E.T. Phone...Wachovia?

It was reported this morning that Stephen Spielberg's upcoming remake of The War of the Worlds looks to nail down more than $198 million dollars for its budget, the most lucrative dollar figure ever attached to one single project. $198 was the previous record holder, held by Titanic and Spider-man 2, but with this flick rapidly ramping up and having tremendous potential, crossing into Mach 2 (mil) comes almost as no surprise. Those who have signed on to this behemoth seem to be crossing paths at a time where their collective talent could create, as Spielberg intends, "the movie of the decade." (Good thing, with Superbabies due out this month.)

Director - Writer - Actor. All three attached to the project are on a roll right now. It's a good thing, because they're going to have to be, or the American media will call this one a flop if it doesn't put up at least $70 million in its opening weekend. Stephen Spielberg is coming off three straight good movies, yet none of them were designed to be blockbusters. Ever since A.I., he's been able to show the intracacies of directing. From the keen camera work in Minority Report, to the stylistic feel of Catch Me if You Can to the reliance on heartfelt acting in The Terminal, Spielberg has honed his skills and is ready to make his next labor of love, his last being Band of Brothers. Writer David Koech is capable of penning a blockbuster script (Spider-man, Jurassic Park), and Tom Cruise is on a hot streak, no matter what Stephen Hunter of the Washington Post says (I hate that man.) He has broken free of being Jerry Maguire in every movie. Last Samurai was unfairly panned, Collateral is his heavy role he needed, and Minority Report was reliant on his acting ability. Director - Writer - Actor. Unlike Ghostbusters, crossing the streams here would be...very, very good.

Just because I don't know where to stop, here's a list of big budgets that would have been better off by studios donating the money to charity. How many did YOU see in the theater?

1. Cuthroat Island (1995) - Budget: $98 million. Domestic Gross: $10 million.
- In its release weekend, Sudden Death debuted with twice as much. Unacceptable.

2. Catwoman (2004) - Budget: $100 million. Domestic Gross: $38 mil.
- Just wanted to point this one out to Halle Berry, who thinks she deserves more money to come back in X3.

3. Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within (2001) - Budget: $137 million. Domestic Gross: $32 mil.
- The video game costs 30 bucks. MGM should have bought that instead.

4. Town and Country (2001) - Budget: $105 million. Domestic Gross: $7 mil.
- If a studio spends 1/10 of a billion dollars, and doesn't advertise, is there anyone there to see it?

5. Windtalkers (2002) - Budget: $145 million. Domestic Gross: $75 million.
- John Woo slows down everything he films. There are some actors (like Nick Cage) who are painful at regular speed. Who would've seen this one coming?

If I ever resurrect Mafia: The Movie, I promise to keep the production budget...umm...reasonable.