Spielberg's version of
War of the Worlds opens with a microscope view of a drop of water. We see what appears to be DNA and as the camera pulls back we see bacteria, etc. At the end of the movie the voice-over quotes the following from the original 1898 novel
...(the Martians)
slain, after all man's devices had failed, by the humblest things that God, in his wisdom, has put upon this earth. For so it had come about, as indeed I and many men might have foreseen had not terror and disaster blinded our minds. These germs of disease have taken toll of humanity since the beginning of things-- taken toll of our prehuman ancestors since life began here. But by virtue of this natural selection of our kind we have developed resisting power; to no germs do we succumb without a struggle...By the toll of a billion deaths man has bought his birthright of the earth, and it is his against all comers; it would still be his were the Martians ten times as mighty as they are. For neither do men live nor die in vain.
I recall reading that Smallpox alone killed 100 million people between 1900 and 2000. The Plague in Medievel times killed 1/3 of the population of Europe.
Saw this movie at the theater. Great special effects. The sound the Martian machines make is awesome. That sound was described in the original book (ca 1900). The side plot about the dysfunctional family did not add anything. I was curious to see how Spielberg would do the film. It appears he borrowed from the original book as well as the 1953 film. Gene Barry and his female co-star from he 1953 film make a cameo appearance in this film.
You can read the original book on-line at the link below.
The War of the Worlds by H.G. Wells: A searchable online version at The Literature Network
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