In their formulative years, some kids like to draw mythical creatures. Or dinosaurs. Or whatever their little minds can conjure up. Me? I drew airplanes exploding. Suffice to say, as a ten year old in mid 1996, there was not a movie I wanted to see anymore than Independence Day. The teaser trailer image of aliens attacking the White House is seared into my memory and became one of the iconic pop culture images of the 1990's. As the film approaches its sweet sixteenth, I decided take a look at how the prime example of sci-fi pulp up in the modern age.

The premise of Independence Day (or ID4 as its promotional abbreviation was known) is simple. An unknown and technically superior alien race enters the earth's atmosphere at strategic locations around the world. Their intentions are soon revealed when attempts to communicate with the alien ships result in a pre-emptive attack which destroys the biggest cities in the world. F-16 Navy Captain Steven Hiller (Will Smith) and scientist David Levinson (Jeff Goldblum) are drafted into the cause to strike back at the invaders before there is nothing left to fight for.



Link: Tweaktown