Have we been invaded?

Spielberg starts filming in Bayonne this week

Al Sullivan
Reporter senior staff writer

Car chases and massive explosions might suggest the end of the world as we know it, but in reality, they'll be the stuff upon which a new Steven Spielberg film will be based. The action thriller, based on the science fiction classic "War of the Worlds," was expected to start filming this week in Bayonne.

Paramount Pictures has already acquired the rights to use many of the properties on Kennedy Boulevard near First Street. During the summer, Spielberg himself surprised Bayonne resident Henry Sanchez by showing up at the door and asking to use his house for the upcoming film. The house, which is situated on a block very near the arches of the Bayonne Bridge, was apparently the perfect location for an invasion of aliens from Mars. And because significant scenes from the H.G. Wells novel feature the hero trapped in a house near the space invaders, Sanchez' house is expected to take center stage for part of the film production - the reason why the exterior and three floors of interior scenes have been reproduced at the movie studios located at the former Military Ocean Terminal in Bayonne.

Tom Cruise will play the lead in the movie, which was adapted for the screen by David Koepp (of "Jurassic Park" and "Mission Impossible") and Kathleen Kennedy. Dakota Fanning will play Cruise's daughter. Other stars include Tim Robbins, Justin Chatwin, Miranda Otto, and Camillia Sanes. The film, which is being rushed into production, will likely see release next July 4, and is expected to cost more than $200 million to make.

A secret invasion?

While Paramount Pictures did not grant permission for photographs or a visit to Henry Sanchez' house, the Current got to take a short tour of the movie sets at the studio. Pictures of the sets were not permitted, and the script details are shrouded in secrecy.

From the outside of the brick building that serves as Spielberg's film studio, little has changed in the 60 years since the U.S. Navy constructed it as a depot for supplies. And though the military has since turned over the facility to the city of Bayonne, the building still buzzes with activity: cars parked in front, stacks of building material posted at the doors. Inside, instead of crates of food and other materials waiting for shipment for some distant military engagement, an army of artists, carpenters, electricians and others scurrying through a maze of hastily constructed offices - each marked with small signs detailing their assignment, such as the art department or props.

Ray Samitez, a man in his early thirties sporting a beret, oversees the development of sets that will be used for the film. He is the only person on the crew that has read the script for the upcoming movie, so he can oversee the construction of the sets scene by scene.

"We all have precise instructions as what we have to do," said stage manager Jeremiah Sellitti. "But only Ray has read the script."

Expect great special effects

The studio has a host of people to cover every aspect of the scene, from designing the sets to wardrobe selection. Some of the costumes were purchased through various second-hand stores for many of the extras expected to be in the movie. The studio is renting space in several buildings, where many of the costumes and other effects are put together.

The special effects department has spent a lot of time stripping labels from suitcases and procuring animal carriers for dogs and cats. Cases containing breakable glass were piled up in preparation for the shoot, as well as a variety of other items. But the most telling item in this collection is the numerous devices that will be used to simulate fires and explosions - with barrel after barrel of special fire-making material sitting on the dock, as well as specially designed vehicles that will carry some of these items in and out of scenes.

Local workers recently saw some of the special effects people trying out what they call "fire guns" to be used in the film. And if anyone needed a clue as to the mood of the film, special effects also had several dozen barrels of "fog fluid."