Corny fun

Rating: 9/10 (24 May 2013)

Roland Emmerich's alien invasion epic provides exhilarating set-pieces, from the first sight of the ships arriving, the destruction of major cities, to intense dogfights between fighter jets and the aliens' equivalents.
Will Smith makes for a charismatic hero, overshadowing most of the other cast members. Bill Pullman is a little stilted as the President, and gives a speech that was vote corniest piece of dialogue in a film. Jeff Goldblum is on autopilot, essentially doing his Jurassic Park persona all over again. Judd Hirsch provides much comic relief as Jeff's crotchety but wise old man.
No-one watches a film like this for Oscar-winning performances or soap opera dramatics though. While there are indeed some daft moments - the aliens with all this technology, and even with knowledge of OUR technology, have clearly never heard of firewalls or AVG - it more than delivers in the thrills department, evoking the spirit of 50s alien invasion movies, particularly the 1953 film The War of the Worlds.