History Film / WarOfTheWorlds2005

* GoMadFromTheRevelation: Ogilvy isn't that sane to begin with, but he really loses it when he finds out about the tripods harvesting humans.

* ViolenceReallyIsTheAnswer: As Ogilvy's behavior becomes more unstable, Ray keeps trying to reason with him, [[spoiler: but finally has no choice but to kill him to protect Rachel's life]].

* AdaptationInspiration: As with all of the movie adaptations of the book, this one updates the setting and time period, and frames it in the tensions of the day. It also draws down the focus to a single family and takes on something of a war documentary feel. An allegory of the original [[TheGayNineties 1898]] novel was imperialism and colonialism (the Martians representing the British Empire), while the 1953 film paralleled the UsefulNotes/ColdWar and the RedScare and the 2005 version comments on 9/11[[invoked]] and the War on Terror.

* DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything: The alien invasion has many deliberate similarities to 9/11. The shot of the vaporized victims' clothes floating down recalls the paper falling from the sky after the towers went down, the shot of Ray covered head-to-toe in grey ash after escaping the first tripod, and there's a pretty deliberate shot of a wall covered by pictures of missing people. When she sees the heat ray, Rachel even asks "Is it the terrorists?"

** To that point, the film depicts Ray as owning a 1967 Ford Mustang, a car that has no computers in it, has an entirely mechanically operated powertrain and in theory likely would have still functioned after the EMP attack, even if it required popping the clutch to get it started in case the EMP fried the starter in the same way it fried the Voyager's starter. Ray could have utilized the Mustang as a getaway vehicle without and generally avoided this trope. Its handwaved by the writers in that Robbie took it for a joyride and it nonsensically died during the EMP attack, despite the aforementioned.

** To that point, the film depicts Ray as owning a 1967 Ford Mustang, a car that has no advanced electronics in its powertrain and in theory likely would have still functioned after the EMP attack, even if it required popping the clutch to get it started in case the EMP fried the starter in the same way it fried the Voyager's starter. Ray could have utilized the Mustang as a getaway vehicle without requiring such an AssPull in the script. Its handwaved by the writers in that Robbie took it for a joyride and it nonsensically died during the EMP attack, despite the aforementioned.

** To that point, the film depicts Ray as owning a 1967 Ford Mustang, a car that has no advanced electronics in its powertrain and likely would have still functioned after the EMP attack, even if it required popping the clutch to get it started in case the EMP fried the starter in the same way it fried the Voyager's starter. Ray could have utilized the Mustang as a getaway vehicle without requiring such an AssPull in the script.

* ArtisticLicenseCars: You won't be able to get a 1993 Plymouth Voyager (or any fuel injected car with electronic engine controls) that had just been bricked by a massive EMP running again just by replacing the starter solenoid. At the very minimum the Voyager's engine and body computers would have had to have been replaced. Given how even parked cars got their electrical systems fried by the EMP even though they were powered down and had their rubber tires insulating their bodies from the ground, its highly unlikely that Manny would have been able to locate a good SMEC and BCM for the Plymouth Voyager, install them and get it running again in the short period of time before the tripods attacked. Also, Manny showcases that the Voyager's starter was fried to a crisp by the EMP attack, which honestly defies explanation. You could argue the whole "replace the solenoid" line was simply an AssPull from the writers.

* ArtisticLicenseCars: You won't be able to get a 1992 Plymouth Voyager (or any fuel injected car with electronic engine controls) that had just been bricked by a massive EMP running again just by replacing the starter solenoid. At the very minimum the Voyager's engine and body computers would have had to have been replaced. Given how even parked cars got their electrical systems fried by the EMP even though they were powered down and had their rubber tires insulating their bodies from the ground, its highly unlikely that Manny would have been able to locate a good SMEC and BCM for the Plymouth Voyager, install them and get it running again in the short period of time before the tripods attacked. Also, Manny showcases that the Voyager's starter was fried to a crisp by the EMP attack, which honestly defies explanation. You could argue the whole "replace the solenoid" line was simply an AssPull from the writers.

* ArtisticLicenseCars: You won't be able to get a 1992 Plymouth Voyager (or any fuel injected car with electronic engine controls) that had just been bricked by a massive EMP running again just by replacing the starter solenoid. At the very minimum the Voyager's engine and body computers would have had to have been replaced. Given how even parked cars got their electrical systems fried by the EMP even though they were powered down and had their rubber tires insulating their bodies from the ground, its highly unlikely that Manny would have been able to locate a good SMEC and BCM for the Plymouth Voyager, install them and get it running again in the short period of time before the tripods attacked.

* ArtisticLicenseCars: You won't be able to get a 1992 Plymouth Voyager (or any fuel injected car with electronic engine controls) that had just been bricked by a massive EMP running again just by replacing the starter solenoid. At the very minimum the Voyager's engine and body computers would have had to have been replaced. Given how even parked cars got their electrical systems bricked by the EMP even though they were shut off and had their rubber tires insulating their bodies from the ground, its highly unlikely that Manny would have been able to locate a good SMEC and BCM for the Plymouth Voyager, install them and get it running again in the short period of time before the tripods attacked.

** A panicked mob rampages to take possession of a working vehicle as in the 1953 film.

* DaylightHorror: The first tripod attack, Rachel's discovery of a river full of corpses, and [[spoiler: Ray's murder of Ogilvy]] all take place during the day.

* ARealManIsAKiller: Rachel seems to fully accept Ray as her father after [[spoiler: he kills Ogilvy to protect her]].