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War Of The Worlds. The film sadly got chewed up in the wake of ... idiotic complaints about how "the son should have died!"
Much as I loved the film, the complaints about how the son should have died are absolutely not idiotic in any way. The character runs off rather suddenly into a no-win/no-survive situation and we see him alive at the end. We've invested absolutely 0% in whether or not he lives or dies after this point and he just pops up at the end. No build-up, no tension, no explanation. If we had followed any of his struggles after he enters the battle--even a build-up of tension as to whether or not he lives or dies at some point, coupled with at least a bit of plausibility or belief that the character does (or has the ability to do) something to warrant our confidence in him possibly living--then the reveal of him being alive at the end of the film wouldn't have been so laughable. And by laughable, I mean literally almost everyone in a packed theatre laughed when they saw him alive at the end - not, I'd reckon, the reaction Spielberg was looking for. At best it was a clumsy piece of storytelling in, for me, an otherwise wonderfully told story.
You can deem these complaints idiotic, but when they are shared by the majority of critically thinking filmgoers who love to wax poetic about their favourite movies, perhaps "idiotic" isn't the right word. You may disagree with that view, but it is not necessarily idiotic because you do. 
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Mr. Jack: Re your War Of The Worlds. The film sadly got chewed up in the wake of Tom Cruise's couch-jumping antics and idiotic complaints about how "the son should have died!", and yet it's filled with spellbinding passages, genuine terror and some of the best sound design of the last decade. And Cruise delivers one of his best performances. Watch it again...it's a lot better than people give it credit for.
I totally agree and was going to post something, until I saw that you had already covered this one. It's always been a great showpiece for my widescreen and surround system, and I didn't hesitate to upgrade my DVD to Blu-ray when they brought it out -- usually turn the volume way up when the machines are emerging from beneath the street and it really shakes the room. And I've always been surprised by the many people who seem to hate it. But not some of us! (One quibble: Justin Chatwin as Cruise's insolent son -- I often fast forward through some of his scenes. I liked Chatwin in the sometimes annoying "Shameless" on Showtime, but wanted the aliens to get him in this one! And Dakota Fanning as the screeching daughter is ALSO very annoying!)
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Octoberman: Glad I'm not the only one who notices it!!! I've played the movie through the small speakers of my 55" Samsung and it's not at all the same! With my big Klipsch towers and subwoofer, the sound is amazing! People who watch that movie with small speakers probably don't know what they're missing!
Accidental Genius: Interesting point about the son, and, as I wrote, I was rooting for them to get him! But having him live added a satisfying emotional coda, with the family intact -- you could see the respect the adults in the family had for this black sheep who has been given a bad rap by them. It worked for me, however much I couldn't stand the son.
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Posted: |
Jun 1, 2014 - 9:40 PM
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By: |
nuts_score
(Member)
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Accidental Genius: Interesting point about the son, and, as I wrote, I was rooting for them to get him! But having him live added a satisfying emotional coda, with the family intact -- you could see the respect the adults in the family had for this black sheep who has been given a bad rap by them. It worked for me, however much I couldn't stand the son.
I think you raise a very pertinent point here, Ron! This ending showcases the betrayal of the material in the hands of people who essentially rushed this production. I do not claim to know the schedule that this film took but it feels so lazy and also expeditious, despite having so many perfect elements (and another KUDOS to the sound design team from me).
Cruise's ineptness is underplayed, instead replaced with his usual charismatic mugging -- which works more often than not in his other films. I don't ever buy into him as a failure, though he has given many of this type of character an interesting perspective (reaching back to his odd turn as Lestat). So his son, given the opportunity to survive his fateful war-cry against the alien menace, lives and Cruise seemed redeemed. But we still have no story getting us to this point of redemption!
It feels by the end of this movie they have exhausted themselves of another gripping set piece in favor of lazy screenwriting. It doesn't help that the actor portraying the son is as wooden as my desk with the charisma and chemistry of a rusty fork. Of course the audience wants him to die! They don't even remember who he is!
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And yes, I loved the opening to WH with that flight over the rolling hills of Devon. 
