Independence Day Resurgence

Starring: Liam Hemsworth, Joey King, Bill Pullman, Jeff Goldblum, Judd Hirsch, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Brent Spiner (Rated M – 120 min).

Boldly and brazenly, Independence Day was touted as a next generation Star Wars. A massive box office hit in 1996 with unforgettable visual effects, incredible action set pieces and likable characters, it turns out size still matters in winning the ET war of the world’s twenty years on with another alien invasion about to take hold and a new generation uniting with survivors of the original.

Not returning is Will Smith as the hot shot pilot saving the world, he is greatly missed, however incoming is Australian Liam Hemsworth and Maika Monroe who backs up her unbelievable breakout scream queen role in It Follows, impressive as part of the new airborne defense.

Forget about any kind of deep storytelling here, even if you’re not familiar with the two decade old predecessor, this is all about excessive gung-ho patriotism against a screaming in delight alien force who are not happy that humanity won over them last time around so decide to take out Earth on an even larger scale.

Even more landmarks explode and some even bounce around hitting other landmarks. As cluttered as some of the computer generated action is, for a big screen spectacle this is definitely a must see. Entertainment is at a premium mixed with laughs and a love story.

Jeff Goldblum is back as satellite technician David Levinson, still jittery with some of the best lines in the film. I certainly did enjoy seeing Bill Pullman (Singles, While You Were Sleeping) return as the people’s president Thomas J. Whitmore. Extending his already often quoted in real life speech from the first film into a breaching word on tyranny against the nasty aliens, his concise words yet again inspires troops including this time his fly-girl daughter joining the intergalactic combat to prevent armageddon.

Best seen on the big screen, then settling into your cinema seat with a jumbo popcorn, is the best way to enjoy this one.

Shane A. Bassett

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