Based on the book written by H.G. Wells in 1898, "The War of the Worlds" (the first alien-invasion story ever written), the film packs the wallop created by the original work. Lightning bolts strike from the sky, gouging fissures in concrete streets, tumbling large buildings, and creating caverns that unearth long-buried mechanical behemoths, called tripods that are bent on destroying civilization.

In this post 9/11 envisioning of the story, Ray Ferrier (Tom Cruise) is a recently divorced, blue-collar guy, living in New Jersey, with an interest more toward fast cars than his teenage son Robbie (Justin Chatwin of "Taking Lives") and young daughter (Dakota Fanning of "Hide and Seek." Obviously, his life is as big a mess as his house, and he and his kids can barely tolerate each other. All that changes when the aliens begin to wreak havoc and kill much of what is in their path; Ray is on the run with his children, trying to stay alive. At one point Ray runs down the street, covered with ash, reminiscent of scenes of 9/11. When it’s still unclear who these attackers are, Rachel cries out, "Is it terrorists?"

Fear can make rational people behave in unnatural ways. There is a wonderful, anxiety-ridden sequence in the basement of a farmhouse owned by a grief-stricken survivalist named Ogilvy (Tim Robbins), who saw his family destroyed by the tripods. Ray and Ogilvy struggle for a rifle, soundlessly, while the small alien creatures that pilot the tripods ransack Ogilvy’s belongings, and Rachel watches the intruders with an odd mix of curiosity and fear.

Fanning steps forward to guide the film more than the frightened kid with wide eyes as she did in "Man on Fire" and "Hide and Seek." We see her growing right before our eyes.

Adolescent intensity comes off well on Robbie, who pleads with his father to let him go to fight the fierce invaders with the military, as they roll through in tanks.

The ability for Ray and Rachel to constantly avoid certain death by the aliens who are creating battlefield havoc with the intensity of the Normandy Invasion ("Saving Private Ryan," also by Spielberg) is the only thing that keeps the film from being more realistically chilling. That’s the downside. The upside is that it keeps the movie from being too dark and cold for most people.

Unlike Spielberg’s "AI: Artificial Intelligence," this film’s trailer and advertising is more true to the dark nature of the story. It’s rated PG-13 but has the tone of a R. There are no "ET" wanna-be’s here, and at no time will you expect the small, slick-skinned creatures to give you a hug unless it’s to incinerate you or drain your blood.

WOTW is one of the scariest movies we’ve seen of late, to include "Land of the Dead." That one focused on the selfishness among earthly humans. This too has a "me, myself and I" perspective. In addition we take a look at the universe and the question is posed, "Are there beings in the cosmos looking at us with the same mindset we have when we look at a variety of fish in a tank? It could be just for the pleasure of looking or it might be to see them as "stored crops."

At a time when special effects seem not so special because we get the feeling that we’ve seen it all, Spielberg did a few things to ensure this film would not fall into the "been there, seen that before" category. For this production he insisted on a few rules. There will be no destruction of famous landmarks; NYC is not the whipping boy for earth’s downfall; no politicians, generals, or scientists are the main characters; no military types will push war symbols around on maps to come up with the plan of salvation; and no shots of world capitals. He brings it right on home to where you live.

How the tripods are ultimately destroyed and the world is saved is not particularly clear. Birds appear near the end of the film, as the metal monsters seem drained of their power, and Morgan Freeman in his closing narration affirms that "God’s smallest creatures" brought about the downfall. The subtle social political message throughout addresses what we take for granted in matters that we can control and those that we truly cannot control.

This is a film that actually lives up to the hype.