The Island of Dr. Moreau (1996)

 

After being rescued and brought to an island, a man discovers that its inhabitants are experimental animals being turned into strange-looking humans, all of it the work of a visionary doctor.

Big-budget and star-cast adaptation of H:G. Wells' classic sci-fi novel lands a fascinatingly wild and hilarious fail on almost every level, among which Marlon Brando's ridiculous performance is only one of the many facets you need to see to believe.
 

Halliwell (no star): "Incoherent horror, notable for one of Brando's more eccentric performances, mercifully brief."

Maltin*1/2: "Heavy-handed retelling of H.G. Wells' novel...Grotesque in the extreme, obvious, and ultimately pointless, but Brando devotees will want to check out his flamboyantly silly performance, and makeup buffs should admire Stan Winston's remarkable creations." 

 

 

The Time Machine (2002)

Hoping to alter the events of the past, a 19th century inventor instead travels 800,000 years into the future, where he finds humankind divided into two warring races.

Nicely entertaining, if not a bit light-footed adaptation of the classic sci-fi novel has some good special effects.

Halliwell (no star): "Confused and unsatisfactory version of Wells' novel, even if it is directed by his great-grandson. The narrative is used merely as a peg for special effects."

Maltin**1/2: "The effects are impressive, but the story doesn't have the impact it should...and Pearce may not be the idealchoice for an old-fashioned hero."

New Stuff: The War of the Worlds

The Invisible Man (1933)

A scientist finds a way of becoming invisible, but in doing so, he becomes murderously insane.

Brilliant (and close) adaptation of H.G. Wells' classic novel, a horror drama with a magnificent (if invisible) Claude Rains that entertains with thrills, humour and special effects that still convince today.

Halliwell****: "Superb blend of eccentric character comedy, melodrama and trick photography in a Hollywood English setting; remarkably faithful to the spirit of the book. It made a star of Claude Rains in his first film, even though he is seen for only a couple of seconds."

Maltin***1/2: "H.G. Wells' fantasy brilliantly materializes on screen...Rains' starring debut is dated but still enjoyable."

The War of the Worlds (1953)

The film adaptation of the H.G.Wells novel about the invasion of Earth by Martians.

Classic 50s sci-fi invasion threat movie complete with weird alien creatures and the H bomb; still highly entertaining after all these years.

Halliwell *: "Spectacular battle scenes are the mainstay of this violent fantasy, which goes to pieces once the cardboard characters open their mouths."

Maltin ***1/2: "Vivid, frightening adaptation...Dramatically sound and filled with dazzling, Oscar-winning special effects; superior sci-fi, ..."

First Lines: H.G. Wells - The Island of Dr. Moreau

On February the 1st, 1887, the Lady Vain was lost by collision with a derelict when about the latitude 1° S. and longitude 107° W.

First Lines: H.G. Wells - The Invisible Man

The stranger came early in February, one wintry day, through a biting wind and a driving snow, the last snowfall of the year, over the down, walking from Bramblehurst railway station and carrying a little black portmanteau in his thickly gloved hand.

Books of My Life: H.G. Wells

This is not about a singular book, but about 3 novels by H.G. Wells in the Berkley Highland mass market paperback editions. I bought and read them, when I was 9 years old. For many years they were the most cherished books in my possession till my Dad one day gave them away to the library of the German-American Institute here in Regensburg. They might still be there,

As many boys at that age I was an enormous fan of science fiction, and before I started reading these books, I had already seen the film adaptations. I guess I came upon H.G. Wells as the auther responsible for these movies and assumed (naively, but quite correctly) that this must be an important name in science fiction. The book covers of these Berkley Highland editions were so thrilling I had to get the books, and even when I was not reading I'd spend a lot of time simply delving into the fantastic world of these cover illustrations. I'm not certain, but I think the artist of these book covers was Richard Powers.

I can remember two stories concerning these books. I was in the 3rd grade at St. Peter's School in Kirkwood, Mo., and one of my best friends was an African-American kid with the name of Clarence Smallwood. His older borther was in the 8th grade and heard that I have these H.G. Wells novels, and so he borrowed The Invisible Man from me. Many weeks later my class teacher Mrs. Burke came to me before class, handed me the book and told me an 8th grader was giving this back to me with thanks. She was absolutely perplexed and a bit disbelieving that I was reading such literature. Although it was a bit flattering, I was more concerned about the condition of the book. My pal's brother obviously had read the book intensively...

At the same time our English teacher, Miss Knabe, gave us a long term project to read books and to write book reports on what we had read. The library she had assembled was full of children literature that didn't quite appeal to me. I asked her, since I was already reading The War of the Worlds, if I could make my report on it. She was more than delighted by the idea and gave me a special status, since the reading would take up so much more time than any of the other books. So while the other kids were in a competition who could write the most reports I just sat there going on with my novel. It almost looked like I wouldn't even get this one book report done, so I quickly shoved in 2 reports on books from the class library, but in the end I did manage to finish The War of the Worlds after all. I guess I got extra points for having read the most sophisticated book.

First Lines: H.G. Wells - The Time Machine

The Time Traveller (for so it will be convenient to speak of him) was expounding a recondite matter to us.

First Lines: H.G. Wells - The War of the Worlds

No one would have believed in the last years of the nineteenth century that this world was being watched keenly and closely by intelligences greater than man's and yet as mortal as his own; that as men busied themselves about their various concerns they were scrutinised and studied, perhaps almost as narrowly as a man with a microscope might scrutinise the transient creatures that swarm and multiply in a drop of water.