A new verion of an HG Wells classic now streaming on Amazon Prime has been slammed by critics. War of the Worlds’ latest adaptation stars Ice Cube. Produced by Universal Pictures for Amazon Prime, the film is being roasted for its excessive Amazon product placement and branded as a “disaster” by fans and critics alike.
The “screenlife” science fiction thriller film was directed by Rich Lee with a screenplay by Kenneth A. Golde and Marc Hyman from a story by Golde. Alongside Ice Cube, it stars Eva Longoria, Clark Gregg, Andrea Savage, Henry Hunter Hall, Iman Benson, Devon Bostick, and Michael O’Neill.
The film’s synopsis reads: “A computer security analyst working for the U.S. government finds his daily life disrupted by an alien attack; accustomed to dealing with virtual threats, his struggle extends to secrets the government may be hiding.”
Critics have panned the film, with it currently holding only a 10% score from audience ratings.
Variety billed the film as “disastrous.”
Reviewer Peter Debruge said: “What should have been a spectacular Roland Emmerich-style montage of destruction instead comes off blurry and unconvincing, as Will clicks through short lo-res videos of the attack.”
“Then come the news reports, which supply updates on the global military response (basically, stock footage of soldiers doing soldier-y things, like loading missiles onto jets and jumping out of planes).”
He also questioned the level of Amazon’s product placement throughout the film, asking: “How many people will watch this nonsense long enough to get to the part where the Prime delivery guy saves the day?”
The Telegraph similarly dismissed the film, awarding it one star out of five. Ed Power, of the publication, said: “It is silly, shoddy and features far too much of rapper-turned-leading man Ice Cube staring at a computer screen while looking as if he’s working through a reasonably urgent digestive ailment.
“Like a heat-ray in reverse, it leeches all the fun out of what should be an epic tale of alien invasion.”
If you wish to make your conclusion, War of the Worlds is available to stream on Amazon Prime.