The Greatest Bad Movie Ever Made
Quick Overview
The movie 'War of the Worlds' (Amazon's take on the HG Wells novel) is a terrible film, possibly made intentionally bad by Amazon to generate publicity and free content from YouTubers reacting to it, or unintentionally so due to its COVID-era production. Despite its flaws, the film's unconventional, computer-screen-based perspective and product placement for Amazon services were noted.
Key Points: The movie 'War of the Worlds' is critically panned as "the greatest bad movie ever made" and "a total abomination," with the reviewer suggesting Amazon might have intentionally released a bad movie to generate publicity and free content from reaction videos. The film's narrative is almost entirely viewed from the protagonist Will Radford's (Ice Cube) computer screen, showing him watching drone footage, spying on his children, and reacting to world events without showing the events themselves. Product placement for Amazon is pervasive, with the plot revolving around Amazon drones, Amazon gift cards used as bribes, and the implication that Amazon services are key to saving the world. The reviewer notes the film's poor pacing and editing, with numerous jump cuts suggesting individual lines were filmed separately and then pieced together due to COVID-19 lockdown production constraints. Key plot points include the aliens being data-hungry, the protagonist's son being a "disruptor" who hacks the government, and a conspiracy involving a government surveillance program called Goliath. The producer and editor interviewed confirmed that actors filmed parts individually and that editing was a "nightmare," but also claimed the film was intended as a heartfelt story about family, not a grand sci-fi epic, despite the 'War of the Worlds' title. The lack of acknowledgment from the cast and crew about the movie, even from Ice Cube, adds to the mystery, with the reviewer speculating they might not even remember being in it.
Context: The video analyzes Amazon's 2025 'War of the Worlds' movie, which is a new adaptation of H.G. Wells' classic novel. The reviewer expresses extreme disappointment with the film's quality, questioning its production and intent. The context includes the reviewer's personal preference for less overstimulating movies and his frustration with modern filmmaking trends, which sets the stage for his critique of this particular adaptation.