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Post by jeffwaynefan on Feb 11, 2005 19:25:39 GMT
Firstly I apologise for my dyslexia, Asheraven will tell you how hard it can be and I thank people like yourself for pointing out our shortfall, I will be extra careful now that I know you are spellchecking my posts. Oh hang on.....tentacles IS correct fancy that! Check the dictionary dude. encyclopedia.thefreedictionary.com/TentacleSecondly what the hell are you on dude? Wish I had kept my gob shut about what? Live a little Motty, can't you see a joke whne it's starring you in the mush. Gob/shut - quick enough to spout off, and Im sure your quick enough to spot the tentacle gag, never mind if you don't. Blame it on being Friday, work's for me.
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Post by ArmoredTrackLayer on Feb 11, 2005 19:26:10 GMT
Holy crap, I remeber telling a friend ages ago that there was no way in hell that I would go see this because it was updated, and here I am supporting it, my god somewhere something went terribly wrong.
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Post by jeffwaynefan on Feb 11, 2005 19:28:52 GMT
What it basically boils down to at the end of the day is - people are never satisfied UNLESS it's done by themselves. . . . But thats never fully 100% at times.
H_C
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Post by themotile on Feb 11, 2005 19:41:09 GMT
H_C, dude you need to work on your humour, tenticle? went over my head there dude, "it was a joke" good one. I take it you are talking about pendragon when you say I am quick enough to spout off, well I told the truth and I stand by every word, in MY opinion the PP WOTW will be crap, if your not talking about PP then I dont know what the hell your on about, by the nature of the beast we ALL spout off, its why we are here, to have our say and because in real life we dont meet many others like ourselves with which to talk war of the worlds with, I know two people, the forums multiplies that by a hundred. Its much nicer when guys dont put up strange cryptic posts with hidden "jokes" though. motile
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Post by themotile on Feb 11, 2005 19:44:06 GMT
What it basically boils down to at the end of the day is - people are never satisfied UNLESS it's done by themselves. . . . But thats never fully 100% at times. H_C It boils down to individual tastes H_C, individuality is a good thing but it means we all wont like the same thing. Im sure Spilebergs movie will be ace whatever the wotw content, im looking forward to it, others are not looking forward to it but thats cool becasue they are individuals. motile
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SudsoneUK
Full Member
'No one would have believed...'
Posts: 60
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Post by SudsoneUK on Feb 11, 2005 19:58:41 GMT
It boils down to individual tastes H_C, individuality is a good thing but it means we all wont like the same thing. Im sure Spilebergs movie will be ace whatever the wotw content, im looking forward to it, others are not looking forward to it but thats cool becasue they are individuals. motile I wanna see it and I wanna see it NOW!!! ;D
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Post by jeffwaynefan on Feb 11, 2005 20:00:05 GMT
H_C, dude you need to work on your humour, tenticle? went over my head there dude, "it was a joke" good one. I take it you are talking about pendragon when you say I am quick enough to spout off, well I told the truth and I stand by every word, in MY opinion the PP WOTW will be crap, if your not talking about PP then I dont know what the hell your on about, by the nature of the beast we ALL spout off, its why we are here, to have our say and because in real life we dont meet many others like ourselves with which to talk war of the worlds with, I know two people, the forums multiplies that by a hundred. Its much nicer when guys dont put up strange cryptic posts with hidden "jokes" though. motile What truth?, you have mentioned this many a time. If its with regards to your own observation, far point, were all entitled to that. If it's about how the film is going to turn out, then no one knows, not even you, not even Hines, not at this moment. Anyway, before we start treading old ground again, lets resume normal service. However this film turns out, whether it be what H.G wrote or not, with Speilberg at the helm it's a sure fire winner to be a corker of a film. Hell, the 53 film is not, but in time that has become a classic. The good side to this is that Speilberg has choosen a H.G. Wells story for his next project. Not any H.G. Wells story, but TWOTW, now in my books that's one hell of a undertaking. Far game to the man for taking the job on in the first place. If Speilbergs film is not up to scratch with Well's fans, well thats a shame. If The Hines film is not up to scratch with the Wells fans, then thats a shame too. If Waynes version is not up to scratch, well we all new its not a direct telling of the story in the first place when the album came out. . . . . Lets just sit back, enjoy the rollercoaster ride, because believe me we will NEVER have another year like this one again. H_C
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Winky
Full Member
May 21st, 1999
Posts: 131
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Post by Winky on Feb 11, 2005 20:02:27 GMT
"We didn't really stress that as an element, the tri-pods the red weed- that's been the predominate iconic imagery. We're going with the red weed..."
