Some films are bad. And then some make you question your life choices before the end credits even roll. War of the Worlds (2025), streaming on Amazon Prime Video, falls squarely into the latter category. I’ve watched plenty of disappointing sci-fi in my time, but this one tested my patience like few others.
After already misleading viewers earlier this summer with Alien: Rubicon—a title that has nothing to do with Ridley Scott’s legendary franchise—Amazon has now repeated the trick with H.G. Wells’ iconic The War of the Worlds. The result is a 2025 adaptation in name only, and the experience was nothing short of painful.
A “reimagining” gone terribly wrong
Directed by music video veteran Rich Lee, this War of the Worlds stars Ice Cube as Will Radford, joined by Eva Longoria and Clark Gregg. On paper, the idea sounded at least mildly intriguing: take Wells’ classic and update it with modern themes like mass surveillance and privacy concerns.
In reality, the 89-minute film—scoring a spectacular 0% on Rotten Tomatoes—offers none of the thrills, tension, or intelligence you’d hope for in a sci-fi project. Its official synopsis sums up the shallowness perfectly:
“Ice Cube fights aliens to save his family and the world.”
That is, quite literally, all it does.
An excruciating 89 minutes
Calling War of the Worlds “bad” would almost be generous. This is the epitome of a concept film designed solely to pad a streaming catalogue. It relies on a fading celebrity cast and a familiar title to lure curious subscribers, offering nothing of substance in return.
Even the few acceptable visual effects can’t save it. The acting is wooden—even Ice Cube and Eva Longoria seem stranded—the script is non-existent, and the direction lacks any sense of tension or spectacle. Most frustrating of all is the cynical strategy behind it: cashing in on a beloved name to generate clicks, without respect for the story or the audience.
Not a single scene delivers meaningful science fiction or thoughtful commentary. If you want to watch War of the Worlds, stick with Steven Spielberg’s 2005 blockbuster with Tom Cruise or the 2022 Canal+ series. At least those understood that a classic deserves care, not a lazy cash-in.
