War of the Worlds

It's out and I'm conflicted. I'm talking about Spielberg's War of the Worlds, out on DVD this week.

Now, I LOVED the book. As for as I'm concerned, H.G. Wells' The War of the Worlds is one of the most engaging and entertaining narratives ever written. Masterful. I have a buddy, a real science fiction lover, who has read it 17 times!

I've heard some of the 1938 radio play. But I've never seen a cinematic interpretation of this story. Twice I've psyched myself up to walk to Blockbuster, only to decide against it at the last minute. Something's holding me back...

Could it be that almost everyone says this movie sucks rocks? Could it be I don't want to see Tom Cruise work out Church of Scientology beliefs on screen? Or maybe it's that Dakota Fanning kid, who annoys me because she's too clever and articulate for a child. Also, she reminds me of another kid I know, a nasty little girl who is mean to my stepson.

Whatever the reason, I can't seem to go and rent it. Do I need the $5.99 so badly?

This is possible. But no, there is something else at work here, though I'm not sure what. The novel is nicely filed in my mind. I can go to it whenever I want, and enter a world in which grim and grimy Victorian London is under attack. Intriguing. Haunting.

Will Spielberg's flick ruin that file? Maybe. Probably. But I haven't seen a BIG movie in a while. I have a craving. Blockbuster is just down the street.

But I know better. I shouldn't go.

I'm still undecided...