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Winner of the Academy Award for Best Visual Effects, Independence Day is a true summer blockbuster in the traditional sense. Released on July 4, 1996, the film enjoyed a long run in theaters across America, and the larger than life plotline made this sci-fi thriller one of the biggest commercial draws of its time. From an entertainment standpoint, Independence Day deserved every bit of the attention it received. Most notably, because Independence Day is an epic that a wide-ranging and diverse audience of movie-goers will find fun and enjoyable'

When Captain Steven Hiller (Will Smith) looks forward to his acceptance by NASA in the astronaut training program, he experiences a rude awakening when strange movements of clouds hover into the area and reveal themselves to be alien spaceships. As the world's leading governments and militaries go on high alert, the world holds its collective breath waiting to see what will happen next. Against the backdrop of this worldwide event, David Levinson (Jeff Goldblum) notices a peculiar pattern in the spaceship deployment. Along with his father Julius (Judd Hirsch), he urgently travels from New York to Washington DC in order to warn the president of impending danger. (He can do this because his ex-wife is an aide to the president, thus providing him with a means of access).

Despite their past differences, David manages to convince President Whitmore (Bill Pullman) that the true intent of the alien spacecraft is invasion, and no olive branch of peace will appease them. When David's assertion proves to be right, most of the world's major cities are completely destroyed by a super laser emanating from the undersides of the monstrous, city-sized alien structures. As all-out war ensues, earthlings quickly discover that the alien craft are protected by an impenetrable force field, thus rendering the desperate human counterattacks useless.

As refugees crowd into the rural areas of America, Capt. Hiller is brought to Area 51 and introduced to the president. This once mysterious location is revealed to house an alien spacecraft identical to the ones which now threaten earth, and plans are put in place to make this craft operational once again. But, still, the problem remains of how to go about defeating the alien invaders. In a plot twist reminiscent of Star Wars, the answer comes to David when his father warns him not to catch cold'

Overall, I didn't expect to like this film, yet I did. Surprisingly unoriginal in its deployment of the same plot device used by George Lucas in the blockbuster film The Return Of The Jedi, Independence Day is nevertheless a fun and enjoyable film. The storyline of a battle between humans and aliens tends to evoke a subconscious adrenaline surge in even the most casual of viewers, leading to an emotionally involved audience anxious to discover the outcome of this modern day war of the worlds. Although by no means should this be considered one of the greatest films of all time, it is thoroughly entertaining. Take a chance and go see it if you haven't done so already.