Independence Day 2 (2016)

Independence Day 2: Redundance. No, I didn't get the name wrong, the title exactly describes my opinion of this movie. I didn't want to follow my review of Te3n with another movie review but I had to pen this entry after watching this '20 years in the making' sequel of 'Independence Day'. 'Independence Day' was one of the favorite movies of my childhood. It was a throwback to the disaster movies of the 70s and was punctuated by fast paced action, colorful characters and a slick screenplay. The icing on the cake was an unbeatable antagonist who always seemed to be one step ahead of the heroes.

Independence Day: Resurgence lacks the punch <Courtesy: 20th Century Studios>

Twenty years on the machismo doesn't look as cool, the tempo doesn't rally and the bravado doesn't impress. A major reason for this is, you have already seen everything showcased in this movie a zillion times before and the movie reeks of cinematic redundance. The plot line is no different from the first part. The aliens make their return after 20 years to exact retribution and like the first part after failing to repel the first wave of attack, the heroes assemble in Area 51 to plan the final assault. The havoc caused by the surprise attack of the aliens and the climatic battle were the highlights of the first part. The sequel doesn't match up on both counts as the surprise is non-existent and the climax follows a beaten path. The aliens whose technology is touted to be far more advanced than ours just don't seem to believe in the merits of a distributed administration system considering the fact that they lost the previous war when their Queen Ship was hit (Oh! these aliens desperately require a class in IT Administration).

So is 'Independence Day 2' a total wash off? The answer is 'No'. While it doesn't have the novelty value of the first part it tries to make up by being a faithful sequel. Every major character which was alive at the end of the first part makes their return (or their absence is explained) except Margaret Colin and Adam Baldwin's characters. Seeing Jeff Goldblum and Bill Pullman in lead roles once again left me with a feeling of nostalgia. After watching the first part I totally expected to see both of them take off with some meaty starring roles but it was Wills Smith who emerged as the top star from that film. Nevertheless it was good to see them back and they totally stole the thunder from the top-billed Liam Hemsworth. Then there is William Fichtner (the perennial bad guy) making an interesting turn as the President of the United States of America (Yes that's a Spoiler!).

Bill Pullman returns in Independence Day Resurgence

Bill Pullman returns in Independence Day 2 <Courtesy: 20th Century Studios>

William Fichtner as General Adams in Independence Day 2

William Fichtner as General Adams <Courtesy: Rotten Tomatoes Coming Soon>

Finally watch 'Independence Day: Resurgence' only if you want to kill some time, don't mind the rather predictable script and can withstand the ugliest aliens ever to be featured on a movie screen (Yeah! they make the Alien look like a stud muffin) . It's definitely not as depressing as Batman V Superman and actually conveys a pretty interesting message that adversity more than anything else unites humankind. If only we as human beings can unite without the threat of an apocalypse looming over us, this world would be a much better place. I for my part will always remember this movie for the souvenir they gave out at the end of the film. I have definitely enlisted in 'Earth Space Defense' and am already doing my part for the 'Earth Space Movie Industry' by writing this review (pun intended).

Independence Day: Resurgence souvenir

I hereby also offer my suggestion to the director of this movie, Roland Emmerich, "Dear Roland, it's very evident that the idea of a trilogy has taken shape in your mind. Please collaborate with the Star Wars franchise, that way we the audience won't be sapped by intergalactic battles spawning the movie universe. Cities, Countries and Continents have already been destroyed, let's at least conserve 'The Space' so that the audience of tomorrow don't end up with a movie galaxy filled with asteroids and devoid of planets or stars".

Until Next Time,

Your Movie Buff,
J.J. Chaitanya.

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