War of the Worlds is one my favorite books, mainly due to the fact that it created the story of alien invasion. All alien stories are in some way derived from this one main story. It's such a simple plot, but encompasses so much: horror, mass destruction, insanity, freakish landscapes and how the human mind responds to absolute fear. The book took place in the waning years of the 19th century, but has been updated to accomodate modern times. Still, the movie does a fantastic job of keeping up with the pacing, and overall setting the book has to offer.
Ray (Tom Cruise) is a divorced working man who just happens to be getting the kids for the weekend. There's a freak lightning storm in his neighborhood, and so leaving his children behind, he goes to investigate. Much to everyone's horror, a huge metal machine explodes up out of the ground, something that could not possibly have come from earth. It stands as a tripod, with a large body atop the legs. It lets out a terrible screech, and unveils the very first alien weapon ever though of: The Heat-Ray. This nasty piece of business fries the fleeing humans, as well as tears through concrete and metal. The rest of the movie is Ray and his children traversing the countryside of New Jersey, trying to find a way to Boston to meet up with his ex-wife.
If you've read the book, you will not be disappointed. Spielberg took just about every memorable scene from the book and placed it on the big screen. My favorite scene, from both the movie and book, involves Ray being trapped in the basement of a strange man named Harlan. The alien invasion has placed him at wit's end, and isn't very sane anymore. This leads to a struggle between him and Ray at the most inopportune times, these events will leave you on the edge of your seat.
Aside from those few scenes, the acting isn't all that memorable. Though neither is the character development in the book. This is a story about fear, and about panic. The aliens of this movie actually inspire fear, rather than the past alien blockbusters who destroy slowly, giving the humans plenty of time to do what they have to do. Not so here. The aliens are ruthless and unstoppable. My only complaint is the forcefields. In the book, the reason the aliens are so unstoppable is because their technology is centuries more advanced than that of the 1890's. so they didn't have forcefields, but they didn't get hit very often either. In the movie, a fighter jet or tank could easily destroy one, so as forcefields are introduced, the aliens remain unstoppable.
I think that Spielberg has created a modern sci-fi masterpiece. The images of men and women fleeing through the streets, screaming at the top of their lungs, being incinerated by the Heat-Ray will not be forgotten. Or the single alien tripod standing over the hill, looking down on the throngs of people trying to board a ferry. And how about Morgan Freeman's eloquent narration, recited directly from the book. It may not have the impact it had 100 years ago, but it's still an excellent story.