The Next Picture Show

#338: Close Encounters, Pt. 1 — The War of the Worlds (1953)

Jordan Peele’s latest film, NOPE, tells a flying saucer story decades removed from the Atomic Age concerns of Byron Haskin’s 1953 adaptation of H.G. Wells’ WAR OF THE WORLDS, but both operate from a similar understanding that an encounter with hostile aliens is never just an encounter with hostile aliens. There are other forces at work in both films, and this week we’re digging into WAR and its effects on science-fiction stories to come, from its reflection of contemporary anxieties to the unexpected bleakness of its supposed happy ending. Plus, a bevy of new feedback prompts some lightning-round responses about IP hypocrisy, alternate Baz Luhrmann timelines, and candid vs. scripted monologues. 
Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about WAR OF THE WORLDS, NOPE, or anything else in the world of film, by sending an email to comments@nextpictureshow.net, or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730.
Outro music: “Two Little Men In a Flying Saucer” by Ella Fitzgerald
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Looking at cinema's present via its past. The Next Picture Show is a biweekly roundtable by the former editorial team of The Dissolve examining how classic films inspire and inform modern movies. Episodes take a deep dive into a classic film and its legacy in the first half, then compare and contrast that film with a modern successor in the second. Hosted and produced by Genevieve Koski, Keith Phipps, Tasha Robinson and Scott Tobias.