Independence Day
Back when the concept of the true blockbuster started in Hollywood Cinema, there was an ongoing pattern where whatever film was the highest grossing earner (regardless of quality) would always be awarded with a no brainer Oscar Nomination for Best Picture (but would usually not win). This tradition began with Jaws (widely acknowledged as the first true blockbuster) and continue with the likes of Star Wars, Close Encounters, Raiders Of The Lost Ark, and E.T. In time, the tradition more or less died out on the notion that The Oscars should represent actual quality more than box office numbers even if the films themselves were obviously populist successes with ticket buying movie fans. As years went on, cases could be made for many smash hits being the best film of the year (including Dark Knight) that were nonetheless denied any kind of recognition by The Academy (and perhaps forced the creation of The MTV Movie Awards). Like with Jaws, many of these films were built on an epic scale and brought their entertainment level to what it was just based on the sheer spectacle they used to entertain audiences. Entertain. That seems such a foreign concept today, but in 1996, Roland Emmerich and Dean Devlin brought something to the table that rocked peopleâs worlds like never before. On the surface, it seemed like just a mere alien invasion sci fi flick cross pollinated with the old school, big cast disaster flicks that originally hit their peak back in the 1970s (Emmerich has even openly named Towering Inferno and Poseidon Adventure as being his favorite movies), but the ambitious scope of the whole project was as such that when Super Bowl TV ads aired showing the legendary shot of The White House being blown to smithereens by an alien ship, the hype machine went into overdrive for a full six months, resulting in a 4th Of July opening weekend that was the biggest ever at that point, along with a worldwide take of $800 million. Even moreso, it wound up becoming the most popular and most widely aired film on cable TV for at least the next ten years, getting so widely seen that it may very well have become too played out and overstayed its welcome for many who might have gotten sick of it. Itâs certainly still the single best alien invasion movie ever, with even Spielberg himself failing to outdo Emmerich with his War Of The Worlds adaptation years later (from which ID4 borrowed a key plot element from the original H.G. Wells story and made it its own) and in terms of overall disaster movies is perhaps only second to Michael Bayâs Armageddon a few years later even while it also utilized a similar formula to boost its success: feature a large cast of quality actors playing various random characters trying to deal with the ongoing crisis (obviously all human conflicts should be set aside given the threat) and make sure to do enough character development with all of them using good or average writing so that when the heavy action moments with all of the special effects come about, we actually manage to CARE about these people onscreen and whether or not they will live or die. The film starts with a gigantic mothership coming to Earth and then sending out several smaller ships (about 15 miles in length each) to fly over and then hover over each of the worldâs major cities as we meet the 3 primary main characters, starting with The President Of The United States as played by Bill Pullman, a guy who was long a second string standby in the movie world finally being promoted here to leading man status in a role which at its core given the time period was seemingly meant to be another obvious Hollywood love letter to Bill Clinton, but Pullman shakes off the clichĂ© with a more Everyman approach trying to still lead properly and make sound decisions despite his growing concern that he may be the President at literally the end of the world. Then itâs off to New York where we meet a brilliant computer technician played by Jeff Goldblum (goofily ad libbing much of his performance) who figures out a hidden code that the aliens are using to coordinate their impending attack (before anyone else has figured out that there is even going to BE an attack) and makes his way down to Washington to warn Pullman (and where his ex wife is on Pullmanâs staff) about something that even his own people have obviously overlooked as Goldblum (written to be an environmentalist as well) is cleverly costumed in a flannel jacket and wifebeater shirt to expose his chest and give him a more masculine look despite his nerdy persona. Finally, there is Will Smith, lazily rolling out of bed in his first scene with hardly a care in the world, playing the ace fighter pilot who is the only survivor from his battalion in an early attack scene who has fate bring him onboard as one of the main heroes. Itâs hard to get a handle on Smith here, as at first he seems disinterested and focusing more on playing a comedic role, but it also turns out that he is just giving a pure, cocky, classic laid back movie star performance, never showing any real fear or worry in the face of an awesome threat. One thingâs for sure, the producersâ failure to sign him up for the recent sequel cost them dearly, as all these years later he still remains the biggest box office draw from this cast despite his now very well known arrogance, as not having their first filmâs biggest star back has seemingly resulted in a poor showing for the sequel (not that any sequel was ever needed, as this filmâs story was just so complete that it could have very easily remained a stand alone for all time). The other players include Mary McDonnell as the always smiling (even when dying) First Lady, Judd Hirsch doing a sometimes funny Yiddish stand up comedy routine as Goldblumâs father, Robert Loggia as a bulldog like general who essentially just becomes Pullmanâs yes man, Randy Quaid almost stealing the movie with arguably the worst written role as a crazy redneck crop duster who gets caught up in the fight, Margaret Colin as Goldblumâs ex and the real reason that he rushed down to save The Presidentâs life, Vivica Fox as Smithâs stripper girlfriend who always has an upbeat attitude even when encountering a Armageddon spouting street preacher in the filmâs most haunting scene, James Rebhorn as The Secretary Of Defense who gets more and more grating with each passing moment until finally even Pullman himself has had enough and fires him, Harvey Fierstein as (duh) Goldblumâs obviously gay boss who makes an early fireball exit, Adam (Animal Mother) Baldwin as the hardass commanding officer at Area 51, Brent Spiner as the oddball, socially inadequate head scientist at the same top secret facility, James Duval as Quaidâs stepson who helps him raise his two younger siblings, Kiersten Warren as the super cute stripper co worker of Foxâs who runs out to the top of a building to greet the aliens along with a bunch of other idiots and pays dearly for it, and even Harry Connick Jr. as Smithâs goofy (and possibly gay) fellow pilot. A colorful mix indeed, and even if the writingâs not all there, the action / destruction sequences are something to behold, including the mutual mass fireball destruction of New York, Los Angeles, and Washington DC, the aerial battle between Smithâs squadron and some alien hordes, and the final battle itself with Pullman (a former fighter pilot himself before becoming President) leading the troops in for victory at all costs. All that plus Pullmanâs incredibly inspiring (and much mocked) pre battle speech which still stands as his greatest screen moment, the rekindling of Goldblum and Colinâs love affair as they witness Smith and Fox get hitched as well, and the scriptâs daring use of the aforementioned Area 51 in Roswell, New Mexico as a major plot point and setting for the command base when itâs time for the final battle, a move which prompted the United States military to formally withdraw all consulting and support duties on the film as a result. The filmâs reception with certain types is fascinating to watch as well as while the mainstream audiences loved the film, those who hate it seem to do so with such an hilarious passion, especially the idea of America âleading the fightâ to save the world (a particular sticking point with liberals) along with some of the nuances of Goldblumâs master plan to bring the aliens to their knees, but when it comes to putting the pedal to the medal and going full balls out on a winning concept, holding nothing back in terms of execution and leaving all that passion up on the screen, and in also remembering that an epic apocalyptic scenario such as this requires the story to be told as it should in terms of being a loud, bold, brash, epic spectacle designed above all else to entertain, then this classic proudly takes its place as being amongst the single greatest Hollywood blockbusters ever made, Best Picture Oscar nomination or notâŠ
10/10