasion is handled very well and the tension rises to the final scenes where the surviving populace huddle in the church as the buildings crash and burn around them.

'War of the Worlds' deserves its place as both a highly regarded novel and a well-remembered movie. Byron Haskin and George Pal did a great job in visualising the apocalyptic bits of Wells' text, while still making the end result enjoyable and interesting for the viewer.

Recommended for fans of intellectualised science fiction.