Steven Spielberg skilfully adapted HG Wells's classic sci-fi novel and reworked the 1953 film version to create a stunning blend of accomplished storytelling and impressive FX.
Released in 2005, the Oscar-nominated movie stars Tom Cruise as dock worker Ray Fellier, a divorced father who's looking after his children while his ex-wife is away. As he returns home from his night shift, the unthinkable happens: aliens attack the Earth! As Fellier fights to get his children to safety through the streets of New York, they find themselves being chased by 100ft-high tripods while alien vessels open fire on the retreating crowd, incinerating everything that gets in the way.
Popularist blockbuster entertainment doesn't come much better than this dark and disturbing classic.
War of the Worlds is a Film programme that first aired in 2005 and has been classified a 12 certificate.
