Review: Independence Day

Aliens have arrived, hovering over various cities on Earth. But they aren’t friendly, blasting away without warning. Techno whiz Jeff Goldblum thinks he has decoded their transmissions, and tries to get his ex-wife and White House press secretary Margaret Colin to arrange a meeting with the President (Bill Pullman), a man he once got into a physical altercation with. They manage to evacuate the White House, as Goldblum tries to figure out a way to get past the aliens’ seemingly impenetrable shields. Meanwhile, Will Smith plays a marine fly boy called upon to join the fight to, as he puts it ‘kick ET’s ass’, alongside good buddy Harry Connick Jr. Randy Quaid turns up as a deadbeat dad and drunken crop-duster who claims to have had a ‘close encounter’ years back, Mary McDonnell is the First Lady, Vivica A. Fox is Smith’s stripper wife, Lisa Jakub is Quaid’s sulky daughter, Judd Hirsch is Goldblum’s very Jewish father, and Robert Loggia and James Rebhorn play military men of differing dispositions.

 

I can remember seeing the trailer for this 1996 blockbuster from director Roland Emmerich and co-writer Dean Devlin (who combined to make “Universal Soldier” and “Stargate”). I thought it was going to be a sure-fire classic. Sure I was 16 at the time, but I wasn’t easily impressed by blockbusters (“Jurassic Park” and “Batman Forever” underwhelmed me). This just looked awesome, and everyone was pumped at the time thanks mostly to one of the best marketing campaigns/hype of any film I’ve seen. And then I saw the film and thought it was…kinda OK. Seeing it again in 2014, I’ve not changed my mind much (“Stargate” was similarly disappointing, but a bit better), though the only thing that has dated the film in the last 15 or so years is the use of green screen, which hasn’t held up at all. It helps to lessen even the best special FX scenes in the film, like the otherwise excellent first shot of the alien mothership. That and the regrettable contributions from Will Smith and Vivica A. Fox are the weakest elements in an otherwise very watchable film.

 

But first, let’s look at the good. Almost no piece of American iconography goes without being destroyed in this film, and although it’s pretty standard now, in 1996 it proved quite an awesome sight. Meanwhile, the film gets off to a fun start immediately earning points for using a particular REM song we all know and love. Yes, that one. We also have perfect casting in the form of Jeff Goldblum, and especially Randy Quaid, who basically plays this role in real-life now. Seriously, have you heard about Star Whackers? Quaid is a versatile talent, but playing white trash goofs is kinda his specialty, and this time he gets to add a touch of heart too. Goldblum always comes across as a guy with a million thoughts racing in his head at once, who then takes a brief moment of pause to find amusement in those thoughts. That makes him absolutely perfect for the role of the nerdy computer whiz who is humanity’s best hope in coming up with a way to beat the aliens, from a technological standpoint. He’s also believable as a guy who might not play well with others, having gotten into a fight with the President previously. And although I’d argue that Mary McDonnell seems too old to play Bill Pullman’s wife, they are both nonetheless perfectly chosen individually as the US President and First Lady, respectively. And a little research informs me they are only a year apart from one another anyway. How ‘bout that? I also appreciated the efforts of Judd Hirsch and the underrated Margaret Colin in support (Hirsch in particular is quite touching in his devotion towards his son), whilst Harry Connick Jr. brought the funny as essentially this film’s Goose from “Top Gun”, and Robert Loggia is a sturdy presence among the military figures in the film. I also think the design of the alien ships is awesome, and Emmerich earns big points for the hilarious scene with a sublime Brent Spiner as the film confirms the existence of Area 51. I enjoyed the music score by the eclectic David Arnold (“Stargate”, “Tomorrow Never Dies”, “Quantum of Solace”).

 

There’s no getting around the fact that the African-American contingent in this film don’t fare well. Vivica A. Fox, playing perhaps the first in an unfortunate trend of strippers who don’t actually strip, surely mustn’t reflect on this role fondly. It’s neither a strong role for African-Americans, nor women in general. But the bigger problem is Will Smith hippin’ and hoppin’ and acting all flippant and jokey in a crucial heroic role. Emmerich gives the actor (who was terrific on TV’s “Fresh Prince of Bel-Air”) too much room to do his shtick, to an unnecessary and unhelpful degree. Even the dogfights are sullied by Smith getting all Muhammad Ali and smack talkin’, though at least this Ali is much more lively than when Smith really did play “Ali”. The film’s lowest point is Will punching an alien and yelling inarticulately: ‘Welcome to Erf’. Yes, our most jiggy Fresh Prince pronounces the planet Earth as ‘Erf’. Every line from Smith is a corny, inarticulate hippity hop catch phrase, and I just wanted him to shut the hell up. There is no need to get jiggy in this film, Mr. Smith, thank you very much.

 

I also think there was a couple of instances of really poor screenwriting. While Robert Loggia provides an interestingly measured balance to James Rebhorn’s more hawkish military character, I didn’t quite understand why Rebhorn was treated so harshly towards the end. Is merely being an arsehole justification for what happens to him? I don’t believe so. I also thought it was really poor to save one character only to have them die anyway immediately after. What the hell was that for?

 

It’s not original, it’s not the film it could’ve and should’ve been, but it ain’t “Pearl Harbour”, “Titanic”, or “Battlefield Earth”, either. There’s some undeniably striking imagery, and the dogfights are laser-beamed fun. It’s closer to the 1953 “War of the Worlds” than the superior 2005 Spielberg remake, and so long as you know you’re getting a mixture of that and “Top Gun”, it’s an easy watch. If it weren’t for Will Smith, it’d be even better than that. Not all dumb B-movies are bad, and this one is proof of that.

 

Rating: B-