By Paul Hall
Aliens have invaded us again in the new film Independence Day: Resurgence. In the 20 years since we battled for our independence in Independence Day, we’ve set up new defenses and used the alien technology to become a safer planet. But we weren’t the only ones who had those years to prepare.
For today’s battle, we have a new President (Sela Ward) leading the way, but this movie is not about her.
Former President Thomas Whitmore (Bill Pullman) is having nightmares that seem to be signaling something, but he’s not sure what.
And although the White House has a new leader, many folks related to those from the first film are hanging around. There’s President Whitmore’s daughter Patricia (Maika Monroe), Capt. Steven Hiller’s son Dylan (Jessie T. Usher) and, of course, there is the uber-intelligent David Levinson (Jeff Goldblum). All are meant to give us warm fuzzies as we remember the 1996 film.
We get a new hotshot pilot, Jake Morrison (Liam Hemsworth), who will try to pick up where the late Capt. Hiller (Will Smith’s character, in case you forgot) left off, but his judgment may be a bit clouded by his love for Patricia. The world is in the hands of this new generation of heroes, but are Jake, Patricia and Dylan up for the challenge of saving us from the alien queen?
OK, I’ve rambled long enough. How about making this summary really brief? Same story, slightly different characters, same background while more things blow up. (That could be a tweet!) But one thing seemed like it was missing — they forgot to include the same amount of fun.
Sure, Independence Day: Resurgence has some moments that were pure summer popcorn fun, but those moments are few and far between. A film like this can no longer get away with not having a story. Summer blockbusters can have us enjoying our big bucket of popcorn while at least following a semi-cohesive tale.
We’ve come to expect more from this type of film since the release of the classic alien invasion of 1996. As a critic and a movie fan, I declare my independence and plead for a better story next time. And based on the setup, we will fight another battle for our independence, but doesn’t this mean it should be titled Independence Days? Maybe the Fonz can save us, or maybe — much like the Fonz did in Happy Days — this franchise has jumped the shark.
Independence Day: Resurgence
Rated: PG-13
Stars: Jeff Goldblum, Liam Hemsworth, Bill Pullman
Director: Roland Emmerich
Grade: C+
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