Independence Day

It's the end of the world, and only one man knows the way to stop a breed of aliens from taking over the planet. David Levinson (Jeff Goldblum) is a smart cable repairman who spends the movie trying to figure out a way to break the "code" in order to stop an alien invasion. When he anticipates the first attack from his workplace in New York, he rushes to save his girlfriend who works for the President of the United States, David Levinson (Bill Pullman)in Washington D.C.

The pace is solid, and the characters are fun to follow. A strong cast and fun story will keep you entertained. The special effects are awesome, and there are plenty of cool dogfights in the air, between the United States military and alien fighter jets. Captain Steven "Eagle" Hiller (Will Smith) leads the air assault, and plays a major part in the final plan to take down the mother ship. I truly enjoyed the cast. Jeff Goldblum brings his sarcastic style back from Jurassic Park, as he uses it in a comedic way. Will Smith however, steals the show, as the funniest character, while at the same time he shows that he can be a respectable actor at the same time. This movie defiantly helped his movie career, as he has went on to do many other movies.

When we finally see the destructive capabilities of the aliens, and learn that they aren't here to "make peace" we are provided with a show of fire and explosions. Out of the millions of movies where you see New York get obliterated, this is one of the better ones. But it isn't limited to New York. We see the white house blow, parts of Las Angeles, and also historical places around the world get destroyed.

The plot towards the end gets a little weak, and hard to believe, but will still satisfy science fiction and actions fans. The dialogue was excellent, and Pullman's final motivation speech is memorable. There are a lot of tense moments between the characters, and allows for good development.

The aliens look really cool, and quite creepy. Excellent graphics add to the darkness to this upbeat film. It's not quite a rollercoaster type of movie, but you are never locked into one mood, which is reliving when the movie is nearly two hours long.

The ending is a little weak, leaving you to wonder why the script writer would just cut it off like that. Despite the plot's weak point, it doesn't ruin the fun of this movie.

I am not much of science fiction fan, but I was thorouhly pleased with this one. Get the popcorn out for "Independence Day" it's true fun entertainment, and something you'll want to watch again, later on.

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