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                                THE WAR OF THE WORLDS

July 11, 2024 at 12:26 pm Leave a comment

               COMPARING THE 1953 MOVIE TO THE NOVEL

Of the movies two movies made using
the novel as a guide in 1953 and 2005, my favorite is the movie made in 1953.
Yet that is the movie, of the two, which least resembles the book.

The premise of the movie is an
alien invasion from Mars. This nails down where the invasion originates, of
course, the title serves the same purpose. I say this premise follows the novel
for an alien invasion could come from any planet or any solar system.

One nice touch in the 2005 movie
was to include Gene Barry who plays Dr. Clayton Forrester and Ann Robinson who
plays Sylvia van Buren in the 1953 movie as the grandparents at the end of the
2005 movie.

To begin with, the Martians arrive at
what, at first, appears to be a meteorite. After a short period of time men
guarding the object detect a unscrewing at the top of the object and a device
appearing which destroys the men. What is never explained is how the Martian
machines make their exit with only the small aperture revealed.

In the published description of the
movie, it is said that heat rays are used to cause destruction. But if memory
serves, there were two types of rays. One was a heat ray which caused most of
the destruction and set fires. But initially a ray was used causing men and
vehicles to disappear and is described as a ray which destroys the energy which
joins molecules. Hence, the ray causes whatever it hits to fall apart.

Another difference between the book
to both movies is that the entire planet is under attack. In the novel only
England is involved, the home of H. G. Wells.

In the 1953 movie the machines
arrive already constructed whereas in the novel, upon arrival of the cylinders,
the machines must be firs constructed. Also, the machines in the movie do not
appear as described in the book. The machines in the novel walk on three
extended legs whereas the machines in the movie appear to hover with the theory
that they are manipulating gravity. The machines in the movie are protected by
a force-field. In the novel they can be destroyed.

In both movies and the novel there
is a scene where the characters are hiding in a farmhouse. In the 1953 movie
the characters escape with a rag soaked with Martian blood. In the novel and
the 2005 movie what occurs in the farmhouse is similar with the final result
being the death of a character.

The blood collected and analyzed
reveals that the Martians are anemic and have a poorly developed immune system
which leads to their demise. This failure for the Martians to survive is true
in both movies and the book.

Here is a link to the published version of the 1953 movie.

The War
of the Worlds (1953 film) – Wikipedia

Entry filed under: OBSERVATIONS & OPINIONS, READER'S OPPORTUNITIES, Walt Trizna, Walt Trizna's Stories, WALT'S OBSERVATIONS, WALT'S OPINIONS. Tags: alien invasion, fiction, film, H. G. Wells, horror, Mars, Martian invasion, Martians, movies, review, science fiction, The War of the Worlds, Walt Trizna.