Rating: 
Summary: Innocence Lost
Review: Ah, for the days when aliens would attack our cities and all the world would unite against a common, otherworldly foe.
What with all that has happened recently I can't see that sort of cooperation between countries as easily as I used to.Anyhoo, this was a fun film on many levels. The special effects were great (but then again they'da have to be theses days), the story was - ahem - simple but that seems to be a good thing. Will Smith played his flyboy character well; a sort of 'Freash Prince of the Air'. Jeff Goldblum was was fine (although I felt at times his character might have been added in a later draft), and Bill Pullman was great. I had never really seen him as leading man material before this film. His rallying speech to the remaining pilots at the final battle was inspiring (note: the first time I saw this film I cried during the speech, but to be fair I was drunk at the time).
The aliens are appropriately nasty, the win is slightly unbelievable - but not by too much. And the tarnished hero/father figure rising to the occasion was a nice touch.
A good film, worth buying and watching now and again.
Rating: 
Summary: Decent Movie, But Hard To View Nowadays
Review: This 1996 films is, of course, for pure entertainment. In that respect, it definitley succeeds. Story wise, it leaves much to desire. The movie is perfectly made, with eye popping effects, and a golden cast. But, it is no longer easy to watch because of certain scenes. I think you know why. Is it enough to bash a film and give it one star?. Well, that'a a topic for a debate. I don't know myself. There are a few stupid things here. The President, played by Bill Pullman, decides to go up in the air to fight the aliens too?. Come on. He says "My place is up in the sky", or something like that. Give me a break. They'd have him underground in a bunker or something. That was pure hokeyness if ever there was any. Will Smith turne into a real capable, and heroic leading man with this film. That star dimmed however, with "Wild Wild West". This obviously isn't a film meant for Oscar consideration. It's just a fun ride designed to make going to the movies fun. It was definitley fun. It runs way too long, and is filled with too much unneeded stuff tho. The nasty review at the bottom of the page is ridiculous. It goes way out of proportion with untrue sayings that are obviously said to just satisfy whoever wrote it.
Rating: 
Summary: TERRIFIC SCI-FI ALIEN INVASION ACTION FLICK...
Review: This is a sensational sci-fi alien invasion action film with a stellar cast. Alien invaders suddenly darken the skyline across the world, as city sized flying saucers hover ominously over major cities world wide. A computer geek, David Levinson (Jeff Goldblum), figures out how the alien ships are communicating with each other and realizes the import of what he has discovered. He manages to have an audience with President Whitmore (Bill Pullam), as his ex-wife is one of the president's top aides, and tells the president of his findings. Wonder at the alien saucer spectacle turns to terror, as the meaning of the ships in the sky becomes clear. The White House evacuates just in time, as the aliens launch a world wide attack in complete synchronization, an awesome spectacle that enthralls the viewer. A counter attack is launched, led by fighter pilot Captain Steve Hiller (Will Smith), which ends in disaster for the fighter pilots, as only Hiller survives to fight another day. He manages, however, to bring in a captive. Notwithstanding the gravity of the premise of the film, there are moments of comic relief interspersed throughout. Meanwhile, our computer geek, realizing why the counter attack failed, comes up with a solution, one that requires a lot of derring do. A second counter attack is launched world wide, which leads to some terrific action scenes and heroics by a most unlikely candidate. Naturally, mankind is victorious. It is not the victory itself, however, but what leads up to the victory that makes the film so entertaining. This is a fast paced film, with a myriad of subplots and coincidental pairings that stretch the viewer's credence, but do not take away from the enjoyment of the film. The special effects are a marvel to behold. Look for fine performances from the stellar supporting cast: Mary McConnell, Robert Loggia, Margaret Colin, Randy Quaid, Judd Hirsch, James Rebhorn, Harry Connick, Jr., and Harvey Fierstein. All in all, this is a marvelous film. Be prepared for an unintended poignant moment in the film, when the camera pans to the New York skyline and the viewer sees the World Trade Center twin towers standing proud and tall on the horizon. It is a moment that gives the viewer pause in remembrance of what was. It is, indeed, a moment to remember. The quality of this two disc DVD is superlative with crystal clear visuals and great sound quality. The letterbox format offers both the theatrical release version and the special edition version from which to choose. The special edition version offers an extra nine minutes of restored footage. The second disc offers a myriad of features, including an interesting thirty minute documentary on the making of the film. All in all, this two disc DVD is a terrific value and well worth having in one's collection.
