Probably the greatest alien-invasion epic ever made

Rating: 10/10 (25 March 2011)

"Independence Day" is quite possibly the biggest and greatest alien-invasion film ever made (and is also responsible for re-igniting the disaster movie craze of the late 1990s), and I mean that literally. Its budget, its Oscar-winning special effects, its blockbuster status as the highest-grossing movie of 1996 - yeah, all in all, "Independence Day" is a big movie, a really big movie. It has a plot that is somewhat of a modern-day revisionist update of H.G. Wells's turn-of-the-century alien invasion epic "The War of the Worlds." It also has an all-star cast consisting of Will Smith, Bill Pullman, Jeff Goldblum, Vivica A. Fox, and Randy Quaid. When massive 15-mile wide alien spaceships darken the skies over the world's major cities, the people of planet Earth are caught in spectacle. But wonder turns to out-right terror when the alien ships begin raining down destructive beams all over the major cities and killing millions in the process. Why do they do it? They're after our natural resources, we learn; they just want to wipe us out first to make it easier for them to get what they want and leave. The plot isn't the best or even the most original aspect of this movie; that's not the point. What master of disaster director Roland Emmerich wants to deliver is special effects, awesome scenes of extraterrestrial destruction, and action scenes detailing humanity's brave fight back against the technologically superior alien menace. "Independence Day," for the longest time, was my favorite movie of all time; I lived and breathed it. All I could talk and think about was "Independence Day," and I'm not sure how or why I didn't wear out my VHS tape from so many repeated viewings. 15 years later, this movie is still as thrilling and entertaining as it ever was. Is the movie really rah-rah go-it-alone American patriotism? I have no idea, maybe it is, maybe it isn't. I don't care, and I'M an American. All I care about is the alien invasion and humanity's desperate struggle to fight back. I could care less if it's patriotism before 9/11 made uber-patriotism the hot new thing to be in America. And oh yeah, "Independence Day," as its title would imply, is set over the course of the American Fourth of July weekend. Oh, well. Regardless, "Independence Day" still rocks, big-time! And get ready for those fireworks at the end!
10/10