Ed Wood would be proud

Rating: 4/10 (15 November 2009)

It is still amazing to me that this film was the top grossing movie of 1996, followed by "Twister", which in many ways was equally cheesy. I remember seeing the ads for this movie before it was released, and even a well-polished advertising campaign could not hide the schlockiness of it all.
The dialogue is completely forgettable, the plot is thin and obvious, and even if you can suspend your beliefs and assume that an Apple laptop computer can do all of the stunts that Jeff Goldblum's character's computer can do and that a crop duster suffering from chronic post-traumatic stress disorder (Randy Quaid) can learn how to fly late 20th century state-of-the-art military planes basically by instinct, there is one final piece of posturing that is too much to take. Never would the President of the United States both endanger himself and allow himself to become a spectacle by putting on a flight suit and piloting a plane in a time of war ... Oh, yeah, I almost forgot about that incident back in 2003...oops...my bad.
The reason I am even giving this film 4/10 is for one, the special effects are impressive in a movie that has precious little else going for it. Secondly, and most of all, the only thing that makes this movie remotely watchable is Will Smith. Even with what the writers/directors give him to work with he steals the show. Plus, the "buddy" thing he has going with Jeff Goldblum's character when they go to deliver the computer virus to the alien spacecraft comes off well. I'm just glad that Will Smith got to showcase what he is really capable of the following year when he starred in a quality film about alien life on earth, "Men in Black".