INDEPENDENCE DAY
A film review by Larry McGillicuddy
Copyright 1996 Larry McGillicuddy
**** (out of 4) Directed by Roland Emmerich Starring Bill Pullman, Jeff Goldblum, Will Smith, Margaret Colin,Robert Loggia, Mary McDonnell, Judd Hirsch, Randy Quaid, Harry Connick Jr., Harvey Fierstein, Adam Baldwin, Andrew Keegan, Devon Gummersall
Review- Stargate was one of the worst science fiction movies I've ever seen. It was dull, moronic, and not exciting for a minute. Roland Emmerich directed that movie. Someone named Roland Emmerich directed this movie. Before I saw Independence Day, I thought it was the same person. Now I'm not so sure. There is nothing dull or moronic about this movie, and I was gripped the entire way through. In short, Independence Day delivers exactly what it promised.
Independence Day provides us with an old reliable scare story. What if we were visited from another planet? What if the visitors were not so friendly? How would we react to this situation? All of these questions are answered in an exciting, intelligent, and humorous way.
Aliens have entered our atmosphere. At first we're not so sure what to expect. All the world can do is wait. Then a mathemetician played by Jeff Goldblum (big stretch, huh?) discovers the aliens are using our satellites against us. In doing so, he is able to warn the White House so they can get out of Washington DC soon enough, saving the lives of many, including the president, played by Bill Pullman. A fighter pilot, played by Will Smith, survives a dogfight with an alien spaceship, and drags the alien from its damaged spacecraft to a secret base. Many cities have been destroyed and not much time is left. The Americans must discover a way to fight back.
A stellar cast of reliable character actors was assembled for this movie. Bill Pullman plays the president with great dignity and honor, and a speech he gives to the troops on the night of the counterattack had me cheering, along with the rest of the audience. jeff Goldblum, one of my favorite actors, is just as quirky, original, and amusing as he always is. His offbeat line readings are always a great pleasure, and they work very well here. Will Smith is quickly becoming a major movie star, and he is the best hotshot fighter pilot since Tom Cruise. He also gets much funnier things to say than in Bad Boys, for example. And then there are the special effects. Not for one second were any of them unbeleivable. The over 2 hour running time, which never feels long, leaves room for enough romantic subplots that even Jeff Goldblum gets one. If you want to see some Americans banding with the rest of the world to "get up there and woop ET's ass" go see Independence Day. I'll probably be in line with you when I see it again. This movie was worth the hype.
**** Excellent *** Good ** Below Par * Very Bad No Stars No Redeeming Qualities at all.
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