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Movies / Upcoming / Independence Day
Independence Day

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Independence Day (1996)

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Reviews Counted:54

Fresh:33

Rotten:21

Average Rating:6.3/10

Consensus: The plot is thin and so is character development, but as a thrilling, spectacle-filled summer movie, Independence Day delivers.

Runtime: 2 hrs 33 mins

Genre: Science-Fiction/Fantasy

US Box Office: $0

Synopsis: With a $71 million budget and mind-blowing special effects, INDEPENDENCE DAY is a grand, high-tech throwback to such films of the 1950s as THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL and WAR OF THE WORLDS. Here,... With a $71 million budget and mind-blowing special effects, INDEPENDENCE DAY is a grand, high-tech throwback to such films of the 1950s as THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL and WAR OF THE WORLDS. Here, aliens, in numerous gargantuan spaceships, arrive without warning and hover over the world's most important cities, creating global panic. The nasty visitors use death rays to blow New York, Washington D.C, and Los Angeles to smithereens. A handful of plucky Americans, including the Clinton-esque President (Bill Pullman), a gung-ho fighter pilot (Will Smith) and a computer geek named David (Jeff Goldblum), attempt to devise a strategy against the invaders. On July 4th, their risky plan is put into effect, as dozens of fighter pilots (including the President) wage an assault on the spaceships. However, their success (and the fate of the world) depends on David, who is attempting to disarm the aliens's mothership. [More]

Starring: Will Smith, Jeff Goldblum, Bill Pullman, Margaret Colin

Starring: Will Smith, Jeff Goldblum, Bill Pullman, Margaret Colin, Judd Hirsch, Randy Quaid, Vivica A. Fox, Mary McDonnell, James Rebhorn, Harvey Fierstein, Robert Loggia, Harry Connick, James Duval

Director: Roland Emmerich

Director: Roland Emmerich
Screenwriter: Dean Devlin, Roland Emmerich
Composer: David Arnold
Producer: Dean Devlin, Roland Emmerich, Ute Emmerich, William Fay, Lincoln D. Hiatt, Peter Winther
Studio: 20th Century Fox

[See More Credits]

Reviews for Independence Day

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1 - 20 (sorted by critic A-Z; Australian critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 3 >> >|
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It coulda been a contender.

Full Review Source: Urban Cinefile | comment Comment
01/01/00
Urban Cinefile Critics
Urban Cinefile Critics
Urban Cinefile
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

No one who wants to see this movie needs me to recommend it to them, but if anyone wants to know, I say stay home and rent one of those other movies on video.

Full Review Source: Combustible Celluloid | comment 1 Comment
02/17/07
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Combustible Celluloid

If I were a 10-year-old boy, I'd probably think it was the coolest movie going.

Full Review Source: Newsweek | comment Comment
03/05/08
David Ansen
David Ansen
Newsweek

One of the prime guilty pleasures of our time.

Full Review Source: rec.arts.movies.reviews | comment Comment
02/14/03
Dragan Antulov
Dragan Antulov
rec.arts.movies.reviews

Unfortunately, and perhaps not unexpectedly, it doesn't live up to the hype.

Full Review Source: ReelViews | comment Comment
01/01/00
James Berardinelli
James Berardinelli
ReelViews

Basically, this is almost perfect realization of the movie you eagerly anticipated when, as a kid, you saw some poster or coming attractions trailer for a 1950s-style alien invasion movie ...

Full Review Source: ESplatter | comment Comment
07/07/08
Steve Biodrowski
Steve Biodrowski
ESplatter

Independence Day is Hollywood's poster child for the design-by-committee blockbuster.

Full Review Source: SPLICEDWire | comment Comment
01/01/00
Rob Blackwelder
Rob Blackwelder
SPLICEDWire

The ultimate special effects spectacular.

Full Review Source: Spirituality and Practice | comment Comment
08/27/02
Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat
Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat
Spirituality and Practice

Splendidly cheesy entertainment.

Full Review Source: CNN.com | comment Comment
03/05/08
Carol Buckland
Carol Buckland
CNN.com

Though the movie isn't too deep, it's certainly a rousing state-of-the-art cartoon capped by an aerial-combat climax that, to its credit, isn't anti-climactic.

comment Comment
01/01/00
Mike Clark
Mike Clark
USA Today
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

No brain, no pain, but a heck of a lot of fun.

Full Review Source: Reeling Reviews | comment Comment
04/09/05
Robin Clifford
Robin Clifford
Reeling Reviews

No matter how ludicrous and coincidental the plot gets, it never takes itself seriously.

Full Review Source: Reeling Reviews | comment Comment
03/05/08
Laura Clifford
Laura Clifford
Reeling Reviews

The most spectacular and intriguing sci-fi action film since the 'Star Wars' trilogy. (published 7-6-96)

Full Review Source: Kansas City Kansan | comment Comment
12/28/04
Steve Crum
Steve Crum
Kansas City Kansan

Does the hype monster ID4 live up to its massive buildup? In a word, no.

Full Review Source: TheMovieReport.com | comment Comment
01/01/00
Michael Dequina
Michael Dequina
TheMovieReport.com

The aliens, when we finally see them, are a serious disappointment; couldn't they think of anything more interesting than octopus men?

Full Review Source: Chicago Sun-Times | comment 3 Comments
01/01/00
Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Chicago Sun-Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Independence Day is a throwback to traditional entertainment with an old-fashioned, gung-ho good time thrilled up by 90s-style state-of-the-art technology.

Full Review Source: Empire Magazine | comment Comment
01/01/00
Angie Errigo
Angie Errigo
Empire Magazine
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

The movie is like an advertisement for more defense spending.

Full Review Source: Philadelphia City Paper | comment Comment
01/01/00
Cynthia Fuchs
Cynthia Fuchs
Philadelphia City Paper

Forget government conspiracies about aliens -- what about the entertainment media's conspiracy to persuade America that this movie doesn't suck?

Full Review Source: eFilmCritic.com | comment 6 Comments
08/13/07
Rob Gonsalves
Rob Gonsalves
eFilmCritic.com

What's truly amazing about Independence Day is that it moves so quickly, has such a huge 'Wow!' factor in terms of special effects and is loaded with so much humor and so many amusing characters that even purists won't complain.

Full Review Source: Deseret News, Salt Lake City | comment Comment
01/01/00
Chris Hicks
Chris Hicks
Deseret News, Salt Lake City

The film has a genial it's-only-a-movie attitude that sets it apart, quite emphatically, from other blockbuster action movies.

Full Review Source: New York Times | comment Comment
01/01/00
Caryn James
Caryn James
New York Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by critic A-Z; Australian critics are listed first)
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all

Latest News for Independence Day

November 16, 2009: Emmerich Talks Independence Day Sequels Opens in new window
All these years later, Roland Emmerich is thinking about returning to "Independence Day" -- and not with just one sequel, either. How does "ID4-Ever" sound to you? More...

November 02, 2009: 12 Facts About 2012
Did the Mayans really predict, all those centuries ago, that Earth would be visited by planetary apocalypse three years from now? It's open to interpretation -- Roland Emmerich... More...

March 03, 2009: Five Favourite Films with Bill Pullman
Few can forget Bill Pullman's rousing speech as the US president in Independence Day, but it's only one of a long string of vast and diverse roles that have seen him cast as... More...

March 06, 2008: Box Office Guru Preview: Ancient Action Arrives Again
For its third chart-topper of the year, Warner Bros. is going back in time with its ancient adventure 10,000 BC which aims to revitalize a box office on the verge of extinction. More...

See All

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