Introduction

H.G. Wells’ The War of the Worlds (a.k.a. The Classic War of the Worlds or just War of the Worlds) adapts H.G. Wells’s novel of the same name about a Martian invasion of southern England.

This version, noted for its faithfulness to Wells’s novel, was produced by the independent film company Pendragon Pictures.

Unlike the adaptations set in the current day United States of America, this was the first film set in the novel’s original 1898 Victorian England.

Outline

The early part of the film follows the experience of a late 19th-century journalist from Woking, known as “the writer”, involved with the landing of a Martian invasion spacecraft. When the crashed cylinder opens, the Martians start killing anything that moves with a “heat ray” weapon. The writer discovers his house is in range of their heat ray and decides to rush his wife and servant to her cousins’ home in Leatherhead; once there, he returns in order to return the borrowed cart to its owner, unaware that the invading Martians are now on the move.

The Martians have built tall tripod “fighting machines” and begun a destructive rampage across southern England. The film also details the adventures of his brother, a student in London, who accompanies two ladies to the east coast of England in order to escape from the slaughter and destruction wrought by the Martians.

When the writer tries to get back to his wife in Leatherhead, he is confounded and beset by many problems as a result of the chaos brought by the Martian invasion.

Version Notes

This edition is the special final cut edit of H.G. Wells’ The War of the Worlds and is 125 minutes long, fifty-five minutes shorter than the original.

It has added scenes, re-edits, and re-tooled special effects; the director says this is the definitive version.

The Classic War of the Worlds replaces the 3 hour rough cut version, H.G. Wells’ The War of the Worlds, that was widely distributed and is now discontinued.

The War of the Worlds Film, TV Series & Documentaries

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Production & Filming Details

• Director: Timothy Hines.
• Producer: Susan Goforth.
• Writers: Timothy Hines and Susan Goforth.
• Music: Jamie Hall.
• Editor: Timothy Hines.
• Distributor: Pendragon Pictures.
• Release Date: 25 December 2006.
• Running Time: 125 minutes.
• Country: US.
• Language: English.

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