could stress be the key word saying that it isnt used as much as the red weed?
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SudsoneUK
Full Member
'No one would have believed...'
Posts: 60
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Post by SudsoneUK on Feb 11, 2005 20:03:55 GMT
"We didn't really stress that as an element, the tri-pods the red weed- that's been the predominate iconic imagery. We're going with the red weed..."
could stress be the key word saying that it isnt used as much as the red weed? Exactly it's all in the wording... and words are easily misinterpreted.
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Winky
Full Member
May 21st, 1999
Posts: 131
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Post by Winky on Feb 11, 2005 20:12:39 GMT
Are these aliens recognizable as aliens or are they reinvented in a way we've never seen before?
I think they've been reinvented, but they're still inherently inspired by what Wells describes.
Well he had octopuses?
No they're not octopuses.
so maybe they can have seven tentacles and not eight ;D
or more than eight! who knows!?
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Post by nervouspete on Feb 11, 2005 20:47:53 GMT
Hullo!
Well, here's my thoughts in an easily digestable format.
(Oh! And I got a job today! Working in a conservation centre in Wales. Hurray!)
1: Aliens, not martians...
Fair enough. Though I thought it would have been cooler if they were martians, and had camoflaged their positions on the moon during their incredibly long war build up. Mars was chosen in the book because it was the God of war, because it is dominant in violent imagery and because Well's contemporaries would have a lot easier time accepting aliens from a neighbouring planet, rather than one far outside our solar system.
However, I do hope that Mars is a staging post, which I think it will be.
I never really expected this to be close to a direct retelling of the book, what I expected was a version close to the themes, emotions and ideas whilst updating the setting and whatever science needs updating. (Which thanks to Well's genius is very little) The fact that they're not from our system makes it feel a little more like hard science fiction, than martians would be. (Though TWOTW was predominantly sci-fi, indeed, he kicked off the genre.) (Notch stays same)
2: Humour:
Depends on format of humour. If we're talking dark humour, of the kind we got in Jaws, and limited servings in the appropriate places, it could work. Especially if it's British style humour, blackest of the black. It is possibly the component of the interview that has me most brow-furrowed though. (Down a notch)
3: Tripods:
YES! YES! YES! My nightmares will be played on the big screen, to terrify other hapless souls! YES! (Up a notch)
4: Aliens aren't octopuses:
Hmm, not sure how to take that one. At the same time they say that they are loosely based on Well's version, but aren't octopi. I'm really hoping that they are close to Well's version, because I hold them as the creepiest aliens in the history of sci-fi. Still haven't been outdone. They just look so cool and emotionless and heartless. You could imagine an ID4 alien breaking into a funky dance with Will Smith for laughs. You couldn't imagine any joy or innocence from the horror of Well's version. Consider excite-o-monitor reduced another wee notch.
