MOVIE REVIEW: Independence Day: Resurgence
- Bobby D.
- Jun 28, 2016
- 3 min read
20 years ago, the Human race was faced with annihilation. Threatened by a unknown alien that was destroying countless cities across the globe and strategically positioning themselves to wipe us out. Thankfully efforts made in Area 51 with the aid of Jeff Goldblum and Will Smith, further destruction was thwarted and the world was safe once again...
Since then, the human race has flourished, found peace, advanced technology, reached space travel... etc... Countless advancements both in technology, and foreign politics have unified the world. Awesome right? When those who were 'touched' by the aliens 20 years ago begin having more frequent visions, among other signs, we fear that they're coming back. Only when they do, it's a much larger force than we ever could have imagined, and it's going to decimate the earth and everything on it... unless we can stop them, again.
ID:R is good, don't let many of the critics and other reviews disuade you. If you enjoyed ID4, chances are this one will entertain you as well. Fond memories of the first movie are abundant but not overbearing, some play a key role, others... eastereggs for those paying attention. The overall story, while it doesn't acheive the epicness of the first movie, fits decently well and does a good job connecting elements, crafting a very believable universe. I think this is where people either hate the movie or enjoy it. Again, while it doesn't appear as grandiose as ID4 was. It's pushing for something bigger and establishing something bigger, so in that regard I'm okay with it taking a slight step back into a more intimate feeling... because SPOILER ALERT: It's not over! Overall, I was a bit disappointed at how they fell into a stereotypical monster movie towards the end of the film. Things also felt way too familiar, where we were seeing a rebooting of past events we've already seen... the "Must go faster!" chase and infiltrating the enemy ship, to ultimate sacrifices. People are a bit tired of seeing this and want to see fresh new and surprising, from being slapped with the essentially the same movie with the most recent Star Wars and Jurassic Park/World films essentially being reboots of the old, people want to see some more innovation in their stories. ID4 was so crazy, because director Roland Emmerich treated it as a disaster movie first, an alien invasion action movie second, and that hadn't been done before, top it with an awesome cast, good over the top action, probably the best monologue ever and "That's what I call a Close Encounter!".
Where ID:R really shines is fleshing out this new universe it's creating, the human space ships and space stations, the technology, the Aliens or "Harvesters" as they've been dubbed, are done wonderfully well. Our own advancements in technology really bring the Aliens to life and open countless opportunities for pure awesomeness down the road, but for now, these beings are true monsters, scarier and even more intimidating than ever before. They're big, fast, ugly, and very deadly. I hope we get to see more action with them in future films. The characters themselves further fleshed out and the audience is brought to love them even more so. Former President David Whitemore (Bill Pullman) is just as much of a badass as he was 20 years back, and gives yet another motivational albeit not as epic monologue.
My biggest gripe is in sound... I'm not an audiophile by any means, but I can appreciate inventive sound effects and editing. In ID4, the alien space ships had this wonderful noise when they flew and operated. To me, it made them come alive! Being as recognizable and iconic as a Tie fighter from Star Wars. Sadly here it has been omitted, and alien craft don't have any noticeable sound at all, which is very upsetting, which although the aliens inside flying the ships are more fleshed out and imposing, their ships (at least the small fighter drones) are very forgettable.
Overall, the movie is decent, while just as big with the destruction, explosions and action, as the original. It just doesn't reach the sheer epic scope it's predecessor did (yet). In my opinion it's worth checking out. Especially if you're in the market for a new intersteller universe different from those other "Star" franchises.
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