War Of The Worlds - (TV Series - Fox)

[Neil]

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[MinionZombie]

Jesus, another adaptation of WOTW?!

[shootemindehead]

And modern bleedin times as well.

[EvilNed]

For what purpose?

[Neil]

Well, the first two episodes were OK(ish)...

[Neil]

Well, the first two episodes were OK(ish)...

...and that sums up the series really. With it getting very messy towards the end.

We have examples of our modern writers throwing in unnecessary shock factors, for example a story line with a woman who was raped by her brother and had a child by him. What does this add to the story? What depth does it bring to the story? Nothing, just cheep shock...

The series ends very badly in the last episode IMHO but a second season is on the way...

[shootemindehead]

I'd say we'll never see a good adaptation of 'War of the Worlds' in our lifetime.

[Neil]

Oh, and I forgot to mention the science hokum woowoo with people "sensing stuff" and touch machine to get visions from elsewhere...

Goodness knows what Season 2 will be about...

[EvilNed]

Neil, why do you watch all this crap?

[Neil]

Neil, why do you watch all this crap?

Someone's got to do it so as to warn you folks :)

ps: Parts of it was ok.

[Tricky]

When it was announced they were making a War Of The Worlds series set in Victorian Britain I got quite excited thinking it would be like the artwork in Jeff Waynes musical version and be a definitive telling of the story. I've not watched it though after reading many posts and reviews which said it was woke rubbish, applying modern day views to the historical setting and being poorly acted with Doctor Who style special effects. How hard can it be to just tell the story without messing with it?! Same applies to the Tom Cruise one, it started well with the early scene of the tripod coming up out of the ground and frying everyone, but it turned to crap not long after especially with the Spielberg family values added into it.

[JDP]

The 1953 adaptation -updated for the Cold War era and with an American main setting- was a good movie, widely considered to be one of the great sci-fi movie classics.

[shootemindehead]

Absolutely nothing like the book though.

There hasn't been one made that could be considered a good adaptation. The 53 film is ok, but more as a 50's genre sci-fi flick than a good film of 'War of the Worlds'.

It's weird. Well's story lends itself to a great film as it is, in its proper setting. It's a wonder that nobody's ever bothered just to do it straight from the bottle, as it were. I know there was a really (really) cheap effort done about 10 years ago. But it would be hardly be worth the bother from what I've seen of it, and the BBC really made a dogs dinner of their recent mini series. That was bloody terrible.

[EvilNed]

I'm not surprised the original book hasn't been turned into a proper film. If you want to make a film that appeals to as many as possible you need to update the story so people can relate to the people in it. I get why both the -53 version and Spielberg film were updated and I think both are good films. In fact, Spielbergs film is very good. But if you're going to go the effort and tell the story as set in the 19th century, why change the plot? You've already overcome the greatest hurdle. The plot itself is not all that abstract. It's about a man trying to survive, that's it.

EDIT: Oh wait, this one isn't even in the 19th century... So there are TWO new TV-series?

[Neil]

I'm not surprised the original book hasn't been turned into a proper film. If you want to make a film that appeals to as many as possible you need to update the story so people can relate to the people in it. I get why both the -53 version and Spielberg film were updated and I think both are good films. In fact, Spielbergs film is very good. But if you're going to go the effort and tell the story as set in the 19th century, why change the plot? You've already overcome the greatest hurdle. The plot itself is not all that abstract. It's about a man trying to survive, that's it.

EDIT: Oh wait, this one isn't even in the 19th century... So there are TWO new TV-series?

Recently we had the period BBC adaptation, and then the Fox modern adaptation. The latter being almost an in name only version! And the former, in typical modern BBC style, was rather poorly conceived and unnecessarily woke...

[Tricky]

The best War Of The Worlds adaptation I've seen was around 12 years ago when I went to see Jeff Waynes musical version live, there was CGI footage on the big screens behind showing the story while the live orchestra played the album, a holographic Richard Burton narrated and they had a huge martian tripod on stage with various pyrotechnics going off around it and it shooting red lasers out into the audience from the heat ray. That was fantastic. At that point Justin Hayward was still doing the singing as well, I think he's retired now though so it's a different singer for the live shows.

As an aside have any of you fellow UK posters been to the Jeff Waynes War of the Worlds immersive experience in London? From what I've heard it's very good, I'd like to go when things go back to normal.

[Neil]

The best War Of The Worlds adaptation I've seen was around 12 years ago when I went to see Jeff Waynes musical version live, there was CGI footage on the big screens behind showing the story while the live orchestra played the album, a holographic Richard Burton narrated and they had a huge martian tripod on stage with various pyrotechnics going off around it and it shooting red lasers out into the audience from the heat ray. That was fantastic. At that point Justin Hayward was still doing the singing as well, I think he's retired now though so it's a different singer for the live shows.

As an aside have any of you fellow UK posters been to the Jeff Waynes War of the Worlds immersive experience in London? From what I've heard it's very good, I'd like to go when things go back to normal.

Wasn't even aware of that! £50+ per person - https://www.londonboxoffice.co.uk/news/post/review-war-of-the-worlds-immersive-experience

[Tricky]

Wasn't even aware of that! £50+ per person - https://www.londonboxoffice.co.uk/news/post/review-war-of-the-worlds-immersive-experience

I'm happy to pay that when it opens back up again after COVID as I'm a big fan of the Jeff Wayne interpretation. The VR part sounds good, there is a part in the very first scene of Half Life Alyx where a Combine tripod clambers over the rooftops above you making a lot of noise and it makes you jump out of your skin in VR especially as the tripod towers above you, I imagine this has a similar impact at times.

Skip to 3:50 to see it

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y4I_iz78vIU

[Rottedfreak]

I'd say the BBC and Spielberg adaptations were beset by executive meddling.
I'll just sit back and wait for a potential found footage War of the Worlds adaptation.