the plot
Several giant alien spaceships under the control of an even larger mother ship invade Earth for the sole purpose of destroying mankind and stripping the planet of all of its resources. They start by wiping out New York City, Los Angeles, Washington and other major cities around the world, effectively scattering Earth's defences. As they continue the massacre, the American President, played by Bill Pullman, gathers the troops for a counter-attack. With the help of Will Smith, Jeff Goldblum and Randy Quaid, Earth strikes back in an all-out, one-shot-only attack in order to preserve the existence of human kind.

the good
Needless to say, the best sequence in this movie was the kick-ass destruction of L.A., New York and Washington. This carnage was nothing short of spectacular. The FX were of the highest quality with more pyrotechnics than you can shake a fist at. Blowing up the White House was a joy to watch (several sources reported audiences  cheering at this sight while watching an ID4 trailer during the Super Bowl) as well as the top-to-bottom annihilation of the Empire State Building. It was also great to see the return of the chaotic space battle where hundreds of smaller attack fighters are engaged in massive dogfights. Not since Return Of The Jedi has this been done on such a grand scale. I was also happy to see that Devlin and Emmerich are continuing the trend that they revived with "Stargate" whereby the film's climax takes place on more than one front. In "Independence Day", the outcome is hanging on the events of two distinct sequences. One in which Will Smith and Jeff Goldblum are attempting to  infiltrate the mother ship and deliver the computer virus and the other in which the remnants of the air force are engaged in a coordinated attack on the alien ship that is approaching Area 51. Again, not since "Return Of The Jedi" (which saw the climax of the entire Star Wars Trilogy occurring on three fronts) and "Stargate" has the ending of a movie been done on such an epic scale. The alien ships themselves were nothing to write home about with the exception of their sheer size which was portrayed in impressive fashion by the FX crew. On the acting front, Will Smith and Jeff Goldblum were great together, providing many of the film's comical moments. Other notables  include Judd Hirsch as Jeff Goldblum's father, Brent Spiner doing a hilarious take on the mad scientist stereotype, and Harry Connick Jr. whose character made an unfortunately hasty exit. The eventual downfall of the aliens was quite clever. Initially, when Jeff Goldblum was talking with his father in the Area 51 hangar, I was deathly afraid that the aliens would be defeated by microbes a la "War Of The Worlds", which would have been the rip-off of the century and ultimately would have ruined the movie. But much to my relief, the virus that was being discussed during this scene turned out  to be a computer virus. This proved to be a fitting solution in this age of high-tech, computer-driven society.

the bad
I've always said that "Independence Day" is about as close to perfection as any previous sci-fi movie has ever been. But all movies have their flaws. And I'm happy to say that there is very little to complain about in this one. In fact, all of the following are minor nitpicks that I am always reluctant to dwell upon. But hey, I had to put  something under the heading of "the bad". The two things that stood out for me as being very corny were the overly-dramatic, slow-motion escape of the dog in the tunnel as the fireball swept through it and the overly-zealous salute by the pilot immediately following Bill Pullman's independence day speech. Another beef that I have is that the aliens themselves weren't all that menacing-looking without their bio-mechanical suits. In fact, their faces looked a little cartoonish. But we can all take some solace in the realization that no alien design has ever, or ever will, come close to the wicked genius of H.R. Giger's creatures in the "Alien" movies. And what's with the  palm trees still standing in L.A. after the alien attack? After all, that was a pretty big fireball!

memorable moments
As is befitting of a movie that is as close to perfection as "Independence Day" is, there are numerous memorable moments to mention (try saying that ten times really fast!). As was previously mentioned, the destruction of the White House and the Empire State Building (and I shouldn't leave out the Capitol Building) left vivid, lasting images  in my mind. This, along with the brief scene showing the alien ship in the background powering down its main weapon and the fallen Statue Of Liberty in the foreground created a powerful mood of defeat and hopelessness. Another dark moment that enhanced this mood was the scene in which the captured alien was controlling Brent Spiner in an attempt to escape from Area 51. Wishing to resolve things with peaceful negotiation, Bill Pullman asked the alien, "What is it that you want us to do?" Using Spiner's voice to communicate, the creature's eerie reply was simply, "Die" (well, it was more like, "Diiiiiiiiiiiiie"). As with any movie that has as much dramatic intensity as "Independence Day", there were many lighter moments to provide comic relief. Some of these include Harry Connick Jr. on one knee holding up an engagement ring to Will Smith as someone walks by and Smith complaining to no end as he is dragging the unconscious alien across the Nevada desert. Brent Spiner was especially enjoyable to watch in every one of his scenes, especially when he is showing the dead alien bodies to the president and he says, "Some of us like to call it the freak show." He then chuckles and says, "The fr--", but cuts himself off prematurely when he realizes that he is the only one who is laughing. It was nice to see Spiner distance himself from his Data role in "Star Trek: The Next Generation". Other comedic moments popped  up in situations that portrayed how the public was reacting to the arrival of the alien ships prior to them attacking. Most memorable were the woman who proclaimed, "Oh, God, I hope that they bring back Elvis!" and the news reporter telling the people of Los Angeles not to shoot at the alien ships. And finally, although Bill Pullman's role as the president didn't provide him much of an opportunity to stretch his acting skills, his fourth of July speech to the pilots prior to the counter-attack was both powerful and moving, effectively stirring up feelings of patriotism. Of course, there were many more memorable moments in this movie, but I've only got so much room...

The invaders make a BIG entrance...

The fireworks begin...


Payback's a bitch, isn't it?


El Toro is under attack...


The aliens show their more artistic side as they set up props to begin filming a remake
of "Planet of the Apes"...


Just in case the Earth is destroyed, the Area 51 kitchen staff marinates a few aliens...

Will Smith and Jeff Goldblum take time out
on the set to rehearse for their next movie
entitled "Scanners VII"...

Bill Pullman during one of his many stately Presidential speeches...

In a futile attempt to communicate with the aliens, Brent Spiner spontaneously initiates a lively round of charades...


Preparing to whup E.T.'s ass...

Will Smith loses a contact lens...

Arac Attack
The Patriot  |  The 13th Floor  |  Godzilla
Independence Day  |  Stargate  |  Universal Soldier
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