5: Black smoke:
Still sounds like it will make an appearance, but not much of one. Makes sense, really, since it would make Cruises's chances of escape very, very, very, very, very slim. We can assume we catch glimpses, but that it is used mainly off screen against the army. The narrator didn't have much of a personal experience beyond being stuck in a church tower, and they won't have time for that in this movie. The terrifying (eeriely prophetic, think gas in WWI) elements of the black smoke were mainly conveyed through the hindsight naration in the book. (Notch stays same, wasn't expecting much black smoke)
6: Red weed:
Very iconic? It is a very arresting theme visually, to be sure, and will further the strangeness of the latter half of the movie as the american countryside is 'converted'. But perhaps it's been pitched as a weapon the martians use as well? Wasn't there talk of 'infection' from red weed? Eek! (Notch goes up a, um, notch)
7: Slightly different ending:
Well, I can't predict it. As long as it stays close to the spirit of the book and the martian's defeat is none of our intentional doing - as long as it is a happy deus ex machina that relys on no heroics or human endevour, then, sure. I reckon the bacteria/germs/virus element will still be there. I just think the epilogue and reunion will be different.
Overall:
Excitement level stays about the same. Mildly nervous about the humour and different aliens, but I follow the logic about their other choices. Don't care that they're not martians, really.
I love and adore the book, and what happens in my brain when I read it, no director can compare to. I really have it all visually planned out in my imagination to the smallest detail. Even exactly how Maybury looks. I knew it wouldn't be too faithful an adaptation at the start, so I got over my wrath pretty early. All that is left is a loosely guarded optimism occassionally slipping into full blown excitement.
It will be good.
And it will be NOTHING like ID4. Realism, that's what they're going for! Not bubblegum action heroics. Don't worry. It will be grim. It will be gritty. It will be intelligent. It won't be our book. But I already have that locked away in my imagination.
And I reckon that their adaptation will in many respects be almost or just as cool. Only not quite as cool.
Have faith. And they are putting lots of effort into this, no matter how much you dislike their ideas and directions, don't ascribe it to laziness or money making. Spielberg wants to do it this way for a story-telling reason, we may not agree, but I for one think this could be the greatest alien invasion film since... um... well, maybe ever. (But I still love Pal's version. And maybe Invasion of the Bodysnatchers 1950's version will still be the best... but, y'know.)
Pete
P.S: And Quatermass & The Pit, the B&W BBC version. But, yes, WOTW will be mighty.
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Post by Charles on Feb 11, 2005 20:52:42 GMT
“Spielberg: We have our own version of the ending that neither strays nor mimics the original book. So I think we've hit a very satisfying compromise.”
Compromise. That’s what politicians do. We already know what is supposed[/b] to happen at the end of The War of the Worlds. The ending is central[/b] to the Darwinian component of the novel, and the text’s spirit relies greatly on maintaining this concept.
The original ending is celebrated as a watershed moment in the genre’s history. Compromising it would damage the original ‘spirit’ they said they wanted to maintain. Whatever the reason, no amount of “the kind of Hollywood production values that the audience is demanding these days” can make up for the loss of its original essence and substance.
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Post by nervouspete on Feb 11, 2005 20:55:14 GMT
And actually, I can't imagine the 'Not from Mars' thing making much of a difference. If we experience it all from Ray's POV:
They come out of nowhere. They blow stuff up. They cherry pick humans. I survive. They die.
The Mars comments in the book largely come in the epilogue and through the narrator's deductions. And of course, Ogilvy. In the visual, faster medium of film there won't be much time for a post mortem of the affair.
And Ogilvy will be at hand in one scene to go:
"They don't come from Mars, that's for sure. The chances of anything coming from Mars are a million to one! Unfortunately, as I accurately laid out in a wager at Ladbrokes, the chances of anything coming from outside our system this year are approximately 18/1."
"Argh!" He adds.
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Post by Anthony on Feb 11, 2005 21:46:23 GMT
There must be Martains because mars was in the teaser trailer.
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Post by maniacs on Feb 11, 2005 22:45:04 GMT
What Ive always felt motile, I agree with you. I still think the film will be a stunna, tho and Im kinda looking forward to it. Unlike some people I do like SS approaches to film making.
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Post by Anthony on Feb 11, 2005 22:49:47 GMT
Im glad he is filming the characters story in a documentry style way.
