I believe that everyone could have been wrong about the tripods being in the ground for millions of years. The news van showed the slow-mo of the ships traveling with the lightning. The aliens could have had a technology that built the tripods underground. It seems unlikely, but it’s more plausible than they being there the whole time. Of course, this doesn’t explain why Boston was left untouched.

If they were underground, then they might have thought that Boston would have been an unlikely place to build a city. Or maybe things happened tectonically and whatnot that made the tripods unusable. A million years is a long time. Long enough to lose any immunity from Earth microbes. Besides which, they didn’t think on the microscopic level like that. If they didn’t foreshadow it in the beginning, and if you didn’t know anything about the War of the Worlds story, then would you have thought that alien microbes would be a problem? These don’t have to be experienced invaders like the Irken Invaders or the aliens on ID4.

The red weed-looking things are obviously the main food-source for the aliens. They looked upon our world with anger and contempt and jealousy. If we are to assume that they are Martians, as in the book, then their world is a cold, arrid wasteland. It is believed that the planet was once similar to Earth, based on the evidence that water once existed there in liquid form. Life could have evolved there and the world could have been very hospitable. The Martians looked at their world, then at ours, and realized we got the better deal. It was suddenly a goal that they possess the Earth, and regain the beauty they once held. It became an obsession. If our positions would have been reversed, our technological advancements might also have been reversed. We might be the agressor species. They didn’t need our blood for anything. They didn’t need to kill us all. They didn’t need to cage us up and spread our blood all over the place. It was revenge. They are a malevolent species, looking to rid Earth of every last man, woman, and child because we [by chance, by fate, by God] have the better hand.

I agree with whomever said it, that Ray’s morally ambiguous decision to kill Robbins’ character was very single-minded, so that he could save his daughter. He’s lost a son (apparently) and he’s not about to lose his daughter. Besides which, Robbins’ character was crazy.

I do wish they had gone into a little bit more detail how Ray’s son survived. It seems impossible, and the ending does seem to be a copout (esp w/Boston surviving). BTW, Eowyn was made pregnant by her new husband, in case you hadn’t seen him at the beginning of the film (Keddaris). Though, I didn’t see him in Boston, which I thought was kinda off.

The lasers which seem to destroy human flesh, but leave clothes largely intact could easily be explained (without the use of nanotechnology). The aliens seem to have a certain fascination with red (Mars) and our red human blood in particular. The lasers could just be heating our blood to the point that it explodes with anything that’s flesh. I’m sure that doesn’t make sense right now, but it did when I originally thought it up. And the “ash” on Ray’s face … I thought that was just dust from the debris that was all around him, not human ashes. Eh well.

Regarding the cars and why Ray’s worked but no one else’s. The news in the beginning reported that in the Ukraine that an electromagnetic pulse (EMP) was responsible for the loss of certain conveniences. If anyone remembers what happened in The Matrix whenever someone blew an EMP, we realize that anything that’s ON or RUNNING is instantly disabled (cars, watches, cell phones, power plants, etc.). Where things that weren’t on, or are not using electric parts, might still work (cameras, digital camcorders, ferries, parts for cars, etc.) I didn’t quite make out what Ray told the mechanic to fix, then again, I don’t know that much about cars.

Which brings me to the oblivious mechanic. There are many possibilities for his failure to realize what was going on. He, also, was very single-minded. His life was his job and he didn’t pay much attention to anything else. He might also be partly deaf, but can lip-read. This would explain why he could understand Ray, but not realize what was going on past his garage. We’re not given enough information about the character to make an accurate assessment either way.

Where was the president? Two things can explain this. First, he was probably one of the first to have been picked off. Second, where did anyone have access to the media so that our characters could hear things directly from the president. This film wasn’t about him (or her) or our respective governments. It was about this family, and about humanity’s fight to survive, despite the loss of humanity in many instances (killing for Ray’s van). Furthermore, the presence of government was quite there in the form of the military personnel trying to battle this alien presence and protect whoever remained.

Why were the birds landing on the still moving, yet wobbly, tripod towards the end? What kind of bird were they? We can’t really tell from that distance. I was assuming they were a scavenger-type bird like vultures, circling around a dead or dying prey. Some may have already been dead, and the vultures were trying to get through. Also the blood that was no doubt covering the tripod probably provided some tasty snacks.

I did find it odd that Ray in his van could find a navigable path through the backed up traffic, and through the plane wreckage.

The ferry could have fit them all (or most) especially if they dumped all the cars overboard or out of the way. There weren’t too many of people there.

I do like Morgan Freeman. I do like what was said by the narrator at the beginning and end of the film. But if Mr. Freeman was going to narrate a bit of the film, you would think he would be in it, too. I do think it would have been better if one of the primary actors had done it. Maybe even Tim Robbins. Though, I suppose Mr. Freeman is one of the few actors who can site God and get away with it in Hollywood (Deep Impact, Bruce Almighty) and have a good narration voice to boot. Edward Norton also likes to narrate. But that’s another story.

Altogether, I thought it was a great movie and the inconsistancies can be easily overlooked.

Please get over it and move on…

As for pseudo-intellectual…I have NEVER claimed to be an intellectual. You take that back!

You think you are funny, but the joke is on you joyboy!!