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Independence Day

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Independence Day (1996)

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Reviews Counted:54

Fresh:33

Rotten:21

Average Rating:6.2/10

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

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Rated: PG-13 [See Full Rating] for sci-fi destruction and violence

Runtime: 2 hr. 15 min.

Genre: Action & Adventure, Mystery & Suspense, Science Fiction & Fantasy

Theatrical Release: Jul 2, 1996 Wide

Synopsis: It is an ordinary summer day. But then, without warning, something very extraordinary happens. Enormous shadows fall across the land. Strange... It is an ordinary summer day. But then, without warning, something very extraordinary happens. Enormous shadows fall across the land. Strange atmospheric phenomena, ominous and mesmerizing, surface around the globe. All eyes turn upward. The question of whether we're alone in the universe has finally been answered. And, in a matter of minutes, the lives of every person across the globe are forever changed. With the fate of our planet at stake, the Fourth of July is about to take on an entirely new meaning. No longer will it be an American holiday. It will be known as the day the entire world fought back. The day we did not go gentle into the good night... The day all of us on planet Earth celebrated our independence day. [More]

Starring: Will Smith, Bill Pullman, Jeff Goldblum, Mary McDonnell

Starring: Will Smith, Bill Pullman, Jeff Goldblum, Mary McDonnell, Judd Hirsch, Margaret Colin, Jay Acovone, Adam Baldwin, Kimberly Beck, John Capodice, Greg Collins, Deenie Dakota, Malcom Danare, Thomas F. Duffy, Jerry Dunphy, Bobby Hosea, Rance Howard, Jana Marie Hupp, Lisa Jakub, Tim Kelleher, Carlos Lacamara, Dan Lauria, Robert Loggia, Nelson Mashita, Jon Mathews, Jack Moore, John Bennett Perry, Jeff Phillips, Jim Piddock, Robert Pine, David Pressman, George Putnam, Randy Quaid, James Rebhorn, Elston Ridgle, Raphael Sbarge, Pat Skipper, Bill Smitrovich, Brent Spiner, Lisa Star, John Storey, Mark Thompson, Lyman Ward, Mirron E. Willis, Michael Winther, Harry Connick Jr., Harvey Fierstein, Barry Nolan, Frank Novak, Frank Welker, Anthony Crivello, Vivica A. Fox, Robin Groth, Richard Pachorek, Kevin Sifuentes, Richard Speight Jr, Ross Elliot Bagley, James Duval, Andrew Keegan, Mae Whitman, Devon Gummersall, Leland Orser, Kiersten Warren, Thom Barry, Joe Fowler, John McLaughlin, Randy Oglesby, Ross Lacy, John Bradley, Giuseppe Andrews, Fred Barnes, James Wong, Wayne Wilderson, Adam Tomei, Sayed Badreya, Eleanor Clift, Joyce Cohen, Jack Germond, Steve Giannelli, James J. Joyce, Morton Kondracke, Carlos Lara, Michael G. Moertl, Mike Monteleone, Julie Moran, Marisa Morell, Vivian Palermo, Matt Pashkow, Eric Paskel, Lee Strauss, Troy Willis, Eric Michael Zee, Brooks Arthur

Director: Roland Emmerich

Director: Roland Emmerich
Screenwriter: Dean Devlin, Roland Emmerich
Producer: Dean Devlin
Distributor: 20th Century Fox

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REVIEWS FOR INDEPENDENCE DAY

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1 - 20 of 56 (sorted by date)
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N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Hollywood.com | comment Comment
Sep 8, 2009
Hollywood.com

Independence Day Restores Order to the Millennium.

Full Review Source: City Pages, Minneapolis/St. Paul | comment Comment
Sep 1, 2009
Rob Nelson
Rob Nelson
City Pages, Minneapolis/St. Paul
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Washington Post | comment Comment
Oct 18, 2008
Washington Post
Top Critic IconTop Critic

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
Jul 7, 2008
Steve Biodrowski
Steve Biodrowski
ESplatter

Splendidly cheesy entertainment.

Full Review Source: CNN.com | comment Comment
Mar 5, 2008
Carol Buckland
Carol Buckland
CNN.com
Top Critic IconTop Critic

Insanely pompous and brilliantly exhilarating in equal measure.

Full Review Source: Film4 | comment Comment
Mar 5, 2008
Film4

It's the first futuristic disaster movie that's as cute as a button. Which, when all the special effects blow over, is what we Americans like in a monster hit.

Full Review Source: Entertainment Weekly | comment Comment
Mar 5, 2008
Lisa Schwarzbaum
Lisa Schwarzbaum
Entertainment Weekly
Top Critic IconTop Critic

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

Full Review Source: Newsweek | comment Comment
Mar 5, 2008
David Ansen
David Ansen
Newsweek
Top Critic IconTop Critic

As unavoidably entertaining as it is hopelessly cornball.

Full Review Source: Variety | comment Comment
Mar 5, 2008
Todd McCarthy
Todd McCarthy
Variety
Top Critic IconTop Critic

Maybe the moviemakers' mission was to boldly go where everyone in Hollywood has gone before: the bank.

Full Review Source: Washington Post | comment 1 Comment
Mar 5, 2008
Rita Kempley
Rita Kempley
Washington Post
Top Critic IconTop Critic

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

Full Review Source: Reeling Reviews | comment Comment
Mar 5, 2008
Laura Clifford
Laura Clifford
Reeling Reviews

The earnestness, the effects, and the notion of a whole world forgetting its differences to defeat a common foe carry a certain charm.

Full Review Source: Chicago Reader | comment Comment
Mar 5, 2008
Jonathan Rosenbaum
Jonathan Rosenbaum
Chicago Reader
Top Critic IconTop Critic

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 8 Comments
Aug 13, 2007
Rob Gonsalves
Rob Gonsalves
eFilmCritic.com

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 2 Comments
Feb 17, 2007
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Combustible Celluloid

Everything feels anti-climactic after the fireworks, but the moral is clear: it's the end of the world as we know it. And we feel fine.

Full Review Source: Time Out | comment Comment
Feb 9, 2006
Time Out

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

Full Review Source: Reeling Reviews | comment Comment
Apr 9, 2005
Robin Clifford
Robin Clifford
Reeling Reviews

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

Full Review | comment Comment
Dec 28, 2004
Steve Crum
Steve Crum
Kansas City Kansan

Finally, science fiction the way it used to be: rousing, cosmically xenophobic and ferociously patriotic... Take that, space bullies!

Full Review Source: TV Guide's Movie Guide | comment Comment
Jul 30, 2003
Maitland McDonagh
Maitland McDonagh
TV Guide's Movie Guide

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Palo Alto Weekly | comment Comment
May 20, 2003
Susan Tavernetti
Susan Tavernetti
Palo Alto Weekly

One of the prime guilty pleasures of our time.

Full Review | comment Comment
Feb 14, 2003
Dragan Antulov
Dragan Antulov
rec.arts.movies.reviews
 
 
1 - 20 of 56 (sorted by date)
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LATEST NEWS FOR INDEPENDENCE DAY

all

November 16, 2009: Emmerich Talks Independence Day Sequels
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 2, 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 has a gargantuan... More...

March 3, 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 romantic lead, action... More...

March 6, 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...

February 21, 2008: For Roland Emmerich, 2012 Is Now
Roland Emmerich's 10,000 B.C. won't arrive in theaters until March 7, but the big-budget-lovin' director already has studios lining up to pay for his next project. More...

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