Independence Day (1996)

Director: Roland Emmerich

Starring: Will Smith, Bill Pullman, Jeff Goldblum

The aliens are coming and their goal is to invade and destroy Earth. Fighting superior technology, mankind’s best weapon is the will to survive.

When reviewing a film, I always try not to comment on religious or political views, and judge it on an entertainment and credibility level, regardless of whether it is a drama or fantasy. Although this fantasy drama mentioned at one point in the film Independence Day would be a world celebration if they stand together and eliminate the enemy, I couldn’t help but feel this film was viewed entirely from an American perspective.

I did not agree with the choice of actors for some of the characters, especially Bill Pullman as the President. I’m not sure whether the President himself was not a very strong, believable character, or whether Bill Pullman was not serious enough to portray the President. Having said that, the dialogue is riddled with unnecessary humor, which was more annoying than funny and uncalled for. The film had a serious premise, but it was handled in a very lighthearted manner, killing the potential suspense more often than not. The scenes that were done more seriously, were preceded or followed by comical scenes, deeming even the serious scenes lighthearted. The film had all the material to be an awesome action thriller, but the characters and dialogue were too stereotypical American.

The film also had way too many plot holes and convenience, silly remarks and a lot of credibility issues that made me raise an eyebrow. For now, I’ll only mention the scene where Will Smith volunteers to fly the alien aircraft, saying he’s seen how they manoeuvre. SEEN is completely different to actually FLYING an alien aircraft, and he not only succeeds, but manages to escape through almost impossible obstacles. Another example is Randy Quaid’s character, Russell Casse, volunteering to fight the aliens. He flies a plane, yes, but its one thing to be able to fly a plane, but to engage in combat is entirely different. He simply does not have the experience, so it wasn’t believable in the least. The music was also too dramatic and overbearing at times.

Regardless, this was indeed a very entertaining action sci-fi with some amazing action sequences and visual effects that are good to this day. The aliens in particular were very well designed.