@ Javelin:
Depends on which version you’re referring to. The George Pal film was more about a redo of WW II, only with Martians and energy weapons rather than the Japanese or German militaries. The Spielberg film was more faithful to the book in that it at least contained more elements from the original source. The original book had a lot of references to colonialism to it, in that was a burning issue in Europe at the dawn of the 20th century. But I always thought that was just a mask for Wells’ eugenics cheerleading. He clearly thought that his Martians were the idealized blueprint for the human race in a progressive future. His early stories ended with a restoration of the old order, but he was obviously excited about the what he thought was the inevitable rule of a scientocracy in the future. If Wells had written Avatar the party looking to crush all opposition and rule both worlds wouldn’t be an aggressive military force, nor greedy corporate bosses, but the scientists themselves.
