War of the Worlds
Directed by Steven Spielberg
Where to Watch War of the Worlds
- CubaneApril 12, 2026It was nominated for Oscars in both sound editing and sound mixing which is funny given that all the dialogue is inaudible while the effects are deafening. But the entire film boils down to Tom Cruise aimlessly running around with his hateful mouth breather children in tow, desperately trying to find their mother so he doesn't have to deal with the horror of sole custody anymore. They witness various alien war crimes take place and boy oh boy does Dakota Fanning attempt the "scream until I pass out" challenge. Eventually it just ends with Tom Cruise successfully pawning off his awful children so he can go back to his ultimate male surviving space. It's not the worst rendition of this source material, but ultimately I think it just works better as a novel. Hollywood needs to stop attempting to reboot this.
- Kraine OpasenJune 20, 2025"We always thought we’d see it coming. We were wrong." Steven Spielberg’s War of the Worlds is an underrated sci-fi masterpiece — a relentless, grounded vision of alien invasion that trades heroics for pure survival instinct. From the opening moments, the atmosphere is thick with dread, and once the Tripods rise, the fear never lets go. Tom Cruise delivers a raw, desperate performance as a flawed father trying to hold his family together in a collapsing world. The chaos is seen through his eyes — intimate, disorienting, and terrifyingly real. Dakota Fanning adds an emotional heartbeat that makes the horror land even harder. The sound design? Bone-rattling. The visual effects? Still jaw-dropping. And Spielberg’s direction? Masterful — turning every neighborhood into a battlefield and every quiet moment into something sinister. People expected a blockbuster. What they got was a trauma-laced survival nightmare. This isn’t just aliens — it’s human panic, helplessness, and instinct. And it deserves far more credit.
- N8May 25, 2025The film had some truly excellent scenes, the initial attack and the ferry sequence really stood out. Overall, it was good, but two issues kept it from being great for me. First, the aliens' invulnerable shields were a problem. The novel built suspense by showing humanity developing increasingly powerful weapons, occasionally bringing down a tripod, only for the aliens to upgrade or change tactics, culminating in the fleet's destruction. The movie misses those dashed glimpses of hope because the military's initial engagement immediately shows their weapons are useless. Second, his son's appearance at the end felt tacked on, probably due to test audiences. That kid definitely died when he charged at the military.
War of the Worlds Trivia
War of the Worlds was released on June 28, 2005.
War of the Worlds was directed by Steven Spielberg.
War of the Worlds has a runtime of 1h 57m.
War of the Worlds was produced by Colin Wilson, Kathleen Kennedy.
Ray Ferrier is a divorced dockworker and less-than-perfect father. Soon after his ex-wife and her new husband drop off his teenage son and young daughter for a rare weekend visit, a strange and powerful lightning storm touches down.
The key characters in War of the Worlds are Ray Ferrier (Tom Cruise), Rachel Ferrier (Dakota Fanning), Robbie Ferrier (Justin Chatwin).
War of the Worlds is rated PG-13.
War of the Worlds is an Action, Adventure, Thriller film.
War of the Worlds has an audience rating of 4.2 out of 10.
War of the Worlds had a budget of $132M.
War of the Worlds has made $603.9M at the box office.