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Post by malfunkshun on Feb 12, 2005 2:03:18 GMT
If you changed every reference to the aliens as martians in the book to "them" or "the aliens" (in such a way that it fitted the context of the reference of course) and we were never told that they came from mars but otherwise the entire book remained the same, and despite what it sounds like we are not actually talking massive changes there, would the book suddenly become crap? would it become any less of a great story than it actually is? The short answer is no sorry but the short answer is not no. these are supposed to be martians, from mars. its the spirit of the story. it is pointless to wonder how the book would sound with 'aliens' inserted instead of 'martians'. and yes, the book would suck if somebody did that to it. if it were written that way to begin with, then fine. but its was NOT written that way. the underlying premise of the story is an invasion from MARS. their planet is dying! they want the Earth! thats the story! aliens that aren't martians? does that mean they've traveled light years just to conquer the earth? or have they been hanging out in the solar system for years, watching us and getting ready? what about their home planet? why did they choose earth anyway? if they come from another star and need a new planet to colonize, how the F do they even know about the earth? this just makes me sick. just when i'm starting to warm up to this movie, i learn that my instincts were correct to begin with. vomit.
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Post by ArmoredTrackLayer on Feb 12, 2005 4:49:53 GMT
OMG, mental leap, theyre already here!!! The aliens are already in our solar system, not light years away, but on mars, ready to attack, could this be the Teaser lines meaning?
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Post by Topaz on Feb 12, 2005 5:56:48 GMT
“ Spielberg: We have our own version of the ending that neither strays nor mimics the original book. So I think we've hit a very satisfying compromise.” Compromise. That’s what politicians do. We already know what is supposed[/b] to happen at the end of The War of the Worlds. The ending is central[/b] to the Darwinian component of the novel, and the text’s spirit relies greatly on maintaining this concept. The original ending is celebrated as a watershed moment in the genre’s history. Compromising it would damage the original ‘spirit’ they said they wanted to maintain. Whatever the reason, no amount of “the kind of Hollywood production values that the audience is demanding these days” can make up for the loss of its original essence and substance.[/quote] Charles, you've really hit it squarely here. I can take the updating. I can take the change of location. I can take the 'family working together to escape disaster' theme, however much it screams of 'Spielberg warm and fuzzy.' I may even be able to take the non-Martian aliens, provided they conform to the spirit and general appearance of Wells' Martians. ("They're not octopi" scares me on that count.) However: The entire book is an allegory against the hubris of Western civilization, as personified by the British Empire. Remove that theme and the book isn't TWOTW any longer, any more than a plastic model is a Ferrari. The ending is central and critical to that point. If Spielberg has Cruise (or anyone else) defeat the aliens through cleverness and clean-living, or - God help us - make 'peace' with the aliens by 'forming a common understanding,' I'm simply going to wretch. Unfortunately, I won't know until I see the film, and by then, if my fears are confirmed, it'll be too late.
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Post by RustiSwordz on Feb 12, 2005 6:21:20 GMT
'not from mars'
As i suggested in another post the aliens are using mars as a staging area for the attack. By using mass drop via cylinders they drop almost silently down on earth. Where havoc is caused. besides how are they going to write that in? Oglyvy is only in the story for a small slice before he dies and the rest of the time everyone is running for it.
'cylinders'
I can see the cylinders maybe turning into drop pod type things that land and open up rather than crash and open up.
'red weed'
i can see the red weed being 'enhanced' into carnivourous type of plant that poisions victims and 'eats them by covering the victim with its vines. It be cool if they show the plants killing off the local vegitation too. The martians come for us, the weed comes fo our land.
'tripods'
yay!
'heat ray'
sounds if the heat ray is now an invisible disintergration beam of some type, still sounds cool with the possibillity of tanks being 'melted' and humans disfigured with limbs fried off.
'feeding'
yay thats in there
'ending'
i can see the aliens dying of disease but the twist would be the army work this out and go on the offensive while the martians are trying to work out what has happened to them. The big battle at the end may be where the humans attack the main encampment the martians retreat to when the martians are suffering.
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