The War of the Worlds
1953 · Movie · G · 85 min · ★ 6.8 · 84% critics
A small town’s excitement turns to terror when a fiery object from the sky proves to be the first wave of an invasion from Mars. As more machines arrive and every human weapon fails, panic spreads and survivors scramble to understand what they’re facing before the destruction reaches everywhere.
Based on The War of the Worlds
Also known as La guerre des mondes
Where to watch
Streaming on Amazon Prime Video and MGM+.
1 hour to watch.
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Details
- Years
- 1953
- Release date
- 1953-04-03
- Language
- English
- Rated
- G
- Runtime
- 85 min
- Max quality
- SD
- Critic score
- 84/100
- TMDB rating
- 6.8/10 (699 votes)
- Budget
- $2,000,000
About
You’ll likely enjoy this if you want classic sci-fi dread, relentless destruction, and a human-scale view of an unstoppable invasion, in the vein of The Day the Earth Stood Still; Not for you if you need modern pacing or subtle themes.
Pros: tense invasion atmosphere; memorable alien machines; impressive effects for era | Cons: uneven final stretch; thin romance thread; abrupt ending
Themes
- laser gun
- based on novel or book
- dystopia
- mountain village
- street riots
- space invasion
- radioactivity
- martian
- religion
- los angeles, california
- alien invasion
- scientist hero
- +8 more
Awards & recognition
- Academy Award — Best Special Effects · 1954
- Academy Award — Best Film Editing · 1954 · nominated
- Academy Award — Best Special Effects · 1954 · nominated
- Academy Award — Best Sound · 1954 · nominated
Cast & crew
Gene Barry
as Clayton Forrester
Ann Robinson
as Sylvia Van Buren
Lewis Martin
as Matthew Collins
Les Tremayne
as General Mann
Frank Kreig
as Fiddler Hawkins (uncredited)
Vernon Rich
as Ralph Heffner
Sandro Giglio
as Dr. Bilderbeck
Ann Codee
as Dr. Duprey (uncredited)
Robert Cornthwaite
as Dr. Pryor
Cedric Hardwicke
as Commentary (voice)
Directed by Byron Haskin