Independence Day

Independence Day stars names such as Will Smith, Bill Pullman and Jeff Goldblum and is directed by Roland Emmerich. It is your typical example of a movie driven by media hype and special effects. The story is fairly simple, aliens come to Earth, want to destroy us and then use our planet's resources.

Independence Day starts off reasonably with the song "It's the End of the World." The alien attack next is even better. But the movie soon starts to strain. The special effects, such as the sequence when LA, DC and NYC were blown up did work wonders but the movie soon became a goofy idealistic film where all the nations of the world unite, lead by the US, to save the world from evil aliens. This was not a movie you would watch for the acting. The movie spends too much time on lifeless characters such as Connick, Jr.'s fighter pilot. The biggest joy of the movie is Will Smith, who currently is still protecting Earth from aliens in the more enjoyable Men In Black.

Independence Day gives the 4 July an entirely new meaning. It is not just an American holiday. It is the day the entire world fought back. Overall though, Independence Day was a big letdown after all the media hype.

View statistics | Next review