Since the original novel was published in 1898, H. G. Wells‘ The War of the Worlds has inspired numerous adaptations, including Orson Welles‘ famous radio broadcast in 1938 and the 2005 film starring Tom Cruise.
This month, Amazon Prime Video has added its own take on War of the Worlds, and it’s already one of the most popular movies on the streamer.
Ice Cube stars in the movie that is destined to dominate during the next awards season, at least when it comes to the Razzie Awards.
This is not just a bad movie, it’s so spectacularly awful that you may have to see War of the Worlds for yourself to fully appreciate how terrible it actually is.
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Ice Cube’s Character Is Completely Unlikable
Having a likable main character isn’t necessarily a prerequisite for a good movie, but it goes a long way towards giving the audience someone to grasp on to. War of the Worlds puts Ice Cube’s Will Radford at the center of almost every scene, and he’s completely insufferable to watch.
Will works for the Department of Homeland Security, but he spends an inordinate amount of time spying on his adult children, Dave (Henry Hunter Hall) and Faith (Iman Benson). The final message from his late wife encourages Will to be nice to his kids, yet not even the end of the world can get him to stop acting like a jerk to the family he supposedly loves. It might have played differently if Will had a redemptive arc in the movie, but he’s largely the same man at the end that he is at the beginning.
This Alien Invasion Barely Has Any Aliens
Films like Independence Day and even Steven Spielberg‘s War of the Worlds have spoiled us with the spectacle of a large-scale alien invasion. However, this War of the Worlds was apparently made on a very small budget for special effects. So curb your expectations going in. There aren’t a lot of good looks at the aliens in this film.
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Perhaps the most upsetting thing about this film’s aliens is that even their brief appearances lack detail and focus. It’s frankly inexcusable, and this movie doesn’t live up to any of the previous adaptations.
It Doesn’t Feel Like a Real ‘War of the Worlds’ Adaptation
Somewhere along the line, screenwriters Kenneth A. Golde and Marc Hyman, and director Rich Lee completely lost sight of what the story is about. In their take on the story, the aliens were drawn to Earth by massive data centers used to spy on the general public. Somehow, this became a story about state surveillance and privacy issues rather than the survival of mankind.
Imagine if the biggest event in human history was chronicled in a screenlife film like Searching, where most of the action takes place on a computer screen. There are good actors in War of the Worlds, including Eva Longoria and Clark Gregg, who feel like they’re video-phoning it in. It must be hard to work up a passionate performance in a film like this, but these are supposed to be professionals.
For anyone who cares, we’re not going to spoil the specifics. But it is completely ludicrous that the solution to the crisis involves both of Will’s children contributing in a major way. That’s beyond contrived. And don’t get us started on the way that Faith’s boyfriend, Mark Goodman (Devon Bostick), literally works as an Amazon Prime delivery driver. It’s pretty shameless product placement, and it doesn’t make Amazon look good.
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‘War of the Worlds’ Has Achieved a Rare Feat
If nothing else, War of the Worlds has done something that only 40 films ahead of it have achieved: A zero percent score on Rotten Tomatoes. Among professional critics, there are no positive reviews for the film.
Regardless, War of the Worlds is currently a streaming hit on Prime Video, and that may be the only thing that Amazon cares about. Barring a severe drop-off in viewers, this film might even be considered a success. But if you’re looking for a great sci-fi movie to watch, this isn’t it. War of the Worlds is better suited for mockery or a hate watch than anything else.
War of the Worlds is streaming on Prime Video.