Rating: 
Summary: This Movie is not watchable anymore.
Review: I know this is a movie of fiction and I don;t fault anyone for making it, but this movie with it's picture of the ruined NYC after the alien attack strikes a cord that is too close to what happened on September 11. I can't watch this movie anymore.
Rating:
Summary: Please shoot me before they make a sequel
Review: Will Smith is quickly establishing himself as the king of commercial (movies). (Wicky) Wild Wild West and his heavily sampled music albums are just a couple of examples of his "full sale" entertainment career. Independence Day is at the top of the (junk)heap. All they needed was a schmaltzy Aerosmith title track to make this movie the perfect steaming pile. This is American movie making at it's worse.
Rating:
Summary: Should have been called ID-Ten-T (like the form).
Review: If Fort Knox held ideas instead of gold, then we safely assume the the makers of ID4 stripped the place bare. But I guess if you steal enough ideas, you can make it look original. Here are a few of the ideas I wish to point out: 1. Large city-sized spaceships floating over the world's major cities. Sounds like something that either came out of the 1980s television series V or the classic science fiction novel Childhood's End by Arthur C. Clarke. 2. The insectile shape of the alien beings themselves are taken from the ALIEN movies. 3. The fact that the mother ships are impervious to even nuclear weapons was stolen from the great 1950s version of War of the Worlds. 4. The fighter pilots are little more than caricatures from Top Gun, a horrible and derivative film in and of itself. 5. The Area 51 scene was done much better in a lousy film called Hangar 18. But if stealing ideas was not enough, the producers had to go even further by insulting the intellect of anyone over 5 years old. Ask yourself these two questions: 1. How could a fighter pilot, no matter how well trained, instantly learn to fly an alien fighter craft? 2. How could a human designed computer system transfer a virus into the alien central computer? You don't have to answer since Apple was quick to commercialize here? I shouldn't bad mouth this movie so much. Blockbusters like this - and Armageddon - are made for one purpose alone: to make money. If is derivative, empty of all meaningful content except for computer generated eye candy, and manipulative; then so be it.
Rating:
Summary: This is What DVD Players Were Made For!
Review: Independence Day is one great film. I saw it in theaters and could'nt believe my eyes. It's truly authentic and has more special effects than any other movie, with the exception of "The Matrix" and "Armageddon". The film has a superb cast, with Will Smith, Jeff Goldblum, Vivica A Fox, and Bill Pullman. The film grossed #9 of the highest grossing movies of all-time. Bringing in an estimated $306,169,255! That's not including video and dvd sales, which probably added another billion on top of that! The film is about aliens trying to take over out planet, and how the world unites as one, to try to fend off the aliens. With some of the greatest special effects, a great cast, and even better, refreshing storyline, this film will remain with everyone forever. (...)
Rating:
Summary: Holy Crap this a good dvd!
Review: Independence day is a great movie with will smith, jeff goldblum and Bill Pullman. The dvd itself is spectacular! There are so many special features and an hours worth of hidden features. The 3d interactive menus are incredible. I still havnt finished watching all the features. If you liked the movie a little bit buy it because all the special features are worth it. I recommend this movie to ages 13 & up.
Rating:
Summary: Good Movie, Great DVD
Review: This 2 DVD set is probably one of my best buys all year. I loved the movie when it originally came out, I loved the video when it came out (with the odd looking holograms with the White House exploding), and I love this DVD. This DVD comes fully equipped with great "making of" extra, along with trailers, TV spots, and audio commentaries, but it comes with the original ending where Randy Quaid's character straps a missile to his biplane (crop duster) and blows up the space ship. A great DVD and a great special edition movie!
Rating:
Summary: Great action film to keep you patriotic
Review: This is a great film that has lots of action & thought provoking scenes to bring up all your patriotic feelings. It's also great to see Will Smith and Bill Pullman who are both great actors! You'll enjoy this movie & watch it over and over!
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