[MicroPsycho]

Originally posted by pyro-manic
But the film wasn't about the military. It was about Cruise and his kids trying to survive.

I know, but it should've had some military action in it, the original movie did and IIRC that wasn't about the military either, it was about mankinds struggle against aliens and that even the smallest oranisms have a purpose, not Tom Cruise trying to gain respect/love from his family. I just think there should have been more military-like stuff than some tanks and humvees cresting a hill and then a big explosion, not to mention it never shown them shooting at the tripods (they obviously were, but that's not the point) and the tripod shield deflecting stuff. The tripod they bring down at the end doesn't count, had they waited 10 minutes it would have gone down on its own.

[mikhael]

I thought the flick was about the rock-paper-scissors nature of the universe at large (even the biggest rock falls to unassuming paper). The Martians were the rocks, mankind the scissors and the microbiota the paper. Cruise and family were just a way to humanize... well, humanity.

[Kosh]

I know, but it should've had some military action in it,

It did, and the US Army got it's ass handed to it.

[aldo_14]

I guess a film where you watch the US army get decimated for 2 hours and then see the enemy fall over and die in the last 10 minutes wasn't considered commercially appealing enough.

[karajorma]

I think the Yanks are just annoyed that the Brits managed to kill one more tripod in the book than they did in the film

[Sandwich]

Originally posted by Braxis
what kind of jerk would prepare a world-wide invasion without checking if they troops would get sick?

You see, it's this kind of reaction that just gets me. The answer?

Because that's how the BOOK goes.

[Kosh]

The funding to their space agency was cut.

[Flipside]

Maybe they simply couldn't bring themselves to be cruel enough as to use one of their own kind as a guinea pig

[Liquid Fire]

Originally posted by Braxis
what kind of jerk would prepare a world-wide invasion without checking if they troops would get sick?

I wholeheartedly agree and in fact, I'm writing a complaint letter to the original author and......

...oh wait....

Honestly, can you imagine the uproar if the movie deviated from the book and the aliens were all killed by tom cruise with 5,000 grenades?

Also, we don't know the story from the alien's side. Maybe their planet has been mined to the point of extinction and they could only send so many ships. Maybe they used a really big stargate to warp the tripods there, but the trip would kill the pilots, who had to take the slow route at less than speed-of-light travel. Maybe their stargate can't warp stuff back, so they didn't know what the planet was like, except for long-range scans. Who knows?

[karajorma]

Originally posted by Braxis
what kind of jerk would prepare a world-wide invasion without checking if they troops would get sick? (Bush is not a valid answer)
There are too many jokes and cliches in the movie that breaks the tension. (something i didn't liked)

In the book it's pretty simple. The martians

1) Had no way of sampling Earth's atmosphere let alone biosphere before they arrived.
2) Had no concept of the damage bacteria could do having wiped them out millions of years ago on Mars (Or never having had them in the first place perhaps).

The second one is still valid for the movie.

[Kosh]

Also, we don't know the story from the alien's side. Maybe their planet has been mined to the point of extinction and they could only send so many ships. Maybe they used a really big stargate to warp the tripods there, but the trip would kill the pilots, who had to take the slow route at less than speed-of-light travel.

I liked my explanation better.