“We will not go quietly into the night! We will not vanish without a fight! We’re going to live on! We’re going to survive! Today we celebrate our Independence Day!”..... Yeah, it still gives me chills too. Looking back at Independence Day 20 years later is a curious thing. Anyone that experienced it in the '90's will remember it as one of the generation-defining blockbusters, the highest-grossing film of 1996 that smashed Jurassic Park’s film opening records. If wasn’t just a film release, it was an event and a game-changing viewing experience comparable to modern likes of Avatar. Yet I have several late teens friends who had genuinely never even heard of it until the press started flowing for the sequel. Even though we talked about it and I showed them some clips, I got little more than a hipster “meh” from them. Why? Because although Independence Day was a special film to so many back then, its story and concept have since become very common place in CG-fest blockbusters that now fill our summers. Hell, even the Ninja Turtles just battled a giant alien space ship to save the planet! So as the long gestating and ever reworked sequel finally arrives (it’s been in development for over 12 years), the biggest question is this: will it feel special anymore? Against all odds, the answer is it does. Sure, it may feel less distinguished from its big box office rivals these days but Resurgence feels very much in keeping with the awe inspiring ideals of its original. Welcome back to Earth.
20 years since the forces of mankind defeated their alien invaders and now with their vast Earth Space Defence program, they stand stronger than ever. But when an old ship’s distress beacon gets activated, the aliens return bigger and stronger than they could have imagined. Can the Human forces, including ESD director David Levinson (Jeff Goldblum – Jurassic Park), hot shot pilot Jake (Liam Hemsworth – The Hunger Games) and former President Thomas Whitmore (Bill Pullman – Spaceballs) once again make the 4th of July a day for independence?
For all the huge spectacle of its later set pieces, the first act the film is surprisingly the most enjoyable by the way it so quickly and effectively wins you over with the vastly different and changed setting from the first film. It’s best comparable to The Force Awakens in the way it’s pledging us an entirely new generation littered with a few familiar faces for comfort. Not only do the effects look gorgeous --from the moon base to next generation aircraft-- but it all feels very believable in depicting the aftermath of the previous attack. In one great little moment, we see Jake and his best friend Charlie (Travis Tope – Boardwalk Empire) talk of both being orphans in reflection of first film’s huge death toll. Then there’s a complete change of stance and urgency with regards to military action. Caution and perceptions of diplomacy have been blasted out the airlock in favor of decisive action and a “shoot first ask questions later” approach, which feels entirely logical when considering everything these peope have been through. It really feels like a lot of time and effort have gone into world creation rather than just making Die Hard 2 with aliens. The changes might not suit everyone who liked the more real world feel of the first film and in fact, the results occasionally feel more like a Star Trek film than Independence Day. Circling back to The Force Awakens analogy, the film does a very good job in the way it presents us new faces with some degree of depth and history. The best example is the now-grown-up Dylan Dubrow-Hiller (Jessie Usher - Survivor's Remorse) and Patricia Whitmore (Maika Monroe – It Follows); previously seen as the young children of Will Smith’s Steven Hiller and President Whitmore respectively. Their presence really ties together the next generation theme of the film and the pledged bad blood to bro down arc Dylan and Jake is enjoyable to watch.
It’s not all fireworks and barbeques though. Underneath all the good stuff, there are a couple of plot holes the size of big ass laser blasts: most notably, who and how it set off the aforementioned ship distress signal. It’s one of the several points that get glossed over, especially in the second half where the film shows some signs of rushing. One of the standout features of its original was just how smooth and efficiently paced the narrative was. That appears to have been lost in space this time around. Then, there are the returning characters. Most are welcome and very well-used but then =, there is Judd Hirsch returning as David’s Jewish father stereotype, Julius. He could not be less welcome if he was waving his junk in front of Kindergarten class. He has no plot significance. He’s purely there for comic relief but he’s never funny and even conjures up images of the awful forced comic relief characters in Transformers movies. He’s an old man. They should have let him die with dignity in between films rather than dragging him across this story.
Then we have the film’s super weapon, its action sequences of city wide destruction and vast human verses alien battles. They’re not as good as the first film, they are better yet still the blend of fun and almost silliness that drives their entertainment. For anyone that’s spent years staring a poster on their bedroom wall, hoping to see ET get his ass whooped one more time, this is delivers everything you could have wanted and more. The escalation both in the colossal harvester ship and the James Cameron alien queen boss gives it the feel of fresh challenges, and it’s even a bit more lighthearted and self aware (like Goldberg’s almost 4th wall-breaking “they like to get the landmarks” comment) but it doesn’t sacrifice any of the peril or desperation. It’s not just the air battles this time around either, as a number of ground skirmishes changes things up nicely while also pulling more of the cast into the fight. It’s definitely worth the 3D upgrade too as it really does take the battle sequences to a new dimension. The overall result is superb popcorn-crunching blockbuster experience that couldn’t care less about being dark or gritty. There are plenty of good laughs too, especially from the returning Brent Spiner (Star Trek TNG’s Data) as the even more spaced out scientist Dr Okun.
Any fans of the original who aren’t offended by a more colorful near future take will walk out of the cinema lighting up their victory dance as the fat lady gets her blasts one out. Any newcomers will find a fun and action packed feast of Earth defending and raining skyscrapers. Don’t expect it to be perfect because it’s not but if you go in looking for a good time, you’ll get one and then some. Last year, many people described Jurassic World as being just a film whereas its 93 original was an event, and the same can be said here about Independence Day: Resurgence but it’s a film of vast entertainment and high accessibility for all manner of demographics. Be sure to give this film a close encounter.
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