War of the Worlds lands on Blu-ray and devastates sound systems with a reference-quality DTS-HD MA 5.1 lossless soundtrack. Though this track will be remembered and enjoyed first and foremost for the picture's aggressive action scenes, it delivers plenty of establishing and environmental effects that set a nice tone for the action to come, before a single alien tripod even rises from the ground. The picture opens with a scene featuring Ray at work; machinery sends a deluge of high-powered effects through the listening area with a full surround accompaniment and a good deal of bass, followed by the seamless effect of trucks rumbling from right to left through the middle of the soundstage. Preceding the aliens' arrival is a gusty wind that blows unmercifully through the soundstage and seems to extend well beyond the confines of the speakers, creating a seamless sound field that sends a shivering chill across the room, accompanied by some incredibly aggressive and potent thunder-like sounds, all of which is played at a ridiculously loud volume at reference level, but never at the sake of clarity and precision.

The action scenes are often highlighted by the track's prodigious levels of bass; the alien tripods lurch through the soundstage with a powerful foghorn-like pulse that reverberates about the listening area with what is nothing short of a system- and eardrum-testing low end; War of the Worlds rivals some of Blu-ray's finest soundtracks, including Saving Private Ryan and Terminator Salvation, for sheer amounts of earth-shattering bass that also retains a superb amount of clarity, playing as impeccably defined and natural and not just a jumble of messy sound. The track also excels in both close-up military engagements with the aliens and distantly-heard battles that feature strings of popping machine gun fire and hefty explosions far off in the distance. In the closer and more personal battles, gunfire tears through the soundstage, tanks belt out shell after shell at the tripods, and fighter jets scream overhead, delivering their payloads on the stout alien visitors, all with thunderous sonic effect. Additionally, John Williams' excellent score plays with a deep, big, cinematic feel, a fitting companion to the film and that's superbly implemented in every scene. Rounded out by pitch-perfect dialogue reproduction, War of the Worlds' DTS-HD MA 5.1 lossless soundtrack is the very definition of reference-quality audio.