The War of the Worlds (1953)
80%RT Audience Score: 71%
Awards & Nominations: NA
The War of the Worlds, a 1953 George Pal production, is a cinematic masterpiece that has stood the test of time. The film’s special effects, which were groundbreaking for their time, still manage to captivate audiences today. The movie’s portrayal of the Martian invasion is less about humanity fighting aliens and more about the aliens as an unstoppable force of nature. The film’s bleakness is surprisingly effective, and the vibrant color scheme and aural assaults all rate an A+. The filmmakers’ optimism and favoring of luck lend to an unforgettable resolution, making this movie a must-see for any science-fiction fan.
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Production Company(ies)
Alien, Mammoth Screen
Distributor
Paramount Pictures
Release Type
Filming Location(s)
MPAA / Certificate
Year of Release
1953
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Color:Color
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Sound mix:Dolby
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Aspect ratio:NA
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Runtime:1h 25m
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Language(s):English
ALL CAST, AUSPICES, AND BELOW THE LINE -
Country of origin:United Kingdom
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Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Aug 26, 1953 Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Jan 1, 2013
Runtime: 1h 25m
Distributor: Paramount Pictures
Production Co: Paramount Pictures
Sound Mix: Stereo, Mono
Aspect Ratio: 35mm, Flat (1.37:1)
CAST & CREW
Gene Barry
Gene BarryDr. Clayton Forrester
Ann Robinson
Ann RobinsonSylvia Van Buren
Les Tremayne
Les TremayneMaj. Gen. Mann
Lewis Martin
Lewis MartinPastor Dr. Matthew Collins
Robert Cornthwaite
Robert CornthwaiteDr. Pryor
Sandro Giglio
Sandro GiglioDr. Bilderbeck
NEWS & INTERVIEWS FOR THE WAR OF THE WORLDS
Now Streaming: Lucy, Laggies, and More
Now Streaming: Lucy, Laggies, and More
Genre(s)
Sci-fi
Keyword(s)
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Worldwide gross: NA
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): NA
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): NA
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): NA
US/Canada gross: NA
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada opening weekend:
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): NA
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): NA
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): NA
Production budget ranking: NA
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
ROI to date (est.): NA
ROI ranking: NA
Ann Robinson – Sylvia Van Buren
Les Tremayne – Maj. Gen. Mann
Lewis Martin – Pastor Dr. Matthew Collins
Robert Cornthwaite – Dr. Pryor
Sandro Giglio – Dr. Bilderbeck
Director(s)
Byron Haskin
Writer(s)
Barré Lyndon, H.G. Wells
Producer(s)
George Pal
Film Festivals
Awards & Nominations
NA
Academy Awards
All Critics (37) | Top Critics (5) | Fresh (33) | Rotten (4)
As the perfect crystallization of 50s ideology the film would be fascinating enough, but the special effects in this 1953 George Pal production also achieve a kind of dark, burnished apocalyptic beauty.
June 8, 2007
Dave Kehr
Chicago Reader
TOP CRITIC
War of the Worlds is a socko science-fiction feature, as fearsome as a film as was the Orson Welles 1938 radio interpretation of the H.G. Wells novel.
June 8, 2007
Variety Staff
Variety
TOP CRITIC
Mind those heat rays!
October 31, 2006 | Rating: 3.5/5
A.H. Weiler
New York Times
TOP CRITIC
A half-century after its creation, the film’s best moments are still so enjoyably unnerving that they easily carry a viewer through the necessary but inevitably dated exposition.
December 6, 2005
Douglas Pratt
Hollywood Reporter
TOP CRITIC
The film deviates quite a bit from the novel, but the fear of the mysterious being is still present, and at the time, was a hit with audiences thanks to some special effects that made it all look too real.
March 7, 2023
Brian Susbielles
InSession Film
The filmmakers’ optimism and favoring of luck (even with glimpses of rioters and looters and humanity crumbling under existential pressures) lends to an unforgettable resolution.
September 22, 2022 | Rating: 6/10
Mike Massie
Gone With The Twins
… the original big screen adaptation of the H.G. Wells classic is an impressive Technicolor disaster film with Oscar winning special effects and a memorable visualization of the Martian invaders…
June 25, 2022
Sean Axmaker
Seanax.com
This isn’t a “humanity fights aliens” movie; it’s an “aliens as natural disaster” movie. The aliens are less an invading threat than an unstoppable force majeure.
September 2, 2020
Kyle Anderson
Nerdist
If The War of the Worlds had had an effective human core, one that put a face on its epic of death and destruction, it might very well have reached a pinnacle of true greatness.
July 28, 2020 | Rating: 3/4
James Kendrick
Q Network Film Desk
Despite the B-movie popcorn fun implied, The War of the Worlds is surprisingly bleak.
July 21, 2020
David Bax
Battleship Pretension
The technical merits (including the vibrant color scheme and the aural assaults) all rate an A+.
July 20, 2020 | Rating: 3.5/4
Matt Brunson
Film Frenzy
As alien invasion sagas go, this is as good as they get –fast-paced, filled with still-impressive visual effects presented in all their Technicolor glory and including a number of genuinely suspenseful moments that continue to pack a punch.
July 17, 2020
Peter Sobczynski
eFilmCritic.com…
Plot
In The War of the Worlds, scientist Clayton Forrester and Sylvia Van Buren must discover the weakness of alien invaders who have emerged from a meteorite crash and are killing at random.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
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Byron-Haskin.jpg
