What Ever Happened to Jesse Camp? (flowerchild19) wrote, @ 2006-01-02 00:37:00

I just watched crazy Tom Cruise in "War of the Worlds" dvd with my parents...and wow, what a horribly depressing movie. I am so melancholy now that I'm just sitting here in a dimly lit room with no music and no noise, just being sad. That's how badly it depressed me. But other than that, the special effects were cool and pretty damn frightening.

Has one anyone made any New Years Resolutions? Yeah, me neither.

tungstenimago 2006-01-06 02:23 (link)

I approached that film with the lowest expectations and I think it turned out well because of it. I was pissed, initially, because I didn't think we needed a remake, especially with Tom Cruise, but I was genuinely surprised with the way it turned out. I watched it with a bunch of jerk "they totally forgot to CG that part of the building" friends, so it made it a lot easier to appreciate what I was seeing. I tell ya', I almost cried when I saw the rain of clothing come down after half the town went vapor action. Much of the film was strikingly, painfully sad, but what really stuck out to me was how it was all about the people's reaction. The people, as in general populous. Barely, if at all, was the audience shown what the government planned to do about an invasion. Paring the film down to the level of the individual, I feel, is what made so much of it so distressing to watch. I don't know about you, but I spent much of it locking and storing what I would do in that situation, based solely on what I was seeing in the characters. I would look and say, "Ok. Don't steal the one car that runs; that'll come back to bite you quick" or "Note to self: ALWAYS CARRY GRENADES". All things considered, the film could have been much better, but for what it was, I was impressed, I was struck, and I was saddened. I just wish I could have retreated to a dark room like you did to mull it all over. I had to go back to a party, lame my way through karaoke, and pretend I wasn't just morally wounded. (Reply to this) (Thread)

Ditto to your entire comment! flowerchild19 2006-01-06 22:09 (link)

lol I don't think I would've enjoyed Karaoke too much after that film, either. I would've been like Adam Sandler in The Wedding Singer (after he got dumped by his fiancee) and trying to sing Madonna's "Holiday" with enthusiasm. I was taking mental notes also, so you're not alone! I too thought it was interesting how the audience witnesses the disaster on an individual scale, versus an international scale like Independence Day- which showed us individuals and the entire World suffering and then rejoicing together. (In fact, at the end, I was expecting some survivors to be dancing in the streets to joyful music...and was very disappointed to see just a silent Tom Cruise.) But I think what effected me the most was the scene where his van gets stranded in the huge mob and things become so very ugly. Because that was much too real, if it were to really happen, that is how humans would behave in response to it. All of the animal instincts taking over and killing for survival. That scene seemed to scare and depress me more than anything. But, all things considered, H.G. Wells was a genius - thinking of how Aliens would grow sick and die from all the microscopic things that humans are simply immune to. I think I might read the book, get inside his mind more. Have you read it? (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

Re: Ditto to your entire comment! tungstenimago 2006-01-09 00:33 (link)

Oh God. The scene with the van! That's the part of the film (followed closely by the floating vapo-clothes and river of corpses) that has haunted me the most since seeing it. That man with the gun and the overall crowd reaction to the only people who found a working vehicle were just terrifying. Spielberg knows how to work a room. Funny you should ask if I've read it. I actually bought a book that is halved between The Invisible Man and War of the Worlds and have, as of yet, only read the former. I always meant to, especially with the advent of the film and my curiosity as to its storyline fidelity, but it just never happened. I might pick it up now that you've reminded me, though. It should be easy for you to find in any book store, if you haven't already. I know they go for about $6.99 at my local Borders. I highly recommend anything you can find by Wells. I've bought a few of his lesser known works for, like, seventy-five cents at used bookstores and have never been dissatisfied. It’s his understanding of the innate animosity that comes with being human that will stick with you through every story. I'm sure that he believed in mankind and its good qualities, but he knows how to write a person in such a way that you can see every reason for them to go bad or make a wrong decision and still kind of support them through it, despite yourself. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)