A screenlife adaptation of War of the Worlds starring Ice Cube has emerged, and it’s gone viral for all the wrong reasons, with the movie earning a rare (and terrible) Rotten Tomatoes score.
The War of the Worlds has a long and storied history, starting off in the 1890s when H. G. Wells published what’s considered to be the earliest story of a battle between man and alien.
The book’s plot, which centers on an attempted invasion of Earth by a collective of Martians, who are advanced in both intelligence and technology, was way ahead of its time – and is ripe for adaptation.
It’s safe to say The War of the Worlds has had a lot, including Orson Welles’ 1938 radio drama and Steven Spielberg’s 2005 sci-fi movie starring Tom Cruise. But Rich Lee’s remake won’t be joining the rankings as one of the all-time greats.
War of the Worlds receives 0% Rotten Tomatoes score
The new movie has received a rare 0% critics’ score on Rotten Tomatoes, with many hailing it the worst War of the Worlds adaptations of all time. There are multiple reasons it’s so heavily criticized, including its poor script, performances, and visual effects, as well as a lack of suspense.
But there’s another reason: it contains product placement for its streaming home, Amazon’s Prime Video. Others felt that the screenlife format – whereby the film plays out entirely on a computer screen – was wasted by its uninteresting plot.
Variety wrote, “The action is limited to glitchy video clips and whatever else might appear on a surveillance expert’s screen in a cheap-looking thriller that suggests Amazon Prime as Earth’s one-stop solution.”
As said by LMO, “War of the Worlds is just terrible, in every sense of the word. Ice Cube can’t even seem to drink a coffee convincingly. Everyone else was there for a cheap paycheque… I tried to make a new star rating for this, but I couldn’t make minus numbers.”
ABC4 added, “Told entirely through screens and digital devices, this ‘screenlife’ thriller tries to bring H.G. Wells’ classic into the tech era, but not only fails at being entertaining, but fails at being a movie itself.”
War of the Worlds is also getting panned by audiences, earning just 12%. “This movie must have been written by a 10 year old using ChatGPT. Utterly unwatchable trash,” said one.
“Everyone involved in the production of this movie should be embarrassed. The plot makes no sense, the plot holes are miles wide, the key action moments is beyond unbelievable, and the characters are flat, boring, and cliche. I hated this movie.”
“I hope Ice Cube melts because this movie sucks so much it made me go back to therapy,” said another, while a third added, “A nine year old could have produced this garbage.”
Ice Cube movie still on Top 10 chart
Despite its terrible reviews, War of the Worlds has been performing well since landing on Prime Video on July 30, racing to first place on the Top 10 chart in the US before settling at number three as of August 5.
Yes, viewers and critics have warned it’s not a “so bad it’s good” film, but this hasn’t prevented more subscribers to tune in and see what all the fuss is about, especially after landing its rare 0% Rotten Tomatoes score.
“I’m watching the Ice Cube War of the Worlds that just dropped on Amazon,” said one. “I’m 20 minutes in, and holy f**king sh*t: we may have a new ‘so bad it’s good’ classic on our hands here.”
Another wrote, “This War of the Worlds Amazon thing is unhinged and terrible. I’m losing my mind that it’s a real movie and not an April fools joke they couldn’t get out the door fast enough.”
If you’re actually interested in what it’s about, the War of the Worlds remake follows a computer security analyst working for the US government (played by Ice Cube) who finds his daily life disrupted by an alien attack.
As Martians wreak havoc on Earth, the team attempts to fight back through digital means and survive the chaos, all while trapped behind their screens.
Alongside Ice Cube – real name O’Shea Jackson Sr. – the film stars Eva Longoria, Clark Gregg, Andrea Savage, Henry Hunter Hall, Iman Benson, Devon Bostick, and Michael O’Neill.
It’s streaming on Prime Video now – you have been warned.
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