Big, loud entertainment.

Rating: Null/10 (21 April 2000)

Independence Day, or ID4, is a great example of 'the-summer- blockbuster-we-are-required-to-see-every-year-and-comes-up-at-every-conversation' genre. In 1993 it was Cliffhanger and The Fugitive. In '94 it was Speed. Crimson Tide in '95, ConAir in '97, Enemy of the State and Armageddon in '98, and Star Wars and Deep Blue Sea in '99. For 1996 ID4 shared the honors with The Rock. Every year. No more than two, no less than one. Somehow audiences never get sick of these often brainless, mega-budget, never believable for a second blockbusters.
Of the eleven since 1993, Independence Day ranks with the better ones. The fx and sound editing is excellent, breaking new ground, and the film manages to be so immensely entertaining that it doesn't allow audiences to think about how thin it actually is. The characters are all one (and sometimes two) dimensional, and the plot line is so implausible that you find yourself laughing. At times it looks like it doesn't even rank with those ten other mega hits, but instead with the star-studded disaster epics of the '70's.
But we don't tune in for those times, instead we watch for the edge of your seat action sequences, or plentiful one-liners. Randy Quaid is hilarious in one of the film's supporting roles, and Will Smith and Bill Pullman are likeable in the leads.
6.5/10