War Of The Worlds: Extinctive Cut (War Of The Worlds - 2005) - CBB

“Its not enough to survive… One has to be worthy of survival. “ Commander William Adama.

Sadly, such concepts are not universal. That might explain the survival of repellent lead characters. After two hours of the original, viewers will likely root for aliens to capture, consume and silence our ordinary fellow humans.
Boon is biting off a lot here, trying to paint lipstick on a cancerous pig, attempting to carve the crap without leaving behind a corpse.

Hit PLAY and you get to choose which version of CBB’s edit, “Extinctive” or “Purist.” In both cuts, once past Chapter 10, resolution grows poorer. More noticeable in “Extinctive”, especially with blacks and deep shadows.

I watched both versions, and both are cohesive. “Extinctive’s” ending held an unexpected surprise. Can’t say that I bought it from a logical point of view. Questions about how long a “future” are we looking at? Food supplies? Water? Politicians? Still, it might be taken as a Hollywood 70’s ending. The “Purist” was better for me and my skeptical nature.

Did someone say extras? Man, Boon is generous with the goodies! Trailer, Deleted Scenes, the shack with and without Robbins, a chunk of CBB edits to boot. Hey, did I mention, the features are subtitled? Boss.

As far as enjoyment, I disliked the original and my dislike for the edit is only marginally less. Blame the source. Characters you want killed. Script and direction both pander. Spielberg had early a history of terrorizing children. Not judging, just saying. There is less of that in this edit, and CBB reimagines Robbie’s path well.

Recommended to fans of the original. Naysayers will still be displeased.