War of the Worlds (2005)

When Spielberg decided to remake a cinematic classic 53 years after the original, many were shocked and thought he would fail. They were wrong. War of the Worlds is a great blend of a sci-fi flick, disaster movie and a tense family adventure. The film is told through Ray Ferrier and his family's trek across alien infested America. Coming together in the wake of an extra terrestrial attack, Ray played greatly by Tom Cruise must man up and take action and responsibility for his family, for the first time in his life, and we the audience get to see him tackle his unfortunate scenario.

I would say that this is one of Spielberg's better films to come out in this century as he was able to use America's recent paranoia of terrorist attacks and foreign invasions to his advantage. He essentially made a film following a refugee placed in a country being invaded by a strong foreign force, but rather than having soldiers and tanks rolling in Spielberg has aliens dropping from the sky and operating highly advanced war machines called tripods.

The only criticism I can give this film is Dakota Fanning's acting and character. Her character is highly annoying and childish in many scenes. The actor is unfortunately armed with one the worst screams in film and possibly the world. I could be being too critical but I also understand that she is a child and the children in this film are supposed to be annoying, she just suits the role perfectly.

Without giving too much away the film is great and will have you on the edge of your seat through multiple tense and unique situations.

Overall great film, I highly recommend if you haven't seen it, perfect for a weekend watch.