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Jul. 8th, 2005 01:37 pmFor about the past week and a half I've been trying to write a decent review of War of the Worlds to no avail, so I've given up. Suffice it to say:
1. Minority Report is the superior Cruise/Spielberg film.
2. Dakota Fanning is awesome.
3. I kind of liked how when the aliens are invading, the kids continually ask if it's terrorists. Brings an interesting perspective on the current nightmares of children, especially in light of yesterday's bombings in London.
4. There was only one scene where I found myself actually gripping the edge of my seat, and it's an extended homage to Jurassic Park--a few people (yes, including Cruise) are hiding from alien probes inside a house. For I think about five minutes, there is no dialogue, no music stings, nothing--just people breathing, the whine of an alien motor whirring, and so on, and it manages to create an atmosphere of tension beautifully.
5. Beyond that, though, this movie falls woefully short of any expectations I had for a Spielberg film. The name brings expectations that are not met; had Jan DeBont been attached, for example, I think I would've been impressed.
6. Stupid cop-out ending, and I'm not talking about the aliens. Those who've watched will know what I'm talking about.
All in all, I give it a C+. If I want good recent Spielberg cinema, I guess I'll stick with Catch Me if You Can.
Also, I wanted to point out the following blog entry as found on 1Up. It's a perspective on violent video games like the Grand Theft Auto series, the Postal games, Halo, etc. as written by a Columbine kid (as he puts it, "friends with both killers and the killed"), and I think that it is one of the most brilliant essays on these games and their inherent appeal, as well as how they reflect the general state of society today. My particular favorite part was about how the author's father was offended by something in Halo 2:
My dad said it was the most disgusting thing he'd ever seen. His face was red. Seem like an overkill reaction? nah - you see, i was on xbox live and some little kid called me a ni**er jew who should be raped, burned, etc. he was ranting. (forgive the language - but if you've played halo 2 on live, you've heard worse). You all ahve seen it happen. a little kid who doesn't ahve his parents around decides to be big man and yell at everyone obscenities that make all of us embarrassed to be gamers.
This upset my parents more then anything. Because they realized that in these other games, the kids weren't pushed into doing bad things - they CHOSE it. My parents finally realized that parents suck. It's the parents fault. You don't get this - my PARENTS realized it's the PARENTS fault. That's amazing lol.
Taken sic. Although I consider that the most brilliant part (and favorite anecdotal insight), there is lots more to be taken away from this essay. If you're a video gamer, you should check it out. http://www.1up.com/do/blogEntry?bId=5179966&publicUserId=5629740
1. Minority Report is the superior Cruise/Spielberg film.
2. Dakota Fanning is awesome.
3. I kind of liked how when the aliens are invading, the kids continually ask if it's terrorists. Brings an interesting perspective on the current nightmares of children, especially in light of yesterday's bombings in London.
4. There was only one scene where I found myself actually gripping the edge of my seat, and it's an extended homage to Jurassic Park--a few people (yes, including Cruise) are hiding from alien probes inside a house. For I think about five minutes, there is no dialogue, no music stings, nothing--just people breathing, the whine of an alien motor whirring, and so on, and it manages to create an atmosphere of tension beautifully.
5. Beyond that, though, this movie falls woefully short of any expectations I had for a Spielberg film. The name brings expectations that are not met; had Jan DeBont been attached, for example, I think I would've been impressed.
6. Stupid cop-out ending, and I'm not talking about the aliens. Those who've watched will know what I'm talking about.
All in all, I give it a C+. If I want good recent Spielberg cinema, I guess I'll stick with Catch Me if You Can.
Also, I wanted to point out the following blog entry as found on 1Up. It's a perspective on violent video games like the Grand Theft Auto series, the Postal games, Halo, etc. as written by a Columbine kid (as he puts it, "friends with both killers and the killed"), and I think that it is one of the most brilliant essays on these games and their inherent appeal, as well as how they reflect the general state of society today. My particular favorite part was about how the author's father was offended by something in Halo 2:
My dad said it was the most disgusting thing he'd ever seen. His face was red. Seem like an overkill reaction? nah - you see, i was on xbox live and some little kid called me a ni**er jew who should be raped, burned, etc. he was ranting. (forgive the language - but if you've played halo 2 on live, you've heard worse). You all ahve seen it happen. a little kid who doesn't ahve his parents around decides to be big man and yell at everyone obscenities that make all of us embarrassed to be gamers.
This upset my parents more then anything. Because they realized that in these other games, the kids weren't pushed into doing bad things - they CHOSE it. My parents finally realized that parents suck. It's the parents fault. You don't get this - my PARENTS realized it's the PARENTS fault. That's amazing lol.
Taken sic. Although I consider that the most brilliant part (and favorite anecdotal insight), there is lots more to be taken away from this essay. If you're a video gamer, you should check it out. http://www.1up.com/do/blogEntry?bId=5179966&publicUserId=5629740
