Movie Review: Independence Day: Resurgence

Utah Statesman

After 20 years in the making, the world finally receives a sequel to 1996’s popcorn classic, “Independence Day.”

Set 20 years after the events of 1996, the world has united under a new coalition. Nations have set aside their differences, realizing that mankind faces greater threats from outer space than one another. With the combined might of Earth’s new defense initiative, made possible by new technology introduced by the 1996 invaders, mankind is finally able to defend itself from the outside. However, the aliens have also been rebuilding, and are ready to once again attack Earth with an even deadlier resolve.

It would be a stretch to say that a large group of people were anticipating this release to the extent that other sci-fi franchises have recently gathered for their sequels. The first “Independence Day” doesn’t exactly fall into the same caliber of quality that films from other more successful franchises have achieved, so the hype was relatively mellow and expectations weren’t soaring particularly high for “Resurgence.” All I really expected was a visually entertaining film with fun characters, fueled by solid cast performances and cool aliens. These are all things that the original provided, however, simply being fun and cool doesn’t necessarily make a film great, and “Independence Day: Resurgence” failed to even be as decent of a film as its predecessor.

“Resurgence” suffers from a common struggle that many sequels face. That is, trying to continue the relevancy of the original’s main conflict while also portraying new challenges to keep the plot from becoming redundant or predictable.

Unfortunately, “Resurgence” took David Levinson’s (Jeff Goldblum) compulsive recycling obsession from the original and quite literally applied it to the plot and direction. Scenes from the original were taken shot-for-shot and reapplied into this sequel. The plot was basically the same as the original, only with bigger ships and more lasers for the people of Earth to use, thanks to 20 years of technological advancements. It tried way too hard to retain the importance of the original main characters, while also attempting to make room for an abundance of new characters. This made it crowded and difficult to follow. Though the original film isn’t known for its depth, it did at least provide some likeable characters with motivations you could get behind, as well as some memorable quotes. Virtually none of the new cast members provided an interesting character, and this wasn’t helped by what Liam Hemsworth and company were provided by the script writers.

The writing in this movie is pure cheese. Every attempt at a one-liner, or even a joke, misfired with even more attempts to pay tribute to the original by recycling some of its quotes. The script’s absurdity is best summed up in one character’s last words before tragically dying:

“This was supposed to be a sweater.”

In the end, this movie just doesn’t give the viewer much to root for. The people in 1996 were vastly outnumbered and outmatched by the aliens due to their comparatively meager technology, thus making the situation more dire and the challenge more insurmountable. It made the film relatable to the viewer, as they can imagine themselves in the same situation. Now, in “Resurgence,” that relatability is diminished by weak character motivations and a space defense initiative that even Reagan would find impressive. The movie tries to show the audience that the stakes are high, but it’s not very convincing.

Now, I know it sounds like I completely hated this movie, but it did offer some enjoyably flashy action that can be fun on giant movie screen while munching popcorn. However, it’s just not as good of a popcorn film as its predecessor. It didn’t even succeed at being a decent film like the original, which is just inexcusable for this type of movie. The characters were boring, the script was lame, the plot was predictable, and it couldn’t even spare us from a shameless plug that served purely as a set up for an eventual part three.

To all the moviegoers who read this, if you absolutely need to see this movie, wait for matinee price or half off Tuesday, but please do not pay full price for a ticket. Check out “The Shallows” instead, I heard it was the highlight of the weekend. Until next time, happy watching.

-edcollins270@gmail.com